Countdown to Launch
Kristen McClellan '12 didn't land the $25,000 grand prize in a student entrepreneurship contest sponsored by MTV and the New York Stock Exchange.
But, her entrepreneurial passion has been ratified.
"Being around other student entrepreneurs has been awesome. We could all relate to building a business with the added pressures of attending college at the same time," said the 20-year-old SnappyScreen inventor highlighted in three December episodes of MTV’s Movers & Changers show.
"We all talked about time management," said McClellan who schedules just about every hour – including what times to wake up in the morning and go to bed at night– in a Cornell day planner.
Even leisure time is planned.
Friends guffaw.
"Kristen … really?"
"But, it works … it helps me not miss a beat," said McClellan, who juggles studies, a business, a Cornell tour guide job, ILR Student Government Association responsibilities, sorority life, work as an events planner for Rent The Runway – a designer dress rental outfit – and other activities.
Awarded $5,000 in additional SnappyScreen capital by the Movers & Changers show, McClellan got her business start as a youngster selling lemonade, handmade crafts and "purebred" snails harvested from a nearby beach.
By the time she turned 12, she and her 10-year-old neighbor created "Funcare."
A day camp complete with theme days, crafts, camp T-shirts, games and prizes, it profited $1,000 a week and nurtured the entrepreneurial spirit that led to SnappyScreen.
SnappyScreen is an airbrush sunscreen application system designed to eliminate uneven tans and prevent sunburn and skin damage.
Say goodbye to mid-back sunburns and hands slathered with white goop. SnappyScreen mists sunscreen from nozzles attached to a free-standing panel. One SnappyScreen application will cost about $2, McClellan said.
SnappyScreen -- incubating in Cornell's eLab -- will funnel a portion of profits to the Melanoma Research Foundation.
For Movers & Changers competition, McClellan filmed for hours on campus and at the New York Stock Exchange. The episodes were broadcast on the mtvU Network to more than 800 college campuses and can be viewed at http://www.moversandchangers.com/.
Although the top prize went to a University of Tennessee team, McClellan said, "The experience was invaluable."
This winter break, McClellan is off to southern California to do SnappyScreen market research at beachside resorts.
She will also recruit investors, work with engineers to finalize SnappyScreen's design and plan for a trial run before launching her product this summer.