Michigan State University’s Paul Reiss won the 26th edition of the Ivey Business Plan Competition with his high-protein, low-sugar ice cream brand, Protein Pints.
Childhood friends, and undergraduate students Reiss and Michael Meadows created Protein Pints to provide an alternative to ice-cream lovers looking for healthier options that don’t compromise on taste. Each pint jas 45 grams of complete protein (equivalent to two protein shakes or bars), and averages 10 grams of sugar (90% less than traditional ice cream). The functional ice cream is gluten-free, and lactose-free, and uses no artificial sweeteners for its chocolate, vanilla, and peanut butter chip flavours. While having crafted the original formulation in their kitchen, Reiss and Meadows have partnered with professional ice cream makers and launched the brand in Michigan-based retailers. They are expecting to launch nationwide soon.
The annual event provides student entrepreneurs, both graduate and undergraduate, the opportunity to pitch their ideas to experienced founders and investors and compete for the top prize of $20,000. This year, the competition included twelve teams representing Michigan State University, University of Arkansas, University of Manitoba, University of Waterloo, and Western University.
Second place and $7,500 was won by SharpStakes, led by Ivey HBA ’24 Candidates Jaiden Sarai and Shubs Kaushal. SharpStakes aims to redefine sports betting for Gen Z users by building tools that instill confidence, and strategy, and give an edge to new sports bettors. Since launching its beta in March 2023, the platform has generated over $400,000 in revenue and garnered over 1000 users in Ontario. Sarai and Kaushal, who are currently in their second venture, are continuing to introduce new tools within their platform as they look to expand across North America. The SharpStakes founders are also alums of the Entrepreneurial Summer Internship Program, as well as Western Angels’ Demo Day.
Third place at the competition, and $2,500, was won by GreaseTech, led by Masters Students Jesurun Ramesh and Minaal Butt. Their venture aims to enhance productivity in North America’s manufacturing sector by targeting human error in the standard manual lubrication for bearings. To accomplish this, Ramesh and Butt are creating a Beta internet-of-things sensor and Saas platform to monitor grease levels and bearing health to solve a problem costing manufacturers billions of dollars each year.
Since 1998, the Ivey Business Plan Competition has brought together student teams and aspiring entrepreneurs from across North America and beyond, to help test their ideas, sharpen their entrepreneurial instincts and skills, and create an invaluable network of like-minded peers and mentors. Previous competitors have included the founder of SAXX Underwear, Trent Kitsch, MBA ’07, and CBC Dragon Michele Romanow.
The competition included a pitch workshop with serial entrepreneur Ash Singh, HBA '04, mentoring and feedback sessions, and a gala event with a fireside chat with Margaret Coons, BA’12, Founder of Nuts for Cheese.
The panel of judges and mentors for the 2024 edition included Albert Behr (Behr & Associates Inc.), David Berg (Strainprint Technologies Ltd.), Bas van Berkel, MBA ’06 (BerQ RNG Inc.), Adam Halim (Flipp), Simran Kaur (HyperAccelerator), Umad Khan, MBA ’22 (BerQ RNG Inc.), Bruce Lamb, HBA ’85 (Avalanche Search Marketing Inc.), Jacoline Loewen (Loewen Capital Ltd.), Mark Mauleesan, MBA ’16 (Mauleesan Corporation), Serge Muhirwa, BA’20 (TechAlliance), Shay Nulman, MBA ’12 (Mantaro Capital Corp), Colleen Sharen, MBA ’93 (Brescia University College), Ash Singh, HBA ’04 (Hyper Accelerator), Martin Smith (TechAlliance), Steve Suske, MBA ’77 (Suske Capital), Shari Walczak, HBA ’94 (The Garden), Jane Wang, HBA ’13 (Optimity), and Michael White, MBA’00 (IBK Capital Corp).