LEWISTON STUDENTS WIN SBA BUSINESS PLAN COMPETITION

By: Katherine E. Arno
Director of Training and Communication
Maine Small Business Development Centers
Phone 207-780-4853/FAX 207-780-4810
E-mail karno@maine.edu

Back row L to R: Maurice Ouellette, Mary McAleney, Matt Bissonnette – Winner of the $500 savings bond, Wendy Russell, Jeffrey Butland. Front row L to R: Monica Lessard – Winner of the $100 savings bond, Gregory Gould.

LEWISTON - Lewiston High School Junior Matt Bissonnette was named winner of the SBA Business Plan Competition coordinated by the Maine Small Business Development Centers (Maine SBDC), an SBA resource partner. Monica Lessard, a senior at Lewiston High School, won second place. In a ceremony today at Lewiston High School, Bissonnette was awarded a $500 U.S. Savings Bond provided by the Maine SBDC, headquartered at the University of Southern Maine. Maine SBDC certified business counselor Gregory Gould made the presentation. Maurice Ouellette presented Lessard a $100 U.S. Savings Bond from the Lewiston-Auburn Chapter of SCORE.

Jeffrey Butland, New England Regional Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA), also presented certificates today to all students who entered the competition. They included Kelly Jackson, Rick Doucette, Cassandra Gutshall, Elizabeth Paine, Tanya Conner, and James McCluskey.

The Maine SBA office launched the competition last year in teacher Wendy Russell's Entrepreneurship class at Lewiston High School. Butland told students that his involvement at last year's awards ceremony inspired him to encourage the SBA to create a newweb site especially for young entrepreneurs. That new site recently launched at http://www.sba.gov/teen. "In my mind," he said, "It was you folks who started it all." Mary McAleney, Maine SBA District Director, joined Butland in congratulating the students and said she hopes that other Maine high schools become involved in the business plan writing competition.

This year Bissonnette based his plan on a retail store that sells games and Lessard based hers on a photography business.

Each student spent over 70 hours working on a business plan including an executive summary, the core plan, market research, three sets of financials, and supporting documents such as an SBA loan application. Russell, who has taught the Entrepreneurship class for three years, calls the project "a lot of work," explaining that she is "asking students to look at some serious questions in life." While their work may actually be useful in launching a future business, Russell said she designed the class so that lessons can be used immediately - such as making difficult choices and managing finances.

Business plans were judged by Maine SBDC business counselors Gregory Gould and Bob Kasputes whose offices are located at the Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments in Auburn, Maine SBA loan officer Helen Brimigion, Lewiston-Auburn SCORE representatives Maurice Ouellette and Ralph Tuttle, and Elizabeth Hoy, commercial loan officer at Auburn Savings Bank.
About Maine Small Business Development Centers: Maine Small Business Development Centers (Maine SBDC) and its tech-focus group, Maine Small Business & Technology Development Centers (Maine SBTDC) provide comprehensive business management assistance, training, resource and information services to Maine's micro, small and technology-based business communities. Business assistance is provided at no
cost to business owners by professional certified business counselors who meet rigorous education and business experience standards.

Maine SBDC/SBTDC is a partnership program of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) in association with the SBA/SBDC, Maine Department of Economic and Community Development (Maine DECD), the University of Southern Maine (USM), and leading economic and/or community development hosting organizations, including the Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments (AVCOG), Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI), Eastern Maine Development Corporation (EMDC), and the Northern Maine Development Commission (NMDC); with support from the Maine Technology Institute (MTI), the University of Maine (UMaine), and other contractors, allies and stakeholders.

Accredited by the Association of Small Business Development Centers (ASBDC) and administered by USM's School of Business, Maine SBDC/SBTDC operates a network of 11 service centers and 25 outreach offices located conveniently throughout the state. Maine SBDC/SBTDC provides comprehensive business management assistance, training, resource and information services to Maine's micro, small, and technology-based business communities.

Maine SBDC/SBTDC's mission is to engage itself and others in development activities that contribute to the improvement of the economic climate for and the success of micro, small, and technology-based businesses in the State of Maine. Its focus is to assist in the creation, growth and maintenance of viable small businesses and the jobs these businesses provide. Maine SBDC/SBTDC serves those seeking assistance who are willing and able to build, sustain, and/or expand their business.

More information about the Maine SBDC/SBTDC can be found at www.mainesbdc.org.

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