Through the Years in the Bull Ring: 2017

Steven Van Alen pitches his business of making and selling mattress toppers for dorm beds to the panel of judges. (David J. Hawkins/CSUN.)

Steven Van Alen makes the pitch to judges during the final competition round in 2017. (David J. Hawkins/CSUN.)

2019

The NoSpills System team presenting their product and answering questions from the judges in the final round of the Bull Ring competition, 2019. (Patricia Carrillo/CSUN.)

2023

The team behind the winning business venture in 2023, the app “Steal the Look.” Team members from left to right, Minette Coye, Talin Aivazian, Alen Canik and Elizabeth Hernandez. (Sonia Gurrola/CSUN.)

2024

Laci Sanchez was the grand prize winner of the 9th annual Jeff Marine Bull Ring New Venture Competition in 2024. (Bryan Rodgers/CSUN.)

In 2017, Steven Van Alen was a business management student at CSUN and already committed to the dream of entrepreneurship. 

“I was selling stuff, doing services, mowing people’s lawns, washing cars when I was in middle school and high school,” he said. He’d even started a few companies. So when he entered CSUN’s second annual Bull Ring competition that year, “it wasn’t my first rodeo,” he explained. He’d even laid the groundwork, and had samples of his product — comfortable mattress toppers for dorm beds, when he entered the competition. 

But even so, he told CSUN Newsroom at the time that he was “completely shocked” when his business pitch won first place. But he was up for the challenge. “We’re going to put this money to good use, implementing our current ideas and driving marketing,” he said at the award ceremony. 

Eight years later, Van Alen has steered his business, called “Sleepyhead,” to astonishing heights. Its sales are focused on the Sleepyhead website and on Amazon, where mattress toppers for all sizes of beds are available. Sleepyhead is now based in Scottsdale, Arizona, with a staff of 25 and 5 college interns. 

“From 2021 to 2024 we grew 2400%,” Van Alen said. “We’ve been doubling, even sometimes tripling, year over year.” The company that Van Alen started while a student at CSUN now enjoys eight-figure annual sales — and Van Alen is looking to expand to a Sleepyhead line of mattresses and bedding. 

Ten years later, the CSUN Jeff Marine Bull Ring Competition is also still going strong. The spin on the popular T.V. show “Shark Tank” was created in the David Nazarian College of Business and Economics. The final event brings the five finalists together— the teams pitch their businesses before judges and an audience. But contestants aren’t just thrown into the ring — there’s a whole program designed to foster and prepare the up-and-coming entrepreneurs. And it’s not just for business majors — students from every academic department are encouraged to take part in the training that includes one-on-one mentoring with seasoned entrepreneurs, capital providers, and industry leaders, pitch coaching and workshops. 

Ryan Holbrook, the entrepreneurship program director, said the program continues to bring in those interested in striking out on their own. 

“This year, we received 53 applications, which is more than double the number we received three years ago, as we’ve been on a steady climb post-pandemic,” Holbrook said. “That translates into over 100 students participating.” 

Over the years, a wide-range of products and ideas have captured the top prize. The winning ideas include a seat-lift for people using wheelchairs, a no-spill tray for delivery drivers and a fashion app that allows people to shop curated looks. Last year, the team behind LS Trust Marketing took first place— the first services business to do so. 

Holbrook said that the students involved have continued to impress him with their grit. 

“The students’ ability to thrive in uncertainty, solve problems, and the overall entrepreneurial spirit has been what’s been most inspiring,” Holbrook said. “If there’s one word I would use to describe the CSUN students I’ve advised, it’s ‘resourceful.'” 

Van Alen notes those qualities will serve new entrepreneurs well, as it’s a demanding career path. 

“You have to be extremely dedicated,” said Van Alen. “You have to want to persevere because it’s a lot of time and energy and work,” he explained. 

This year, Van Alen will return to the Bull Ring stage, but this time, as one of the final event judges who will determine the winners of the event— cash prizes that are funded by alumnus Jeff Marine and his family. First place receives $10,000, the second-place winner receives $5,000 and the third-place award is $2,500. There are three additional awards given that are $2,500 each: the Audience Choice award, the Social Impact award and the Best Use of Technology award. Winners also receive $2,500 in free legal services and $2,500 dollars in marketing and branding services, which are in-kind donations provided by IntersectLA, CSUN’s student-driven creative agency and the law firm, NovusGC. 

Van Alen said his time in the ring, as a student, is still very much with him as he propels his business to new heights. 

“I talk about it in almost every interview I do or every investor call, to this day,” he said. “I say, hey, that competition really solidified my business. It shows that your ideas matter and your business matters.” 

This year’s final event takes place on April 24 from 3-5 p.m. in the USU Grand Salon. 

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The post Beyond the Bull Ring: Celebrating Ten Years of CSUN’s Training Ground for Entrepreneurs  first appeared on CSUN Newsroom.