A Patrick & Henry Neighborhood School pupil secured the highest spot in a regional enterprise competitors by bringing environmental issues to the forefront. 

Sara Wall of Martinsville acquired $1,000 in funding because the winner of the RISE Collegiate Enterprise Plan Competitors, a contest wherein the enterprise plans of scholars from throughout southern Virginia are pitted in opposition to each other to find out who has probably the most revolutionary thought. Wall’s successful enterprise pitch was Swam, a retail retailer that connects shoppers to environmentally secure merchandise.  

The second competitors in as a few years, it was held at Hampden-Sydney School in Farmville on March 23. It was sponsored by the RISE Collaborative. 

This 12 months’s competitors included members from Averett College, Longwood College, Hampden-Sydney and Patrick & Henry. Final 12 months’s Martinsville participant got here in third. 

The competitors was considerably analogous to the present “Shark Tank,” the place entrepreneurs pitch their concepts to attainable traders, stated Michael Scales, one of many coaches who helps college students polish their proposals earlier than presenting them. He’s a professor at Longwood, the place he teaches arithmetic and workforce improvement, and he additionally oversees the Longwood Small Enterprise Growth Heart.

This 12 months’s crop of enterprise pitches included concepts from 12 pupil entrepreneurs, Scales stated. He labored with Wall on her thought, and stated that whereas he was impressed with the opposite pupil members, she was a transparent standout. 

“The speculation is it’s greatest to get individuals prepared with a marketing strategy and do away with all of the potholes,” Scales stated. “Lots of issues can go mistaken, or proper, and it’s essential be ready for it.” 

He stated he loved working with Wall and believes there may be benefit to her thought. 

Wall, who’s learning enterprise, later added that Scales launched her to abilities like figuring out and contacting distributors. 

“How do you retain your clients coming again, how do you retain issues contemporary?” Wall stated. “How do you get the repeat clients?”                 

Wall stated a retailer specializing in eco-friendly gadgets, like biodegradable toys and knick-knacks or non-polluting cleansing gadgets, is extra novel than individuals notice.  

“It’s an eco-friendly retail retailer,” Wall stated. “It’s all sustainable, biodegradable, non-plastic and recyclable gadgets, and it’s all below one roof.” 

For taking the highest spot Wall acquired a money prize of $1,000, earmarked for the aim of turning her pitch to actuality. She hopes to open Swam within the Martinsville-Henry County space however doesn’t have a concrete date, citing numerous bills, like stock and venue area,  she must cowl earlier than she begins promoting eco-friendly wares. 

In the interim, she needs to proceed specializing in her training. 

Scales stated he’s assured Wall will make a splash within the coming years and provides that the RISE Competitors will possible do the identical for years to come back. Talking on Martinsville’s success on this 12 months’s competitors, he stated town is not any totally different from bigger ones. 

“It doesn’t matter who you’re or the place you come from,” Scales stated. “When you put within the laborious work … you possibly can persuade those who your concepts will not be solely viable however will succeed.” 

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