Future UWO student wins H.S. business model pitch with real estate tool

Technological advancements in the real estate industry led the pitches of 12 teams competing in the University of Wisconsin’s recent Oshkosh Wisconsin High School Business Model Competition.

Students took the opportunity to advance their business and educational future.

Benjamin Busha of Oshkosh West High School won with Neway REI, a startup designed to give real estate investors a competitive advantage.

“The event was a very special day for me and I’m glad that UWO hosted it,” said Busha.

The 12 teams were invited to the UWO campus on May 22nd to compete for $ 15,000 in UWO scholarship and cash awards.

Busha, the Oshkosh graduate who won the competition, took home a $ 8,000 scholarship to study at UW Oshkosh. Busha will start studying entrepreneurship in the fall.

Second place went to a team promoting an alternative Commah ― an alternative to the competition’s usual chemical air fresheners. The team has created a purely natural air freshener with only five ingredients from nature.

Third place went to American Maker ― Creator of customizable signs and card stands.

Busha said he developed an interest in real estate late last year and was beginning to realize that the industry was not keeping up with the latest technology. In addition, he found that the services offered had “little to no ROI (return on investment)”.

Busha’s first attempt to remedy the situation was unsuccessful. He said he then reached out to a few successful companies in different industries. He paid her hourly to learn systems and processes for implementing a sustainable business model. It’s expensive, he said, but it’s worth it.

Based on what he learned, he put together a system that was well received and well received by brokers.

Busha continues to seek ways to create more of a software as a service (SaaS) model and raise capital.

Kick-off event

“This was the first year we hosted the competition and we plan to host it again in the spring of 2022,” said Dan Brosman, executive director of UWO’s Alta Resources Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. He added that filings came from high schools across Wisconsin, with sophomores, juniors and seniors vying for scholarship awards for UW Oshkosh.

Dan Brosman

Submissions, Brosman said, ranged from new ideas to existing businesses that were already generating small revenues. The types of business covered many industries, from restaurants to high tech solutions.

“I was impressed with the creativity and maturity of the students who were hired this year,” said Brosman.

The competition provides high school students with an opportunity to learn valuable presentation and communication skills outside of the classroom while participating in a college-level competition and improving business skills.

Attendees

Twelve student teams:

American manufacturer; Authenticated; AxHosh; Bonefide Tailwaggers; C&C business consultancy; Chrome dome; Comma; Neway REI; Plastic bonded; Plexi microphones; Tailor-made; and unity.

Austin Phillips, founder of Ardent Fitness and Education, was the keynote speaker during a lunch break.

The judges for the event were Patti Purcell, founder of Writing by Design; Brittany Lutz, founder of The Sweet Lair; Jessica Meindl, manager of the Oshkosh Business Improvement District; Jolene Heuchert, small business owner at VERVE; Nikki Hessel, CEO of Future Neenah; Kim Mischler, founder of Sticky Fingers; Tricia Relativel, Director of Economic Development at GO EDC.

Learn more: