Faculty of Business Administration ・Yasuda Seminar won the Special Jury Prize at the "7th INACOME Business Contest 2025"!

On Friday, December 19th, the final round of the "INACOME Business Contest 2025" hosted by INACOME, a platform for promoting entrepreneurship subsidies from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, was held at Pasona Square (Minato-ku, Tokyo). Our university Faculty of Business Administration ・ Yasuda Seminar's team Zinnia won the Special Jury Prize (3rd place) in the idea category.

The contest encourages the creation of new businesses that utilize agricultural, forestry, and fishery products and local resources, and is divided into two categories: the "Idea" and the "Startup" categories. This year, over 200 entries were received from across the country, with 10 teams that made it through the preliminary rounds to advance to the finals. While many of the finalists are already active entrepreneurs, Team Zinnia proposed a business model that utilizes discarded parts of managed deer as ingredients for pet food from a circular economy perspective. They reported on the results of interviews with over 100 producers and over 200 consumers, as well as field testing using an MVP (minimum viable product).

The head judge gave high praise, saying, "Their understanding of the issues and persona (target image) were clear and persuasive. I was also impressed by the good team atmosphere that was conveyed through their passionate and energetic presentation."

Leader Kaori Matsumura (3rd year) said, "As a leader, I have run with the vision of 'We are a team that leaves no one behind and wins together.' As I learned the difficulties of taking on challenges like a Soka University student, what I have gained is an endless gratitude to everyone who has supported me. I will use this experience as a source of strength to overcome difficulties in life and grow into a person who can contribute to my juniors, my alma mater, and society."

Miki Kusakari (3rd year), who played a central role in the presentation, said, "I am very happy to have won this award among so many working adults who participated. During our activities, things did not go as planned, and there were days when we faced frustration and anxiety, but I feel that continuing to face the challenges head-on with my teammates is what led to this recognition. Our time as Zinnia taught us much more than the results we achieved in the competition. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to everyone involved who supported our activities."

●Team "Zinnia" members
Kaori Matsumura (Faculty of Business Administration 3 years)
Sachiko Nishioka (Faculty of Business Administration 3 years)
Miyuki Yonemoto (Faculty of Business Administration 3 years)
Miki Kusakari (Faculty of Business Administration 3 years)
Yutaro Tanaka (Faculty of Business Administration 3 years)
Hideaki Sato (Faculty of Business Administration 3rd year)