Who will win big cash?

FOSTORIA — A local entrepreneur will head home from downtown Friday night with a significant boost in his or her business operation. With judges having determined four finalists, the last part of the small-business competition Launch Fostoria is scheduled to come down to public voting Friday on the green space at the intersection of Main and Tiffin streets. The winner will receive a prize package valued at nearly $18,000. The final round of the competition, presented by Fostoria Area Chamber of Commerce and Fostoria Economic Development Corporation, is set for 6:30 p.m., with each of the four finalists making a 10-minute presentation to the public in an effort to claim the prize. "Bring your lawn chair and a vote," chamber/small business director Sarah Stephens Krupp said, noting that a $5 bill placed in to a business' ballot box at the event serves as a vote cast. The top vote-getter will receive a one-year lease in downtown Fostoria (or an equivalent dollar amount in appropriate space), radio and newspaper advertising, branding and marketing services, a financial grant, training and a chamber membership. The finalists, who operate a for-profit business that has not earned more than $250,000 in revenue in the past year, have made their way to the final stage of a three-part competition that included evaluations by a panel of seven judges. "The judges selected the top six from the applications and those six went to the semifinals, where they pitched to the panel of judges. It was kind of like the 'Shark Tank' section of the competition," Stephens Krupp said, referring to the popular television show. "Those semifinalists were scored and the top four were selected to move on to the finals. "On Friday, the four finalists will pitch their product to the public. They'll have to bring a different pitch than what they pitched to the judges. The judges were looking for business planning, financials -- the back end of the business, so to speak. But really, now (the candidates) are going out and they're going to have to kind of customize to get the public to buy into their business and vote for them to be the winner." The finalists' businesses are geared toward various clienteles. "What I love about the finalists is they're all very different," Stephens Krupp said. "They are in their own kind of niche market. "We have Beyond Laser Creations with Jenna Stearns. Her business is really in its infancy. Currently, she's operating out of her garage. She does the farmers' market (in Fostoria) and has done some shows, but she has just grown her business leaps and bounds and is ready to grow (further). "And then we have Vincent Williams, who has his own clothing line, Wavy Baby. He's been designing lines for every season now for a couple of years, and that's growing and expanding. He's warehousing out of a garage and they're poised for growth and have tremendous goals. "And then we have Jennie Zibbel, who has Expressions Dance Center. She has recently purchased and taken over a business from Mary Tyler (at 4346 N. CR 25) and is really looking to continually grow and expand her business. She's an entrepreneur who's kind of jumped into this and is owning a studio for the first time and is finding success and needs to grow. "And then we have Cierra Valenti, who is doing in-home child care (called Tiny Steps). She has a fabulous reputation. I've not met anyone who's ever utilized her who's had anything negative to say. She's super-organized, she has handbooks and curriculum and she knows there's a need in this community for more quality child care, so she's looking to grow that into an actual facility. That's super-exciting. She's going to take her home-based business and grow that, hopefully, into a really successful brick-and-mortar child-care center."They're all very different, but it's super-exciting because they're all in a position where they've tested the market and they know what they're doing works and they're ready to grow," she said. The non-winning entrepreneurs will keep the money they gathered through voting, Stephens Krupp said.The Chamber has partnered for the event with the UrbanWoody Brewery, 105 E. Tiffin St., which will have a DMT Pasta food truck on hand. Stephens Krupp said she is hoping to land a non-profit to sell pop, water and snacks.Radio station WKXA of Findlay will do live remotes from the event, with Carla Demitri serving as the on-air host and master of ceremonies. A free concert by the band No Eileen will follow the competition, courtesy of UrbanWoody.