If you’ve ever watched the show Shark Tank, you know it takes a tough entrepreneur to present their business idea. On Wednesday, a group of students will put that skill to the test in front of local business leaders in an investor panel. It will take place, appropriately, in front of the 300,000 gallon shark tank at Loveland Living Planet Aquarium.

Each student will have six minutes to explain their business plan and the “sharks,” or investors, will have three questions after each presentation. The investors will then rate their plans and decide on the top viable business. The winning business will get the highest amount of investment funds.

The panel includes Aquarium CEO Brent Andersen, Mike Winder with Zions Bank, Jay Francis with the Larry H. Miller Group, and Assistant Professor Kathy Hajeb with the University of Utah. There are nine investors total.

The 20 students are in the Sandy Chamber Young Entrepreneurs Academy. The Academy is a yearlong class for middle and high school students that helps transform them into real entrepreneurs. Throughout the class, students develop business ideas, write business plans, conduct market research, pitch their plans, and actually launch and run their own real, legal, fully formed companies.

The judges will divide $12,500 to all the businesses, and the winner will go to New York for the Semi-Finals.
The media is invited to cover this event. Please RSVP on sandychamber.com.

WHAT: Young Entrepreneurs present business plans at Loveland Living Planet Aquarium
WHEN: Wednesday, March 30, 2016 at 6:30pm
WHERE: 12033 S. Lone Peak Parkway, Draper, UT 84020