More Than $30,000 Awarded to Local Entrepreneurs Including Greeting Cards for the LGBTQ Community and An App to Match Veterans with Employers
Brooklyn, NY—Brooklyn Public Library’s 14th annual PowerUP! Business Plan Competition awarded more than $30,000 to aspiring entrepreneurs at an awards ceremony Monday evening. A $15,000 prize was awarded to first-place winner Jared Moldonado, founder of Catch-A-Ride, a bus service which will connect Brooklyn to cities in the northeast such as Boston, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C.
A judging panel of business owners, nonprofit leaders and academics selected Catch-a-Ride from a field of 66 entries and 12 finalists. The runners-up were Joshua Bloodworth and Victor Hunt for Paragon, an online marketplace to connect building managers with contractors to compare and track bids, and Michele Weisman for Meet the Writers, a program to bring authors and illustrators into underserved schools. Each runner-up received a $5,000 prize, while five other participants received $1,000 merit awards.
The 2017 participants came from every zip code in the borough. Over 75 percent were women; 80 percent identified as a minority. While many participants had college degrees, only half had entrepreneurial experience.
“Brooklyn is home to many innovative entrepreneurs, and BPL is proud to have helped over 100 of them launch businesses around the borough,” said Brooklyn Public Library President and CEO Linda E. Johnson. “We congratulate all of the PowerUP participants tonight for their tremendous commitment and hard work.”
Since its founding in 2003, the PowerUP! contest has provided a total of more than $350,000 to over 125 entrepreneurs. Many successful Brooklyn businesses launched with help from PowerUP! including Bogota Latin Bistro, Dog Parker, Argyle Yarn Shop, Tinsel & Twine Events, and Greenlight Bookstore.
“The Power Up! Awards are a great resource to help aspiring young entrepreneurs who have an enormous impact on Brooklyn’s economy,” said Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Andrew Hoan. “As someone who leads a business advocacy organization, and served as a Power UP! juror, I have personally witnessed success stories of small businesses who have benefitted from start-up initiatives such as this. Kudos to Linda Johnson and the leadership at Brooklyn Public Library for offering this wonderful opportunity to the Brooklyn community.”
All participants attended classes on subjects like marketing, business finance and the utilization of library resources. They also received one-on-one business plan assistance from successful entrepreneurs and business experts.
“Dime congratulates both the winners of the PowerUP! Business Plan Competition and every applicant who participated in this program that is committed to helping local entrepreneurs succeed,” said Kenneth J. Mahon, President and Chief Executive Officer of Dime Community Bank. “Dime recognizes the important role that entrepreneurs and small businesses play in the economic development of our communities and we stand ready to support them to grow and prosper.”
In addition to the winners, the PowerUP! finalists included:
Merit Awards:
• Rebecca Bishop for Out of the Closet cards, sophisticated greeting cards for the LGBTQ market to celebrate special occasions in their lives.
• Barika Edwards and Marie Roker Jones for OweYaa, a veteran and women-owned business app to match veterans and military spouses with employers.
• Chris Egervary and Hannah Gall for Spent Granola Bar, a snack that uses healthy natural ingredients and spent grain, a nutritious byproduct from the beer brewing process.
• Noel Gaskin and Xavier Stewart for NOLOGO backpacks, safe, ergonomically correct load-bearing storage to wear in the form of reconfigurable backpacks.
• Natasha Gaspard for Mane Moves Media, providing narrative-based lifestyle video content to brands looking to reach the natural hair care market.
Honorable Mentions:
• Matt Curinga, Loreto Dumitrescu, David Frackman, Cynthia Yahia for Zero Day Camp, providing computer science and robotics education for children in the Crown Heights/Prospect Heights community through summer camps, afterschool sessions and school year mini-camps.
• Valerie Gurzenda for Pocketship, an e-commerce clothing shop which features women’s clothes with discreet pockets for phones, keys, and more.
• Sergei Levashkin and Galina Shelomentseva for Child Care Match, an online platform that connects child care providers with customers, education professionals and vendors in one convenient, unified space.
• Angeles Mojica for Dig It, a sustainable garden and landscape design company.
The awards ceremony was catered by PowerUP alumni: Island Pops, Tamra Teahouse, Jest Green, Bogota Latin Bistro and Soul Sister Quisine.
Brooklyn Public Library is grateful to the 2017 PowerUP! Business Plan Competition sponsors: Lead Sponsor Dime Community Bank, additional program support provided by Con Edison, Signature Bank, Ridgewood Savings Bank and M&T Bank. The PowerUP! reception is made possible through the generosity of ReferenceUSA from Infogroup.
About Brooklyn Public Library
Brooklyn Public Library (BPL) is an independent library system for the 2.5 million residents of Brooklyn. It is the fifth largest library system in the United States with 60 neighborhood libraries located throughout the borough. BPL offers free programs and services for all ages and stages of life, including a large selection of books in more than 30 languages, author talks, literacy programs and public computers. BPL’s eResources, such as eBooks and eVideos, catalog information and free homework help, are available to customers of all ages 24 hours a day at our website: http://www.bklynlibrary.org/.