Six Businesses to Compete for Cash Prizes

Posted On: March 25, 2025

Be part of the excitement in discovering the next generation of businesses shaping the future of Volusia County. Six aspiring entrepreneurs, innovators, and small business owners will compete for cash and in-kind prizes during the 2025 Volusia Innovation Pitch Competition and Innovation Challenge from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, March 27, at the Ocean Center, 101 N. Atlantic Ave., Daytona Beach.

Prizes include $10,000 for first place, $5,000 for second place, and $2,000 for people’s choice. Attendees can cast their vote for the people’s choice award.

The six finalists, who will pitch their business ideas before a panel of five judges, are:

• Collin Topolski and Andy Zamora of Acreage Farms, designers of profit maximizing solutions for vertical farming. Their multilevel, autonomous monitoring system provides 24/7 assessment capability and real time integration with water, light, and plant nutrition systems to optimize productivity and crop yield.
• Lucas Cohen and Paul Moody of Beyond Bounds Studios, developers of Tangohost, a custom server, game hosting, and management solution; and Titanborn, the first fully voice-activated and animated mass multiplayer online role-built game using the Vanilla Minecraft platform.
• Jack White of Mr. Market, developer and distributor of an engaging table-top family game that teaches financial principles to children as young as 7. De­signed to simulate the stock market, Mr. Market uses realis­tic scenarios to make “buying and selling” exciting and fun.
• Andrew Bernett of Be Well Therapeutics, manufacturer and distributor of a beeswax-infused topical therapy system that enhanc­es the effectiveness of over-the-counter and prescription creams, ointments, and lotions to provide faster relief and healing of dry and irritated skin.
• Jacob Fleming and Ryan Flournoy of JRK Supplements, developers and producers of an all-natural lineup of chew­able energy products called Slap Strips. Unlike sugary and highly caffeinated products on the market today, Slap Strips are made from fruit and other natural ingredients using a nutrient preserving dehydration process.
• Jenny Porter of Porter Pelvic School, creator of a series of self-help, online courses to address pel­vic area disorders such as urinary incontinence. Porter Pelvic offers proven instruc­tional content with a course selection algorithm to deliver targeted and effective help.

Residents and members of the media are asked to register for this free event before midnight March 26 at https://2025VolusiaInnovationChallenge.eventbrite.com. Registration is required to receive free parking in the Ocean Center’s west and south parking lots.

The Volusia Innovation Challenge, facilitated by Volusia County’s Economic Development Division, is an annual business pitch competition to encourage and assist Volusia County creators and aspiring entrepreneurs who are ready to launch or grow their business.