Pictured from left: Al Grossnickle, Grace College; Melanie Mason, TVHS; Renea Salyer, WKChamber member relations/YEA! Program Manager; Robert Chalfant, Male Fashions; Nick Deeter, The Old Leesburg Mill; Sofia Boganwright, Boost Your Beauty CEO; Jeff Dryer, Paragon Medical; Taylor Garringer, Boost Your Beauty CFO; Jeff Shriver, TVHS; Ken Norris, The Auto Park; and Brett Boggs, superintendent of Tippecanoe Valley Schools.
(Photo provided)

The evening of Friday, March 14, at Tippecanoe Valley High School, the Tippecanoe Valley Young Entrepreneurs Academy students presented to a panel of four business leaders, who included: Jeff Dryer of Paragon Medical; Rob Chalfant, Male Fashions; Nick Deeter, The Old Leesburg Mill; and Ken Norris, The Auto Park.

The 12 student businesses had 6 minutes to speak about their business plans and ask the investors for funding. The Investor Panel deciding how much to fund each business and chose the business to advance to the Regional Saunders Semi-Finals in Boca Raton, Fla., on May 15-16. 

The panel had a tough job, as each of the 12 businesses presented extremely well, but ultimately chose Boost Your Beauty (BYB). Boost Your Beauty provides nail care services for women in nursing homes. BYB plans to socialize with the residents while providing nail care.

Boost Your Beauty is a partnership service created by two high school senior girls — Sofia Bogawright and Taylor Garringer. Sofia and Taylor created the idea based on their passions to help women feel beautiful. Sofia is an intern at J Three salon in Warsaw, Taylor is a certified nursing assistant at Miller’s Merry Manor.

Three winning businesses from the Regional Semi-Finals will go on to compete at the Saunders Finals in Washington, D.C., June 11-12, at the America’s Small Business Summit. There, one of those businesses will have a chance to receive college scholarships, a business start-up prize package and an opportunity to audition to present on Shark Tank.

YEA nationally is sponsored by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Kauffman Foundation. Local sponsors are Grace College School of Business, The Auto Park, Paragon Medical, Maple Leaf Farms and Rapid View.

To learn more about becoming a mentor, speaker or sponsor the next school year, contact the WKChamber of Commerce at 574-267-6311, email: [email protected]  or visit wkchamber.com.