Skip to main content
Intellect

BYU team wins Utah Entrepreneurial Challenge

In fifth grade, Bret Rasmussen’s notebooks were filled with sketches of shoes, More than a decade later he’s still designing shoes, and this summer he’ll travel to China in search of a suitable factory to produce his innovative designs.

The dream started to become more of a reality this year after placing first at the Utah Entrepreneurial Challenge and winning $40,000. Rasmussen couldn’t be happier to see the designs come to life.

“I am enamored with footwear,” says the recent Brigham Young University graduate. “I’ve always been passionate about it, and I’ve followed the industry. There’s nothing quite along the lines of what we’re doing, so we thought we could capture a unique niche.”

When Rasmussen started to think seriously about starting his own shoe company last year, he recruited his brother, Chad, and a few friends who were also passionate about shoes to consider the possibilities. Working together on it, his dream started to become a reality.

The team came up with a name, Core Footwear, and a business plan which they entered in several competitions.

After competing in BYU’s Business Plan Competition, the Core Footwear group realized there was a lot they could do to improve. They started attending more trade shows, conducting more market research and visiting with industry experts.

“One thing that helped us tremendously was that we had a mentor who had a lot of personal entrepreneurial experience. His mentoring really helped to guide us,” says T Hughes, an MBA student at BYU and member of the Core Footwear team. “At the UEC we were more prepared. We knew where we wanted to go and how we wanted to present.”

Their preparations paid off at the competition entered by more than 240 teams; however, the Core Footwear group isn’t done yet. Working with a former BYU student now attending Oxford University, they will enter another competition there in an effort to keep things moving.

“It’s my dream,” Bret Rasmussen says referring to his childhood sketches. “But it’s not just mine, I think that’s why our team works. We’re all passionate about this.”

The Utah Entrepreneurial Challenge, hosted by the Eccles School of Business at the University of Utah, is open to any student attending college in Utah. The top 25 teams are chosen as semifinalists and paired with mentors. Each of these teams submits a full-length business plan.

First place and two runners up are chosen at the competition. This year, all three winning teams were from BYU.

Writer: Tyna-Minet Ernst

AwardWinners-h.jpg

Related Articles

data-content-type="article"

Forum: Where else but BYU?

June 06, 2023
While BYU provides excellent, affordable academic and professional training, its deeper purpose is much more ambitious, said mechanical engineering professor Brent Webb in Tuesday’s forum. Webb explained how BYU’s combined focus on faith and study uniquely helps students develop their divine potential.
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= overrideTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection=false overrideCardHideByline=false overrideCardHideDescription=false overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText= overrideTextAlignment=
data-content-type="article"

Cougar Quinoa: BYU, Washington State University release new quinoa varieties to address global food security, nutrition

June 01, 2023
Scientists at Brigham Young University and Washington State University have developed a version of the protein-rich quinoa plant that can survive and thrive in the often-harsh growing conditions of Rwanda and other African countries.
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= overrideTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection=false overrideCardHideByline=false overrideCardHideDescription=false overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText= overrideTextAlignment=
data-content-type="article"

BYU team using wearable nanocomposite sensor and AI to create prescription-like system for chronic back pain

May 24, 2023
To find effective therapies for chronic low back pain, and to help curb opioid addiction, the NIH created the Back Pain Consortium Research Program. BYU is one of 10 major universities (along with Harvard, Ohio State and the University of Utah) tapped to help with this effort, and new work from researchers here has led to a system to prescribe patient-specific back pain remedies like doctors would prescribe medication.
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= overrideTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection=false overrideCardHideByline=false overrideCardHideDescription=false overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText= overrideTextAlignment=
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= overrideTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection=false overrideCardHideByline=false overrideCardHideDescription=false overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText=