SIFE Simon Fraser presents the SFU Student Entrepreneur of the Year

Submitted by Joseph Choi

Vancouver, BC – Are you an entrepreneur? Interested in one day starting your own business? Curious about what it takes to start a successful business? Starting this October, the SFU Student Entrepreneur of the Year program will be holding a full season of events designed to inspire young and upcoming entrepreneurs and discover the existing student entrepreneurs. The goal is to provide a stepping stone for success and connect budding entrepreneurs with industry professionals so their ideas will flourish.

Four years ago, a small group of students in SIFE Simon Fraser envisioned a stage where aspiring student entrepreneurs could pitch their business plans and share and gain valuable insights for their projects. Since 2008, the Student Entrepreneur of the Year program has grown tremendously, incorporating workshops, speaker series, a competition and a networking reception this year, all of which aim to recognize and inspire entrepreneurship across Simon Fraser University.

Starting on October 12th, local entrepreneurs from organizations such as Women’s Enterprise Centre, Reframe Marketing, TIO Networks and more will be coming in each week to hold workshops at the SFU Burnaby and Surrey campuses. They will be giving students the foundation and confidence needed to start a business and will cover topics such as Innovation, Finance, and Marketing. In addition, a series of keynote speakers will be sharing their experiences with first-hand stories about how they started their businesses. Check out the speaker series to hear stories of success, struggles and more.

SEY 2011 offers the opportunity for student entrepreneurs to present their businesses in front of a panel of industry professionals and potentially take the title of SFU Student Entrepreneur of the Year. This competition gives recognition and development opportunities to the best and brightest student entrepreneurs at SFU. SEY is the ultimate platform for a student’s rise into the realm of entrepreneurship. Past winners have continued on to win regional, national, and global student entrepreneurship competitions. Over $5,000 in prizes are available! Registration for the competition starts on October 7th, 2011. Applicants who register before October 17th will be automatically entered for a chance to win free office space, courtesy of Goal Holdings Group.

Following the competition is a networking reception open to local entrepreneurs, business owners, and students from local universities. This is where the SFU Student Entrepreneur of the Year will be crowned. Also, there will be speeches by keynote speakers from Visa, Ernst & Young, Telus & Blenz. There will be many opportunities for attendees to network and socialize as they share their ideas and stories over appetizers and drinks. Over 300 people are expected to attend this event, so don’t miss your chance by buying your ticket at www.sfusey.com today.

Both the competition and the networking reception will be held at Renaissance Vancouver Hotel Harbourside. Whether you already run your own business or simply dream of someday starting one, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by checking out SEY 2011. Take advantage of this opportunity and benefit as much as you can from the connections you’ll make. Visit the website at www.sfusey.com to get more info and register for any of these excellent events today.

The SFU Student Entrepreneur of the Year program would like to recognize its proud sponsors for supporting the spirit of Entrepreneurship across SFU, including Visa, Goal Holdings Group, Palagon, Borden Ladner Gervais LLG, TIO Networks, Simon Fraser Student Society, Beedie School of Business, Women’s Enterprise Centre and Rockwell’s Grill & Bar.

For more information, please contact:

Joseph Choi
Phone: 778-991-7654
Email: Joseph.Choi@sfusey.com www.sfusey.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/sfusey
Twitter: www.twitter.com/sfusey