University Of Alaska Anchorage: Perfect Pitch Crowns Winners While Contributing To Economic Development

Press release from the University of Alaska Anchorage:

March 30, 2021

The minutes ticked by slowly the evening of Friday, March 26, as competitors and participants
waited for the results of Perfect Pitch, the final event in the 2021 Business Plan
Competition sponsored by the UAA College of Business and Public Policy (CBPP). This
year the competition was open to both UAA students and members of the community. 

The four finalists had presented their pitches to seven judges and 80 attendees. While
judges entered a Zoom breakout room to deliberate, attendees cast their votes for
the People’s Choice Award. The result? Telequana Outdoor Journeys and Tiny Haven tied
for People’s Choice. Then they swept the rest of the awards, too.

“Judging the excellent submissions in the Business Plan Competition this year was
an absolute joy,” said Joe Zimmerman, business owner and chair of CBPP’s advisory
board. “It was inspiring to review the creative ideas submitted and the solid plans
for putting these concepts into practice. I see a lot of successes for our economy
as plans such as these contribute to our future.”

Kiana Till developed the concept and business plan behind Telequana Outdoor Journeys,
which took the grand prize, tied for People’s Choice and also won the First Fortune
$500 Award sponsored by Alaskan Data Solutions, for a total of $7,250. Kiana is a
student at Alaska Pacific University who became intrigued with ecotourism opportunities
in the Lake Clark area while interning with the National Park Service in 2018. Her
startup seeks to provide Indigenously influenced ecotourism experiences in Qizjeh Vena (Lake Clark). Business partners include Karen Evanoff, a cultural anthropologist
with Lake Clark National Park, and Danielle Stickman, both of Dena’ina Athabascan
descent. 

“We want to redefine opportunity for adventure in Alaska by including Alaska Native
people in the tourism industry,” said Till. “I am so passionate about our women-owned
ecotourism business, because people in this region need jobs and they are going to
be excellent candidates to hire. Winning this money really helps our startup and will
go a long way. I am so grateful for this opportunity.”

UAA psychology senior Aimee Hassell with Tiny Haven wants to build a community of
tiny homes to provide affordable student housing during the school year and accommodations
for tourists in the summer months. In addition to her People’s Choice co-win, Hassell
earned second prize for her business plan, awarding her $3,750 toward realizing her
dream. 

The 2021 competition started in October 2020 and included multiple events for competitors
to receive guidance and insights from a panel of business executives, entrepreneurs
and investors. “It’s a tremendous experience for all the entrepreneurial competitors,”
said John Nofsinger, CBPP interim dean. “They get education, mentoring and exposure
to successful business professionals. All of the participants this year were terrific
and I endeavor to witness their ideas flourish.”

“The mentors and judges’ feedback was incredibly helpful,” said Hassell. “Defending
your business plan is a lot like defending a thesis: You are suddenly very aware of
how sound your theory is! It's also really great to see what other students and startup
businesses are doing to make their futures bright, while making Alaska a better place
to live.”

“At its core, this competition aims to inspire entrepreneurship that can contribute
to economic growth in Alaska and to provide a forum for community engagement,” said
competition organizer Helena Wisniewski, Ph.D., who is a seasoned entrepreneur herself
and chair of the Department of Management, Marketing, Logistics and Business Analytics.
“It was exciting to see the diversity of the startups and the business acumen shown
in the final pitches. It confirmed the talent we have in Alaska to grow and diversify
the economy.”

Judges for the 2021 competition included Wisniewski and Zimmerman, along with Joel
Yarmon, Steve Socolof, Jon Bittner, James Kostka, Allan Johnston, Candy Fitzpatrick
and Greg Wolf.

Community sponsors included Northrim Bank, Mr. Allan Johnston and Alaskan Data Solutions,
which created the new First Fortune $500 Award.

This press release was produced by the University of Alaska Anchorage. The views expressed here are the author’s own.