2018 Southern Regional Conference and Exhibition Recap

By December 4, 2018 April 28th, 2020 News, South, Trade Shows

November 19-20, 2018
LeConte Event Center
Pigeon Forge, Tennessee


Key Stats

  • 1,200 total attendees
  • 935 participating students
  • 60 schools
  • 73 firms
  • 13 competitions (including Business Plan)
  • 6 states (Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee)

Competition Results

Results for Top 10 teams in Advanced Website, Booth Design, Company Branding, Company Newsletter, E-Commerce Website, Elevator Pitch, Human Resources, Impact Marketing, Marketing, Sales Materials, Salesmanship, and Video Commercial can be found at the Competitions Results page.

View Competition Results

Tennessee Business Plan Competition Results
1st Place – Global Warming, Bearden HS, Knoxville, TN
2nd Place – Luxury Resort, East Hamilton HS, Ooltewah, TN
3rd Place – Down To Earth, Hardin County HS, Savannah, TN
Honorable Mention – The Animal Kingdom, Loretto HS, Loretto, TN
Honorable Mention – AuNaturale, Oakland HS, Murfreesboro, TN
Honorable Mention – Extreme Adventure, East Hamilton HS, Ooltewah, TN

Participating Firms

0ne Tiny Mansion, Granville Central HS, Franklinton, NC
0-Town, Inc., Owosso High School, Owosso, MI
32 Below, Beech HS, Hendersonville, TN
3D Premier Properties, Horry County Schools, Murrells Inlet, SC
A.S.H. Realty, Owosso HS, Owosso, MI
A-1 Enterprises, Fenton HS, Bensenville, IL
AceIT, JF Webb HS, Oxford, NC
Adrenaline Rush, South Granville HS, Creedmoor, NC
Affinity, Neuqua Valley HS, Naperville, IL
Alset, Holly HS, Holly, MI
Apex, Neuqua Valley HS, Naperville, IL
Au Naturale, Oakland HS, Murfreesboro, TN
Aura, South Granville HS, Creedmoor, NC
Aurora, Whitehaven HS, Memphis, TN
Axis Enterprises, Franklinton HS, Franklinton, NC
Bluetip, Farragut HS, Knoxville, TN
Brew Crew, Careerline Tech Center, Holland, MI
Catalyst, Neuqua Valley HS, Naperville, IL
Clarity, Greer HS, Greer, SC
Clever Contraptions, St. Charles East HS, St Charles, IL
Cloud 9 Designs, Riverdale HS, Murfreesboro, TN
Core Inc, Timothy Christian HS, Elmhurst, IL
CozyCo, Stewarts Creek HS, Smyrna, TN
Culture Crave, Lawrence County HS, Lawrenceburg, TN
Cynosure Telecom, Oak Ridge HS, Oak Ridge, TN
Cypher Corp., Lapeer County Education & Technology Center, Lapeer, MI
Down To Earth, Inc., Hardin County HS, Savannah, TN
Electric Avenue, St. Charles East HS, St. Charles, IL
Endure, Inc., Summertown HS, Summertown, TN
Extreme Adventures, East Hamilton HS, Ooltewah, TN
F5d.b.a. iSports, Southwind HS, Memphis, TN
Freedom Trail Outfitters, Inc., Cannon County HS, Woodbury, TN
Global Warming, Bearden HS, Knoxville, TN
GoodieBox, Waubonsie Valley HS, Aurora, IL
Headlinerz, Waubonsie Valley HS, Aurora, IL
Hero Haven, Eagleville HS/Hero Haven, Eagleville, TN
Imagineers, Lapeer County Education & Technology Center, Attica, MI
Innovations, Titan Enterprises, Southgate, MI
Inside the Box, Loudon HS, Loudon, TN
Jet Enterprises, Airport HS, Carleton, MI
Kophi, Dresden HS, Dresden, TN
Kutt Loose, Siegel HS, Murfreesboro, TN
Legacy, Neuqua Valley HS, Naperville, IL
Limitless, Elmwood Park HS, Elmwood Park, IL
Little Living, Pinckney Community HS, Pinckney, MI
Lively Designs by The Blend, Orange HS, Hillsborough, NC
Lumi, Granville Central HS, Stem, NC
Luxury Resort Management, East Hamilton HS, Ooltewah , TN
Marauder Enterprises, Oscar A. Carlson HS/DCTC, Gibraltar, MI
MAVCO, INC., Milford HS, Highland, MI
MetaNova, Metea Valley HS, Aurora, IL
Metaphor, Inc., Blackman HS, Murfressboro, TN
Moda, Loudon HS, Loudon, TN
No Coast Soap, Bellevue East HS, Bellevue, NE
Orion, Dekalb County HS, Smithville, TN
Pandora’s Box, Cookeville HS, Cookeville, TN
Personian, Person HS, Roxboro, NC
Pharside, Carolina Forest HS, Myrtle Beach, SC
Roasted Coffee, Trenton HS, Trenton, MI
Skyline 360, Blackman HS, Murfressboro, TN
Slurp, Careerline Tech Center, Holland, MI
Southern Prestige, Spartanburg HS, Spartanburg, SC
Spectrum, Neuqua Valley HS, Naperville, IL
Summit Corporation, Neuqua Valley HS, Naperville, IL
Tailored Tronics, Waubonsie Valley HS, Aurora, IL
The Animal Kingdom, Inc., Loretto HS, Loretto, TN
The Pop Shop, Loris HS, Loris, SC
The Pulse, Eagleville HS, Eagleville, TN
Titan Enterprises, Titan Enterprises, Southgate, MI
Trojan Financial Services, Northwest HS, Clarksville, TN
Unwind, Crystal Lake South, Crystal Lake, IL
WayBound, Inc., Fenton HS, Fenton, MI
Xtreme Comfort, Inc., St. Charles East HS, St Charles, IL

Social Media Contest Winners

Confidence Café, Carolina Forest High School, Myrtle Beach, SC

Sparkle City Specialties, Spartanburg High School, Gaffney, SC

View this post on Instagram

South regional trade fair #veinternational

A post shared by Sparkle City Specialties ✨ (@sparklecityspecialties) on

Catalyst, Neuqua Valley High School, Naperville, IL

Special Thanks

On behalf of VE, we would like to extend a sincere thank you to all participating schools, the Tennessee Small Business Development Center in Knoxville, Tennessee, Long Island University, VE’s business partners and classroom mentors, VE’s competition judges, and the 2018 Southern Regional Conference and Exhibition team: Lisa Bonelli, Mandy Bowlin, Kristi Covington, and Penny Riddle for their dedication and support of this amazing event.

Thank You to the Participating Competition Judges

Business Plan Competition Judges
Doyle Boyd, COO, Stone Gate Farm Events
Angie Boyd-Chambers, President, Boyd-Chambers Communications
Susan Chan, VE National Events Manager
Mark Jones, VE State Coordinator, NC
Jeanette Noffsinger, Rutherford County Schools, TN
Pam Thurman, TN South Central CTE Core Consultant

On-Site Competitions Judges
Richard Bettis, Highlands Union Bank
Doyle Boyd, COO, Stone Gate Farm Events
Cliff Claudill, SCORE
Peggy Fragopoulos, Teacher (Ret.)
Elaine Garrison, Teacher (Ret.)
Dana Gibson, First Citizens Bank
Sean Grogan, VE alumni
Bruce Hayes, TSBDC
Evelyn Hood, Highlands Union Bank
Teri Jones, VE California Regional Director
Doug Mentor, Knoxville Chamber of Commerce
Mary Metz
Judi Mola
Lynette Newman, First Citzens Bank
Laura Overstreet, TSBDC
Amy Pangelinan, Highlands Union Bank
Jessica Rich, United Community Bank
Teresa Sylvia, TSBDC