Huntington Virtual Enterprise Students Reach New Heights

Huntington High School’s Virtual Enterprise business program is reaching new heights. Student executives from all three companies recently participated in the New York State/Northeast Regional fall virtual trade show.

“The event drew over 1,800 students from 108 separate schools in our region in the first opportunity for firms to sell their products and services to their competitors,” said Bryan Outsen, the business teacher who heads Huntington High School’s VE program. “Five representatives from each firm set up shop in the Heritage Room and conducted sales calls via Zoom throughout the day. They reported each sale to me after it was completed and I updated the sales tracker periodically, which was displayed on the big screen so firms can see the standings change as the event progressed.

The reps for each firm were as follows:

CleanClip: Caroline Mitek, Gevonne Henderson, Belinda Velasquez, Blake Bender, and Annemarie Araujo

Embrace: Elliot Manu, Audrey Sherwood, Daniro Rodriguez, and Eli Levi

Xtinguish: Leila O’Toole, Ella Palatnek, Caleb Lee, Alexandra Boeckmann, and Madyn Kalb

Overall, Huntington High School sold a total of 730 units, resulting in $237,802.18 in revenue for the three firms.

On an individual level, Elliot Manu lead the way with $33,604.27 in sales revenue earned, as well as the highest revenue per sale with $1,120.34. Blake Bender and Gevonne Henderson tied for the most individual sales with 31 each over the course of the 6 ½ hour trade show.

“All in all, it was a very successful day for Huntington and this served as great preparation for our first in person trade show coming up at Oyster Bay High School on December 9,” Mr. Outsen said. “I was truly impressed with every member’s commitment to the event as most students were literally selling to the last minute of the trade show.”

Company executives were energized by the experience. “As CSO of Xtinguish, I believe our first virtual trade show was extremely successful. Out of all three VE classes we made the most profit for the day coming in at a whopping $86,074.46,” Ms. Palatnek said. “Overall, we felt confident selling our product, making sure our information was accurate and our different voices and personalities were demonstrated throughout the day. Our biggest challenge is going to be selling our product face to face, instead of online, which we are all accustomed to. The trade show was a great start for Xtinguish and we can’t wait to continue expanding our business.”

The Huntington VE program has grown in visibility and stature in a short period of time.

“As CSO of CleanClip, during our first trade show I’d say we did very well,” Mr. Henderson said. “Leading up to that day my excitement, for sure, overpowered my nerves. My team and I felt confident and ready. I remember my first sale selling one clean clip for $24.99 and feeling ecstatic leading to my last 10 sales being bundles ranging from $115-$1,100. Time was flying throughout the trade show, sales were being made left and right. We definitely were getting hungry. Much love to Mr. Outsen for hooking us up with pizza. There’s always something to improve on, but I can’t take anything away from how CleanClip performed. Shout out to my team; CleanClip is only going up from here!”