3 Ouachita students are finalists at business-plan competition

ARKADELPHIA — Three Ouachita Baptist University students were recently recognized as finalists in the Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup business-plan competition in Little Rock. The students competed against students from universities around the state for cash prizes and a chance to compete in the Tri-State Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup competition in Las Vegas later in May.

Jake Edmondson, a junior biomedical sciences major from Benton; Cole Jester, a senior Christian studies and political science double major from Benton; and Evan McKinnon, a senior accounting major from El Dorado, competed together with their business plan for BestBooks. Their plan was recognized among the top six finalists in the Governor’s Cup undergraduate competition.

“BestBook is an idea driven by a common problem of college students,” Jester explained. “Every year, we sell our books for a fraction of what we buy them for. There is not a good way to get a fair price for your book currently.”

Edmondson, Jester and McKinnon wanted to form a plan that would solve this problem many college students face when selling their textbooks. The students devised a business that would allow college students to sell their textbooks for more money by cutting out the middleman.

“It takes a great idea, hard work and, honestly, a touch of good fortune,” explained Bryan McKinney, dean of OBU’s Hickingbotham School of Business. “By good fortune, I just mean that the particular set of judges must love the concept. … Each round of judges brought their own unique perspective to the competitions, and our students learned from all the feedback they received.”

The creators of BestBook said they wanted to participate in the competition as a way to express their appreciation for the support they had in coming to Ouachita and to demonstrate the academic caliber the Hickingbotham School possesses within the state.