A Berry College creative technology major recently won the top prize of $10,000 for his social media application that targets stock market connoisseurs.

The Henry & Clara Ford Fund for Innovation & Entrepreneurship awarded $10,000 to Nate Pedigo of Signal Mountain, Tennessee. The co-founder of SoVest, Pedigo created the social media application for individuals to engage with investments and form connections on the platform.

Pedigo competed in Berry’s annual PITCH competition recently, with other students winning a total of $29,000. The event mimicked the Shark Tank model, inviting students to showcase their business ideas. Students participated in two rounds of competition and received feedback from a panel of alumni judges.

Dylan Sears, a management and marketing major from Canton, Georgia, was awarded $5,000 from the Entrepreneurial Seed Fund and $1,000 from the Ninja Fund Best Idea. Sears is the CEO of Stay EZ, Operating Management System. The platform supports short-term rental businesses through streamlined property management operations.

Judges awarded Emma Harrison of Cumming, Georgia, $5,000 through the Bettyann O’Neill Innovation Fund. A psychology and marketing major, Harrison founded Emma’s Plate, a content creation brand to connect with people through recipes.

The following students also won money to build their business:

• Joey Fletcher, of Ringgold, Georgia: Ghostlight Visuals

• Noah Campbell, of Calhoun, Georgia: Printifications

• Alana Azeta, of Marietta, Georgia: Height’nd

• Andrew Purcell, of Birmingham, Alabama: Color Berry

• Addofo El Bey, of Marietta, Georgia: A.B.C. Studios

For more information on the event, please contact C-SEED at [email protected] or 706-378-2854.