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 The Smith School’s annual Cupid’s Cup business plan
competition is a daunting prospect for anyone, let alone an
18-year-old kid. But undergraduate Kevin Kirk was up for the
challenge.
Unlike most guys his age, Kirk has a penchant for purses.
At 16, bored with watching his younger sister play lacrosse
every weekend, Kirk began selling handmade hemp jewelry at
his sister’s tournaments, turning a $300 profit on the
average weekend. As his business flourished, Kirk expanded
his horizons to popular tropical-print purses, buying them
wholesale on eBay and marking them up 500 percent. After
selling more than 100 purses in one weekend, he decided to
focus on beefing up his purse lines. During a family
vacation in Hawaii, Kirk found a genuine Hawaiian-print
reversible bag at a rock-bottom price. He ordered several
prints, shipped them home to Maryland, and immediately sold
out of them at his next event. And all this before he even
entered college.
Now a seasoned business owner interested in growing his
empire, Kirk came to the Smith School because of the
resources offered by the Dingman Center for
Entrepreneurship. Armed with a $40,000 entrepreneurial
scholarship from Monster.com founder Andrew J. McKelvey,
Kirk dove head-first into his freshman year.
Recognizing his self-starting talents, Kirk’s advisors at
the Dingman Center drew his attention to their signature
event: the Cupid’s Cup Competition, sponsored by Kevin Plank
’96, founder of Under Armour and one of Kirk’s personal
heroes. Plank, who is passionate about developing and
mentoring aspiring entrepreneurs, funded Cupid’s Cup and
serves as one of its judges as a way to showcase the
university’s rising entrepreneurs. The competition awards
generous cash prizes to fledgling businesses based on a
seven-minute pitch, rewarding vision and enthusiasm with
resources and professional expertise. The 2008 Cupid’s Cup,
which featured the inaugural BB&T Business Invitational, was
a standing-room-only event — a high-pressure,
high-excitement day for Kirk and his fellow competitors.
Kirk was the youngest contender to ever throw his hat in
the ring. With the help of Asher Epstein, managing director
of the Dingman Center, and Dingman Center director of
venture investments and social entrepreneurship Melissa
Carrier, Kirk began a marathon of preparation. Constantly
encouraging him to “think bigger,” Carrier and Epstein
helped Kirk develop the idea of a chain of shopping mall
kiosks, and even helped negotiate a trial lease for him at
the Westfield mall in Annapolis, Md. The trial run was a
resounding success, bringing in just under $10,000 in 16
days.
Eventually Kirk came up with an ambitious plan to present
to the judges: a $100 million plan for 336 kiosk locations
in the most-trafficked malls of the country with a
supporting Web site.
When zero hour arrived, Kirk was the first to take the
stage in front of the packed auditorium. He kept the crowd
laughing and the judges intrigued. Pointed questions were
given pointed answers during the few minutes following his
presentation.
And how did it all work out? Well, Kirk didn’t win
Cupid’s Cup — that honor went to Anaptyx, an innovative
community Wi-Fi service provider. But he did come away with
the $5,000 People’s Choice award for being the audience
favorite. And Plank offered him a summer internship, which
he gladly accepted. A happy ending — or more accurately, a
happy beginning to an undergraduate entrepreneur’s Smith
career.
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2008 Cupid’s Cup Winners
First Place – Jonathon Rust, Anaptyx
Second Place – Benjamin Solof and Steven Grella,
Maverick
Development
Cupid’s Cup Business Competition People’s Choice Award –
Kevin Kirk,
A Slice of Paradise
BB&T Business Invitational Best Portfolio Company – Todd
Wilson, Baby Fans
BB&T Business Invitational Best Student Business – Cherry
Kwunyeun, Blumpari
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BB&T Business Invitational Debuts at Cupid’s Cup
A buzz-worthy prelude to the 2008 Cupid’s Cup
Competition, the inaugural BB&T Business Invitational gave
Dingman-incubated ventures the ability to showcase their
companies to the university community and compete for a
$2,000 check.
Featuring such companies as CMART, and winners Blumpari
(Best Student Company) and Baby Fans (Best Portfolio
Company), the invitational was clearly a project BB&T
regional president and Smith Board of Visitors member Dontá
Wilson, MBA ’05, takes pride in. “BB&T is proud of its
alliance with the Smith School, and to reward
entrepreneurship and great ideas. The invitational’s goal of
supporting entrepreneurs aligns perfectly with BB&T’s
mission of helping them achieve economic success and
financial security,” says Wilson.
Representing BB&T at the invitational was Bill Toomey, an
area executive and senior vice president whose branch worked
with Dan Shuman, MBA ’02, and Brad Bondruff ’00, MS ’02, CEO
and President, respectively, of CMART, to give them the loan
that would allow them to purchase their company.
Shuman, whose business is thriving under new management,
says, “BB&T stood unmatched in their ability to quickly
grasp the entrepreneurial challenges CMART faces. Our
relationship extends much further than simply our source of
capital.”
Clearly, the relationship held with these two prosperous
local businesses is a credit to the Smith community. And
with the success of the Invitational, expectations for next
year’s event are already set high.
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