November 20, 2019
Hallmark Case Competition provides challenge for College of Business marketing students
Submitted by Brent Fritzemeier
Three finalist teams in the College of Business' Hallmark Case Competition recently traveled to Kansas City to present their findings to a panel of marketing and strategy executives at Hallmark's corporate headquarters.
The contest asked teams of one to three K-State business students to analyze a challenge based around Hallmark's business and make marketing recommendations based on their findings. Following the written portion of the competition, the top three teams were chosen to travel to Hallmark to present their findings with a 10-minute presentation, followed by five minutes of a question and answer session.
Finishing in first place was the team of Elissa Zerr and Michael Hanson, both seniors in marketing. For their win, the duo was awarded $1,000 courtesy of Hallmark.
In second place was the team of Natalie May, senior in entrepreneurship, and Ellen Reardon, senior in marketing. Third place was awarded to Annaleigh Hobbs, sophomore in marketing and economics. Both the second- and third-place finishers received scholarships from the marketing department.
"This was an invaluable experience to analyze a real-world marketing case and gain presentation experience in front of executives," said Esther Swilley, head of the department of marketing. "We were excited to partner with Hallmark to offer this experiential learning opportunity for our students."