The Graves Business Plan Competition is a unique, two-category pitch competition that provides real-world experience for student entrepreneurs twice a year at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Hosted by the Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation housed in the Haslam College of Business, the fall 2024 competition featured an array of businesses founded by undergraduate and graduate students from colleges all across campus, who pitched their companies to a panel of expert judges.
Growth Category Startup Winners
The competition’s growth category features three prize levels for startups seeking large investment with high scalability. First place and $5,000 in this category was awarded to Partnerly, founded by Blake Hopkins, a senior supply chain management major from Fayetteville, Tenn. Hopkins, who also took third place in the Fall 2024 Vol Court pitch competition, started Partnerly out of his personal experience struggling to find paid partnerships on social media. To solve this problem, Partnerly helps connect content creators with small businesses to streamline the process for social media paid partnerships to succeed.
“Winning Graves has always been a goal of mine, and it’s an honor to receive such an award,” Hopkins said. “The funding will go a long way to help Partnerly successfully launch.”
Second place in the growth category and $3,000 went to AluminAiry, a business developing and commercializing stationary and portable generation systems using aluminum-air battery technology. Its systems convert recycled aluminum and oxygen from the air into clean energy for multiple applications. It’s co-founded by Brian Washington, a PhD chemical engineering student from Tuscaloosa, Ala.
“Winning the Graves Business Plan Competition is an incredible milestone and accomplishment for AluminAiry, validating our mission to create impactful, sustainable energy solutions and propelling us forward as we strive to reach our goals,” Washington said.
The growth category’s third-place prize of $2,000 was awarded to Student2Student Career Coaching, founded by Anna Chen, a senior industrial and systems engineering major from Clarksville, Tenn. Her business empowers students to take control of their career journeys by offering affordable, high-value guidance on resumes, interviews and personal branding. Chen aims to bridge the gap for students from non-target and underserved schools and equip them with the tools they need to break into competitive industries.
“Winning the Graves Business Plan Competition is an incredible boost for Student2Student Career Coaching, providing us with the resources and momentum to expand our reach and impact,” shared Chen. “This recognition affirms our mission to create accessible career opportunities for students and empowers us to take our vision to the next level. We’re immensely grateful for this opportunity and excited to broaden our impact and support even more students and professionals on their career journeys.”
Lifestyle Category Startup Winners
The lifestyle category of the competition features three prize levels and is for startups targeted to support local or smaller-scale opportunities.
The lifestyle category’s first place and $5,000 prize was awarded to MedSpa Growth Solution founded by Connor Langford, a senior marketing major and entrepreneurship minor from Knoxville, Tenn. MedSpa Growth Solution is a digital marketing agency that helps Med Spas grow by filling their calendars, keeping clients coming back and building their online presence.
“Winning the Graves Business Plan Competition is a huge honor for MedSpa Growth Solution,” said Langford. “We’re excited to make an impact for businesses here in Knoxville and across the USA. It’s a privilege to build a company dedicated to helping other businesses thrive.”
Second place and $3,000 in the category went to Pink Apron, a bakery service that supplies high quality European-styled pastries to local bakeries and events in Knoxville. The company also won the lifestyle category in the Spring 2024 Graves Business Plan Competition. It’s co-founded by Grant Coggin, a senior chemical engineering major from Farragut, Tenn.
“Winning the Graves Business Competition validates our business plan and helps to launch us even further,” said Coggin. “The Anderson Center has helped Pink Apron not only start but continue to grow.”
The lifestyle category’s third place and $2,000 prize was awarded to ZNAKICKS, a 3rd party reseller and education company focused on the sneaker industry. It was founded by Zain Zitawi, a senior marketing major from Knoxville, Tenn, out of his passion for sneakers and the sneaker market.
“Winning the Graves Business Plan Competition is so rewarding,” said Zitawi. “Being able to win funding for my dream through the university has allowed me to build ZNAKICKS from the ground up. Thank you to the Anderson Center and all the great judges for allowing me the opportunity to be a part of this.”
Special Recognition
The Anderson Center presented an additional prize at this semester’s awards ceremony. The University of Tennessee Entrepreneurs Club (UTEC) awarded a prize of $1,000 to the best pitch from a UTEC member. Max Gallinek, a first-year supply chain management major from Charlotte, N.C., was the recipient of this award. He founded NarConnect, a campus-wide software solution that bridges the gap between those in need of Narcan and individuals carrying the medication.
According to Breanna Hale, executive director of the Anderson Center, what makes the Graves Business Plan Competition special is seeing the diversity of undergraduate and graduate students from all parts of campus present their ideas to judges who have been successful in business and want to give back.
“The students receive fantastic feedback and make lasting connections, but what’s really powerful is seeing how they grow as entrepreneurs,” Hale said. “They develop confidence, learn to think on their feet and start believing they can turn their ideas into something real. Some students come back year after year, and you can just see how much sharper and more confident they get each time. That’s what makes this competition worthwhile.”
About the Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation
The Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation is the front door to entrepreneurship at UT, connecting entrepreneurs and innovators at every stage with the resources, networks and expertise needed to solve real challenges. By cultivating an entrepreneurial mindset across campus, connecting entrepreneurs with resources and mentorship they need to grow, and collaborating with the UT and regional ecosystem, the Anderson Center is developing an entrepreneurial culture where Volunteers are empowered to identify unmet needs and take bold action to create value through new ventures.
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CONTACT:
Brennan Hullett, brennan@utk.edu
