PLAISTOW — Maria Meidanis and Ann Marie Britton both love fashion. They're also interested in business development.
When the Timberlane Regional High School students combined the two, they came up with Charismatic — a formal dress store.
Meidanis, 17, and Britton, 16, both of Danville, were among about 15 contestants in last night's Timberlane Entrepreneur Challenge.
The students worked alone or in teams to develop a five-page plan for their new company that they presented to a panel of former Timberlane graduates and local business owners.
First-place winner David Phillips received $1,000 while second-place winners Meidanis and Britton were awarded $500 to split between them. Third- and fourth-place winners were also chosen.
Mitch Mencis, a 2001 Timberlane graduate, came up with the idea over the winter to encourage students to start thinking about the future and building their resumes. He hoped the winners would take the seed money and start putting their ideas to work, but it's not required.
"I wanted to give them an opportunity to partake in something that's different and gives them real-world experience," he said.
Mencis' goal was to give the students general instructions and see where they took their entrepreneurial ideas from there. They came up with everything from restaurants to travel agencies.
For Meidanis and Britton, Mencis' leniency gave them the opportunity to challenge themselves and try to keep expanding their idea. Their clothing store changed merchandise a few times until they settled on formal dresses and an option for customers to design their own product, Britton said.
Neither knew much about business plans, so many of their planning sessions involved researching the general concept and information involved in creating a business plan, she said.
Alex Dostie, 18, of Plaistow and Willy Stewart, 18, of Sandown didn't know anything about business plans, either, but they managed to incorporate a lot of key details in their proposal for Back Woods Golf Course — including blueprints and a financial report.
Both students relied on knowledge they acquired from working at a golf course during the summer, and what it takes to really run an 18-hole course.
Like many high school students, they sorted out their ideas at Taco Bell. They finished in third place and won $250 to split between them. Fourth-place finisher Patrick Linehan did not receive a monetary award.
"Willy took it home and typed up the plan, and called and e-mailed everyone for prices from maintenance equipment to subcontracts specific to golf courses," Dostie said.
Their plan is a large undertaking, and calls for a full bar, restaurant and function hall in a clubhouse, but it's something Dostie said he would like to try to carry out someday after earning his degree in business from Plymouth State University.
"It would be neat to see something I did in school for a project and see it become a full business," he said.
That's the exact attitude Mencis was hoping for. Given the Entrepreneur Challenge's success in its first year, Mencis said he wants to make the event a tradition at Timberlane and is working with teachers to include it in next year's curriculum.
