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Chelsea Sloan, a recent University of Utah graduate and co-founder of Uptown Cheapskate, was awarded first place in the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards earlier this month in New York City.
Sloan, 27, was selected from nearly 2,000 student applicants from around the world. She is the competition's first female winner since the awards began in 1998 and will receive $150,000 in cash and in-kind business services from the Entrepreneurs' Organization to help build her business.
Entrepreneurs' Organization is a global network of more than 8,000 business owners in 40 who present the award to students running revenue-generating businesses after they appear before a panel of judges.
Uptown Cheapskate is a retail clothing franchise that buys, sells and trades new and gently used designer and fashion-forward merchandise for young men and women. Its inventory typically includes shoes, handbags, jewelry, clothing and hats.
Sloan, who graduated this year from the U. with a bachelor's degree in business administration, started the Uptown Cheapskate franchise with brother Scott in 2009 while both were still students.
Using the foundation of their parents' children's resale franchise Kid to Kid, the two set out to create a similar concept for their company. Since 2009, they've opened 25 Uptown Cheapskate franchise stores in 12 states, with plans to expand and develop additional locations.
The Sloans' Utah stores are at 460 W. 500 S. in Bountiful and 353 W. 200 S. in Salt Lake City. Uptown Cheapskate stores also operate in Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Arizona, Texas, Minnesota, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Maryland.