AACC Awards $75,000 To Eight Student-Run Businesses

Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) held its “Shark Tank” style annual business pitch competition on April 29. Students (small business owners or hopefuls) pitched their business plans to judges and seasoned community business owners for a chance to be awarded a portion of the available $100,000 in prize money to invest in their companies.

The competition also provided contestants with invaluable feedback from representatives from the Baltimore Business Journal, M&T Bank, and small local businesses. The competition was open to any AACC student who took classes during the previous 12 months. The funding for the competition was provided by the Philip E. and Carole R. Ratcliffe Foundation.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our economies and communities,” said Stephanie Goldenberg, entrepreneurial studies institute academic chair and associate professor. “Much more than a competition, the program allows students to learn valuable information around marketing, financial planning, resume writing, and so much more.”

AACC has held the annual competition in different formats since 2004, growing in funding and scope. Students vying for the seed money submit a written business plan with comprehensive requirements including a three-year financial projection. Coaches provide feedback to help the top eight students prepare for the live pitch in front of judges. Students have only two minutes to pitch their business with a five-minute question and answer session with the judges. After all students have made their pitches, the judges score them using a rubric and confer to determine the prize winners.

Student businesses included food service, custom detailing, remote tours and cosplay printing.

Pasadena resident Michael Charney of Chesapeake Charney’s earned a top prize of $15,000, which he plans to put into the purchase of an enclosed trailer for his mobile food business. Charney hopes to purchase a trailer with a fully functional kitchen and storage for his seafood business. A trailer would allow the AACC culinary school student to drastically reduce his setup and take-down times and eliminate temporary food permits by purchasing one annual license for the trailer.

“The $15,000 is a great head start toward my goal of $51,000 (the quote for the new trailer),” said Charney, who has been operating his mobile seafood business for approximately one year. The experience helped him prepare a solid pitch for the judges.

“In my pitch, I outlined the pros and cons of a food trailer versus my current trailer. And because I already had one year under my belt, I was able to more accurately determine my financial projection,” he said.

A mobile kitchen on a trailer would allow him substantial savings. For example, purchasing a one-year food service permit would cost the entrepreneur $350, versus one-day temporary permits that add up to more than $3,000 a year. Prep time would go from 2.5 hours before and after (not to mention the time to do dishes, clean the fryer, etc., once he gets home) to just 20 minutes before and after an event. And a trailer would allow him to be more flexible when being asked to participate in an event with little or no notice.

“If I had the trailer, I would be able to say yes to last-minute requests because I’d already have the food permit in hand, and I could easily drive the serve-ready trailer to the event,” he explained. “I have to turn down events that don’t give me enough time to obtain a one-day permit or allow food prep time at home. The trailer would really streamline my business and increase my profits.”

Chesapeake Charney’s serves seafood specialties using Charney family recipes, such as crab cakes, crab soup, codfish cakes and more.

For a full list of pitch winners and to learn more about AACC’s Entrepreneurial Studies Institute, visit www.aacc.edu/newsroom/news/2025-news/business-pitch-competition-april-2025.

Business Pitch Competition Winners

Michael Charney for Chesapeake Charney’s ($15,000)
Kenneth Thomas for Obsessive Custom Detailing (OCD) LLC ($12,500)
Abigail Foster for Simple Touches Hospitality ($12,500)
Lucas Panzer Valdivia for Amanecer Tours ($10,000)
William Sedgwick for 3D Nerd – Custom Cosplay Printing ($10,000)
Alyssa McDaniel for Pack Dynamic ($5,000)
Angelica Camarillo for 4Cycles LLC ($5,000)
Katherine Paunlagui for Techies for the Oldies ($5,000)