Lasell Freshman Wins $75K for Junior Achievement Team at FedEx Junior Business Challenge

2017 Sep 29

Briana Muller of Berlin, Connecticut (06037) represented Berlin High School and Lasell College in the national finals of the FedEx Junior Business Challenge, where she and her team, "Lo-K8," took home top honors and the grand prize of $75,000 to support the Junior Achievement (JA) program of Southwest New England.

Muller, a freshman fashion merchandising student at Lasell, began her journey with JA as a senior in high school. Through rounds of competition, she and her teammates worked diligently to develop their business idea - a Bluetooth device capable of tracking easily lost items such as keys, dubbed "Lo-K8."

The team took on their first round of competition at the PGA Golf Tour in Connecticut and moved on to the national finals in Atlanta, Georgia, where they faced off against four other finalist teams of JA student entrepreneurs. Each team was judged by a panel including athletic celebrities and local business affiliates Hines Ward and Patrick Reed, along with Jenny Robertson of Dream Beard, Peggy Loos of The Coca-Cola Company, and Ryan Lane, a FedEx Small Business Grant recipient.

"When we won first place, my teammates and I were full of tears and joy. [JA Connecticut President] Jeremy Race told us that it was the state's first time winning money put towards them," said Muller. "I could not have been happier to hear that. The money is going to give JA Connecticut a chance to allow more schools around the state to participate in the program."

For more information about this year's FedEx Junior Business Challenge, view the organization's full event press release here: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/lo-k8-wins-fedex-junior-business-challenge-300523367.html