Cultivating Student Entrepreneurs

Cultivating Student Entrepreneurs
Three professionally dressed male students and one female student jump in the air outside, with Paul College behind them. Their expressions are jubilant and one of them is holding a glass award.

Paul J. Holloway Prize Competition


Bud Albin Challenge Semi-Finals

Championship Round

The Paul J. Holloway Prize competition is UNH's premier business plan competition for undergraduate and graduate students. It challenges students to develop products or services and present their plans to bring them to market. Students from UNH, Plymouth State University, Keene State College, and UNH CPS Online are invited to compete for cash prizes totaling $40,000. It is named in honor of Paul J. Holloway, an accomplished business leader and successful entrepreneur.

 

 

 

120 businesses launched

$40K+ awarded in cash & other prizes Annually

An average of 120 students compete each year

Celebrating 36 years

 

The Holloway Prize Competition has four rounds – initial registration, selecting 20 semi-finalist teams, selecting six final teams during the Semifinal Bud Albin Challenge, and the Championship Round. Each round is designed to help the remaining teams grow and polish their business plans.

 

Kate Aiken, past Holloway participant standing in front of colorful wall

"The story of a college kid hatching up a business plan in their dorm room is the first chapter to many successful now multi-million dollar starts-ups. Looking back at doing it myself, I can see why. The excitement of running from building my prototype to dissecting business plans is thrilling. I have a promising career ahead of me as a direct result of the people I met through Holloway and with hard work, anyone can achieve that."

Kate Aiken, past Holloway Competition finalist

About the Benefactor

The Holloway Competition is the oldest of its kind in New Hampshire and is named in honor of Paul J. Holloway, an accomplished business leader and successful entrepreneur, who passed away recently in 2023. Holloway’s wife, Anna Grace, son, Scott, and daughter, Debra, established the Paul J. Holloway Prize in 1988 to honor his achievements and contributions to the educational and business communities. The Holloway family remains involved in the competition today, and their support has allowed for thousands of students to pitch their business ideas over the past 34 years. 

Paul J Halloway

PAUL J. HOLLOWAY, a graduate of Temple University, began his career in the automotive industry as a district manager of Buick Motor Division. In 1967, he invested all of his assets in a Buick-Pontiac dealership in Exeter, N.H., that had sold only 90 new and used cars the previous year, and renamed it Dreher-Holloway.

As he built the business into one of the largest dealerships in New Hampshire, Holloway always stressed customer service and client satisfaction. He has won numerous industry awards, including Time magazine “Quality Dealer of the Year.”

Holloway generously shared his knowledge and experience. As president of the 19,500 member National Automobile Dealers Association from 1998 to 1999, he worked to rebuild the trust between dealers and car manufacturers and took the lead on legislative matters for the organization, maintaining ties with key legislators in Washington.

In addition to his automotive enterprises, Holloway was a partner in the Clipper Nursing and Retirement Homes until he sold the business in 1997, and is presently an owner of the Wentworth Marina in New Castle, N.H.

Holloway had a strong commitment to public service. He served as chair of the University System of New Hampshire (USNH) Board of Trustees and spearheaded fundraising programs at Temple University, Governor Dummer Academy, and the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, and was recognized for his work on behalf of education in the state. He received the Robert Frost Contemporary American Award, the University of New Hampshire Alumni Association Profile of Service Award, the USNH Chancellor’s Award, and an honorary doctorate from the University of New Hampshire. Recent honors included the naming of Holloway Commons dining hall in recognition of significant contributions to the university’s programs. He also was selected as one of New Hampshire’s 10 most powerful people by Business NH Magazine and was awarded the David C. Knapp Award for Trusteeship by the New England Board of Higher Education.

Holloway served as chair of the Community College System of New Hampshire and as a New Hampshire Lottery commissioner. He was a past member of the business school dean’s advisory board at the University of New Hampshire.

For more on Holloway's legacy, read this NH Business Review article.

Holloway Competition Success Stories

Below is a sampling of businesses that have been started or expanded as a result of Holloway Prize competition entries:

2024
Riley Desmarais
William Moore
Cameron Vose
Kara Wittmann

2023
Derek Long
Katie Remeis
Matt Oriente
Jason Plant

2022
Adison Hicks

2021
Brayden Esmaili
Nathaniel Hunt
Joey Neleber

2020
Kendra Bostick
Bhavya Wadhwa
Gayathri Venkatasrinivasan

2019
Christin Badylak-Reals
Jessica Lavallee
Matthew Ross

2018
Kristian Comer
Francesco Alessandro Stefano Mikulis-Borsoi

2017
Max Miller
Sam Warach

2016
Cassidy Croci
Brianna Leclerc
William Tavernas
Allison Wood

2015
A.J. Asbury
Ian Marshall
Everton Parkinson
Sean Whittier

2014
Emily Stone

2013
Craig Litherland

2012
Andrew Jaccoma
Olha Johnson

2011

Timothy Harmon
Scott Olsen
Jessica Streitmater

2010
Iulia Barbu
Keith Teeter

2009
Chris Suprock

2008
Anna Boisvert
Gregory Richardson
Sebastian Titz

2007
Christopher Matrumalo
Lacey Knight
George Melchior
Frenc Gyurscan
Charles O'Donnell
Mark Johnson

2006
Andrew Demeusy
Gabrielle DiPerri
Lindsey Jambard
Christopher Langsten
Joseph Mardo
Jill Harkness
Peter Houde
Jacquelyn Parks
Joe Iannone
Dennis Wells

2005
Gregg Cerveny
Christopher Cooper
Sharon Morrison
Jessica Dicker
Joshua Vogel
Scott Mullin

2004
Jason Bourn
John Leary
Glenn Margosian
Christina Downs
William Hurd
Christa Tsoukalas

2003
Jim Losee
Michael Carmichael
Denise Laferte
Edward Rowe
Louis Levine
Justin Gamester
Jessica de Pontbriand

2002
Andrew Molloy
Matthew Scruton
Jeff McDonald
Andrea Tully

2001
Laura Bahr
Peng Li
Zhihong Xu
Brian Fuller
Heather Townsend

2000
Bruce Sommer
Kristie LaPierre

1999
Jesse O’Rourke
Jaime Berryman
Justin Jean

1998
Debra Parry
Chad Sawyer
Jeremy Sawyer

1997
Matthew Found
Katherine Pouliot
David Emanuel

1996
David Bernier
Keith Ogren
Jonathon Sallade
Daniel Lawrence
Drew Nucci

1995
David Marshall
Jessie O’Connor
Sean Fisher
Robert Davis

1994
Juan Seleme
Michael O’Brien
Sheila Socha

1993
Alison Como
Keshini Wijesundera
Nicole Truman
Brian Thomas

1992
Kristina Magnusson
Christine Hennessey

1991
Marc Delisle
Kevin Dixon
Martin Kurowski
Timothy Stotz
Scott Daniels

1990
Weber Shill
Suzanne Cepaitis

1989
Mary Lawrence
Lisa Prue
Brett Chamberlain
Dean Raft

Make Holloway a part of your experience.