Miriam Mast wins business contest

News Release
NWBC

The Northwest Business Centre is thrilled to announce the winner of the ‘2008 Northwest High School Business Plan Contest.’ The annual business plan contest provides high school students in the Kenora Rainy River District with an opportunity to showcase their business and entrepreneurial talents, and at the same time, enhance their business, presentation, communication and networking skills.
An informal luncheon at Sturgeon Creek Alternative Program is planned for Tuesday, October 7, 2008 to celebrate and congratulate the 1st place winner of this year’s competition.
1st place winner is Miriam Mast, chosen for her exemplary business plan titled, “Cut n Paste.” Miriam was a Grade 11 student at Sturgeon Creek Alternative Program. For Miriam’s hard work and efforts, she receives a new Dell laptop and an all expense paid trip to the Northern Ontario Business Plan Awards in Sault Ste. Marie, which takes place later this fall.
There were over 15 entries in the contest, all of which were evaluated based on set marking criteria, which examined critical sections of the plan such as Executive Summary, Business Overview, Market Research, Marketing Plan, Financial Plan and Supplementary Information. The judging panel comprised of a representative from a local Community Futures Development Corp, municipal representative (business owner), and a commercial lender.
Mike Greaves, the General Manager of the Northwest Business Centre says, “To further promote entrepreneurship, we feel it is important to create strategic alliances with the entrepreneurs of tomorrow – the high school students of today.” The competition provided students with an opportunity to take a step into the “real world; perhaps this can be the catalyst for making their business a reality in the future. Participating in the Northwest Business Plan Contest or Summer Company is the ultimate business experience for high school students,” explains Mike Greaves, “it’s life as an entrepreneur, but in a risk-free environment.”
Since 2002, the Ministry of Small Business and Consumer Services, working in partnership with the network of Small Business Enterprise Centres, has celebrated the creativity and entrepreneurial spirit of Ontario’s high school students with the Ontario Secondary School Business Plan Competition. The competition is open to all high school students in Ontario.

A summary of her plan
Executive Summary
Objective and Overview/ Business Strategy
The objective of my business is to provide original and innovative craft kits and craft workshops for the Rainy River District and surrounding community. Cut’n Paste is dedicated to encouraging young children in developing their creative skills, through making crafts that will provide numerous opportunities for learning. Ultimately, Cut’n Paste desires to provide an educational and entertaining product to be utilized by schools, day care centers, camps, home-schooling families, mission trips, churches, hospitals and nursing homes.
Description of Business/Products and Services Offered
Miriam’s family has often utilized crafts in their residential camps, Vacation Bible Schools, kid’s clubs, church activities and also their work with young children. Miriam is well known throughout the community because of her involvement with local events that contribute to the nurturing of children and youth. Her associations in the community will help expose the market in this area for Cut’n Paste.
Cut’n Paste desires to provide quality service and appealing craft kits with a high degree of creativity. Miriam’s niche market mainly appeals to young children; however, there is a secondary market to agencies that serve the elderly and disabled. Each individual craft kit will contain all the essential materials needed to create the craft, along with detailed instructions for assembly. Cut’n Paste will offer a variety of themed craft kits for different occasions and holidays, such as Christmas, Easter, Valentines Day, etc. Some craft kits will be simply designed for the disabled, elderly and young children who do not have the capability of creating more intricate crafts. Cut’n Paste will also create crafts for those who enjoy a more difficult challenge and feel capable of creating crafts that are more complex. Each craft package will indicate the difficulty level of each craft it contains. Therefore, whatever the age group, the buyer will be able to determine what type and difficultly level they believe their target group can accomplish.