Minocqua student who is headed to UW-Green Bay wins 2020 Wisconsin YES! youth business plan contest

Ayla Mollen, a graduating senior at Lakeland Union High School in Minocqua who will attend UW-Green Bay in the fall, is the first-place winner in Wisconsin YES!, a statewide youth business plan contest for students in middle and high school.

Ayla’s company, Seninaturals, is dog treat line that provides neurological health benefits to dogs. She is an aspiring veterinarian who has worked in kennels and clinics, is a National Honors Society student and has taken part in the UW-Madison’s Information Technology Academy for three years.

A recorded presentation of Ayla’s business plan was shared at the June 4 virtual Entrepreneurs’ Conference during the awards portion of the Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Contest.

Students submitted their ideas in a 250-word online summary to compete in Phase 1 of the contest. Professionals from across the state served as judges, provided feedback and scored the ideas. Nearly 20 entries were selected to move on to Phase 2, where they submitted 1,000-word executive summaries covering company overview; product or service description; customer definition; market description, size and sales strategy; competition; management team; financials; and capital needs.