Learn more about Simply Divine Brownies
Simply Divine Brownies learned recently of its runner- up finish from Forbes, said Trina Beaulier, president of the brownie company. She did not know the vote tally.
Forbes announced the contest winner Wednesday: a Massachusetts company that makes consumer products from recycled or environmentally friendly materials.
"Obviously, we wish we had won, but it's still been a good experience," Beaulier said.
Even without the grand prize, Simply Divine Brownies plans to move ahead with an expansion and new products, she said.
The brownie company was among five finalists chosen from nearly 1,000 entrants. Each finalist submitted a business plan and tried to convince a panel of judges that a $100,000 investment in their business would yield greater returns than an investment in their competitors.
On its Web site, Forbes posted videotapes of the presentations to judges, with summaries of all of the finalists' business plans and ideas for investing the prize money. Visitors could vote for the best entry.
The other finalists were an online clearinghouse based in Michigan that links water and utility companies with potential contractors; a unicycle maker from Georgia; and a nonprofit in Virginia that sponsors conferences for high school students in Washington, D.C., to promote civic engagement.
Beaulier founded Simply Divine Brownies in her kitchen in 2004. Her oldest daughter, Meggen, joined the venture in 2006 and is its chief executive officer. The company has about 20 employees and operates at Fort Andross in Brunswick, making a variety of boutique brownies with toppings and frostings.
In its pitch to Forbes, the company outlined plans to add a line of frozen batter and frosting with toppings, to be sold in high- end grocery stores, for consumers to take home and bake themselves.
Simply Divine Brownies also planned to move from its present location to a spot on Route 1 in Freeport in March, with a 400- square-foot retail area and 2,000 square feet of production space.
The plan projects revenue of $450,000 by the end of 2008 and $2.5 million by the end of 2009.
Beaulier said the company will move ahead with the expansion, in part because the publicity generated by the Forbes contest boosted sales significantly and raised the company's profile.
She said she also benefited from having to produce a detailed business plan, which was prepared with advice from experts.
"Participating in this gave us nine-tenths of what we wanted because we got so much PR," she said. "Everybody in Maine has been so good supporting a Maine business."
She said the expansion might be delayed slightly so Simply Divine Brownies can first introduce gluten-free and sugar-free products in response to strong demand from customers.
Wayne Messer, who has been working with Simply Divine Brownies as a project manager for the Maine Manufacturing Extension Partnership, said he expects the company will prosper.
Messer has been helping the Beauliers get seed grants, develop standard operating procedures and packaging, and design the space in Freeport.
"They are one of the up-and-coming businesses in midcoast Maine, and they're definitely going to make their mark," he said. "They are going to be good stewards of the community."
Dieter Bradbury is the online reporter for pressherald.com, where this report initially appeared. Bradbury's beat is designed to engage directly with readers and glean story ideas from your suggestions, Web postings and feedback. If you have comments, please post them at pressherald.com or send Bradbury an e-mail at: dbradbury@pressherald.com
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