Archives For Arts

Maryland kid entrepreneur pitching cupcakes to Warren Buffet

Emily Kimball —  May 17, 2013
Cupcakes for Literacy

Krissa Hillman of Cupcakes for Literacy is a finalist in Warren Buffett’s Secret Millionaires Club’s Learn and Earn, Grow Your Own Business Challenge.

Does the Sage of Omaha have a sweet tooth? An 11-year-old Howard County student is on a mission to find out.

Krissa Hillman, the budding entrepreneur behind Cupcakes for Literacy, is a finalist in Warren Buffett’s Secret Millionaires Club’s Learn and Earn, Grow Your Own Business Challenge. She will travel to Omaha, Nebraska this weekend to present her business plan to Buffet and other investors for a chance to win $5,000 in seed funding.

Krissa, a fifth-grader at Bollman Bridge Elementary School, was chosen from among over 4,000 other children with business plans. Cupcakes for Literacy is a spin-off of the website her mother started six years ago that catalogs YouTube videos of Krissa reading books to children. Since February, Krissa and her board of classmates regularly bake and sell cupcakes to raise funds for schools, libraries and literacy, art and music programs.

Armed with a pan of red velvet cupcakes (topped with bright blue frosting and candies), she did a practice run-through of her presentation at Howard County’s Maryland Center for Entrepreneurship, in conjunction with Startup Maryland, in Columbia on Friday.

“Everybody loves cupcakes, right? If you don’t love cupcakes, you must be crazy,” Krissa said, drawing laughs from the center’s panel of entrepreneurial advisors.

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Business loan managers approved to distribute Maryland slots revenue

Emily Kimball —  April 17, 2013

Using funds from a portion of Maryland’s slot machine revenue, three investment and financial firms will distribute loans for small, minority and women-owned businesses, the Maryland Department of Business & Economic Development announced Wednesday.

The Small, Minority and Women-Owned Business Account receives 1.5 percent of video lottery terminal revenue from Maryland’s three casinos. The Board of Public Works recently approved the following investment and financial firms to distribute up to $7.86 million in loans from that account, beginning on May 1.

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How students 3D-printed the InvestMaryland Challenge awards

Emily Kimball —  April 17, 2013
3D Printed InvestMaryland Challenge Awards

The 3D-printed InvestMaryland Challenge awards were produced by Towson University students.

Resting on pillars during the culmination of the InvestMaryland Challenge were three ivory-colored grand prize awards, swirling upward like the leaves of a springtime perennial and topped with the symbols of each winning company’s industry.

While the awards went to a trio of Maryland’s most innovative early-stage businesses, the awards’ creators, Jessica Searfino and Amanda Paunil, likewise felt honored to see their designs showcased at the event.

Both women are Towson University students studying interdisciplinary object design, and they created the awards out of plaster using the university’s 3D printing lab.

See additional photos of the printing process below. 

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Pimlico hopes to attract Marylanders beyond Preakness

Emily Kimball —  April 10, 2013
Preakness Maryland

Preakness, a horse racing Maryland tradition, will return May 2013.

The Pimlico Race Course plans to expand its Preakness celebration this May with new food, drink and entertainment options. But organizers are also hoping to draw crowds throughout the remaining horse racing season, the Baltimore Sun reports.

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Maryland businesses anticipate film credit extension boost

Emily Kimball —  April 9, 2013
Behind the scenes of "Veep"

HBO’s “Veep” was filmed in Maryland and benefitted from an industry tax credit.

During an episode of the popular Netflix series “House of Cards,” a female character angrily throws a framed picture.

Watching that moment from their living room, Bill and Susan Decker couldn’t help but smile as the actress broke their custom-designed product. The husband and wife are co-owners of Furst Bros., a historic Baltimore framing company, and they are among thousands of Marylanders who have benefited from the state’s growing film industry, many of them small businesses not directly associated with the film production business

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Maryland’s March casino revenue hit $58M

Emily Kimball —  April 5, 2013

Maryland’s three casinos generated  $58,048,394 in March, with more than 75 percent of total revenue coming from Maryland Live! Casino in Hanover, the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency announced.

  • Maryland Live! Casino generated $44,613,545 in March, about $348 per slot machine, per day.
  • Hollywood Casino Perryville, which carries both slot machines and table games, generated  $9,486,110 in March, about $225 per slot machine, per day, $3,659 for banking table games and $1,296.94 for non-banking table games.
  • The Casino at Ocean Downs generated $3,948,739 in March, about $159 per slot machine, per day.

Maryland Live! Casino hopes to further increase revenue by introducing table games, which are planned to debut on April 11.

The Baltimore Business Journal reported March’s total revenue as record breaking, as the previous high was $48 million in July 2012.

Additional charts and figures on Maryland’s casinos are available here.

Komen Maryland incentivizes ‘pink’ Ocean City businesses

Emily Kimball —  April 5, 2013
Harrison Hall

Harrison Hall won the 2012 Paint the Town Pink competition. Credit Komen Maryland

Breast cancer awareness advocates plan to energize Ocean City businesses this month during the 2nd Annual Komen Maryland Ocean City Race for the Cure.

The Maryland Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure is hosting both a business competition and a restaurant fundraiser in conjunction with its April 21 race.

Paint the Town Pink will award a SeaBoard Media advertising package—valued at $1,280—to the Ocean City business with the most creative pink decorations. Dine Out for the Cure will also publicize registered Ocean City restaurants that plan to donate between 10 and 20 percent of sales toward the race.

“We’re definitely hoping for more participation from businesses in the race’s second  year. It’s a great way for them to how their support, and an easy way for participants to decide where best to shop and eat out. It mutually benefits everybody,” said Brittany Fowler, a Komen Maryland communications manager.

Further details on business registration are available through Komen Maryland here.

April kicks off farmers markets across Maryland

Emily Kimball —  April 3, 2013
Maryland farmers markets

Maryland farmers markets are reopening for the season.

Fresh vegetables, naturally raised meats and quirky crafters are returning to a community near you.

More than 100 farmers markets set up shop each year across Maryland, and several are reopening for the season this month.

One of the state’s largest seasonal markets, the Baltimore Farmers’ Market & Bazaar, is scheduled to kick off on April 7. It will run every Sunday until Dec. 22, underneath the Jones Falls Expressway at Holliday and Saratoga streets in Baltimore City.

In good weather, the market draws up to 10,000 visitors per day, according to market manager Carol Simon. She attributes its popularity to a growing culture of food consciousness.

“People are generally more informed about local food. They want food that hasn’t been contaminated with sprays or pesticides. It’s more pricey, but people are happy to find healthier food,” Simon said.

Find an up-to-date interactive map and listing of Maryland farmers markets here through the Department of Agriculture.

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Young T-shirt sellers channel Maryland pride

Emily Kimball —  March 27, 2013
FreeState Clothing

FreeState Clothing specializes in Maryland pride as a fashion statement. Credit FreeState Clothing Facebook page

Two young entrepreneurs are capitalizing on Maryland state pride through a social media-driven T-shirt company, and they’ve already made more than $35,000, the Frederick News-Post reports.

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Maryland-made Mary Sue Easter Eggs gaining East Coast popularity

Emily Kimball —  March 27, 2013
Mary Sue Easter Egg

Baltimore-based candy maker Mary Sue produced a whole lot of chocolate eggs in 2013.

Mary Sue Easter Eggs have filled Easter baskets across Maryland since 1948, but recently their reach has extended farther than ever.

Baltimore-based production for the chocolate-covered creams will total between 3 and 5 million this spring (an exact count for 2013 has not yet been completed), according to Mike Weiss, chief financial officer of Mary Sue Candies.

“If it’s not the most we’ve ever made, it’s certainly getting close to it,” said Weiss, who has worked with the company for the past 11 years.

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Happy Maryland Day! 10 reasons we love it here

Emily Kimball —  March 25, 2013

Maryland Day isn’t usually celebrated with a blanket of wet snow, but at least it’s an excuse to curl up with a steaming bowl of Maryland crab soup.

European settlers first landed on the Province of Maryland on March 25, 1634, and 379 years later, the area has drawn millions from around the globe.

In honor of Maryland Day, we’ve rounded up 10 reasons why it’s great to live and work in the “Old Line State.” Note: this list is best enjoyed with “Maryland, My Maryland” playing in the background, which shares its tune with “O Christmas Tree. Continue Reading…

Baltimore roller coaster engineering firm wins Hong Kong contract

Emily Kimball —  March 20, 2013
Premier Rides

Baltimore-based Premier Rides is taking its services to Hong Kong.

At least one Baltimore-based engineering firm specializes in making people scream. In fact, their international reputation recently won them a major contract in Hong Kong.

Premier Rides—which designs, supplies and maintains roller coasters, observation wheels, towers, water rides and other custom attractions—has been selected to provide technical services and support for multiple rides at Ocean Park Hong Kong.

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