ORLANDO, Fla. – Dubbed the “Women in Black (W.I.B.),” students Christina Acosta, Mallory Buday, Kaitlyn Studdard, Madisen Tanchin and Sarah Zorabedian did not fight aliens. Instead, they fought revenue losses and market threats to win the Fall 2019 Great Capstone Case Competition on Dec. 6 with their plan to renovate in-store cafes at Target and introduce meal kits that utilize their private label brands. Their idea to convert Target Café into fast-causla Bullseye Bistro impressed the judges – Target executives and UCF Business faculty – to take first place in the business plan competition.
Team “Women in Black” presented a comprehensive plan to overhaul existing Target Café locations to provide a trendy atmosphere and modern menu offerings that reflect the grocery products on store shelves. The winning proposal and strategic recommendation triumphed over a field of nine semi-finalist teams, already whittled down from 500+ students enrolled in the Fall 2019 Capstone course. Christopher Leo, D.B.A., Associate Lecturer in the Department of Integrated Business, coached the winning team.
“Team Women in Black worked tirelessly on both the content and delivery of their strategic recommendation,” Leo said. “I’m so incredibly proud of them and elated to see all their hard work and effort pay off in the end.”
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The Great Capstone Case Competition challenges business students to develop strategic recommendations for real-world business issues as part of their coursework. Throughout the semester, students are given the opportunity to work as a team, strengthen their analytic, communication and teamwork skills and present a plan to faculty members who select the teams that will compete in the competition.
Student Kin Le and teammates Nikita Terho, Koren Marinberg, Allison Goyette and Christopher Chandler of “KNACK Attack,” took second place with their idea to offer meal kits and product samples in-store during high traffic hours. “Team Bullseye” of Jason Babun, Allison Sabol, Joseph Nass, Arianne Pantin and Daniel Wolfe placed third with an idea to implement cooking classes at Target stores. Leo called the partnership with Target an incredible opportunity for students to apply concepts learned in the classroom and get their ideas in front of real-world executives.
“I love that our students have the opportunity to work on a real strategic issue with a Fortune 500 company,” Leo said. “There is no better way to measure learning than when our students have the opportunity to actually utilize the strategic tools and concepts discussed throughout the entire semester with an actual client.”
About the UCF College of Business
Established in 1968, the UCF College of Business offers degrees at the bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral and executive levels. All programs, as well as the Kenneth G. Dixon School of Accounting are accredited by AACSB International – the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. The college provides high-quality academic programs designed to give students a competitive advantage in the world of business now and in the future. Learn more at business.ucf.edu.