Todt Hill resident lauded for online business
creation
CSI student is a winner in
this year's Bank of America Youth Entrepreneur Awards Competition
Staten Island Advance - Tuesday, May 30, 2006
When Kristina Samaritino got her Yorkshire terrier,
Lola, as a Christmas gift, she had no idea the gift would lead to
starting a business, and to her being named among the city's top
young entrepreneurs.
It all started after the 20-year-old Todt Hill
resident's online search for Lola's winter clothes.
"I ordered a jacket and shoes, but everything was so
expensive," she said.
She then thought, "I could do this -- sell to people
searching for pet items online," said Ms. Samaritino, a junior at
the College of Staten Island (CSI).
In January, she founded doggychicboutique.com, an
online boutique for dog apparel, with help from her CSI adviser and
the nonprofit Citizens for New York City.
Ms. Samaritino placed among 20 winners citywide,
after entering the 2006 Bank of America Youth Entrepreneur Awards
Competition. She was the only finalist from Staten Island.
In addition to winning a $150 cash prize, and $150
for expenses, she got the chance to display her pet products on May
18 at the Bank of America Youth Entrepreneur Awards Exposition,
administered by Citizens for New York City at Manhattan Community
College.
PETFINDER.COM
Ms. Samaritino, with her boyfriend, Joseph Piscopo,
who gave her Lola as a Christmas gift, sold $200 worth of pet items
to visitors attending the event. As a condition of the competition,
she donated part of her profits to Petfinder.com, a nonprofit
organization that helps people adopt homeless pets.
"It all happened so quickly. This is all since
January," she said of her online pet supply business.
"At first, I wanted to open the business with a cart
at a mall, costing about $2,000 a month, she said. "Then I thought
I'd start online first," said Ms. Samaritino.
Adept as a graphic designer, "I knew how to use all
the programs, and I designed the entire site myself (www.doggychicboutique.com)
-- and it only cost $50."
A psychology major, the CSI junior is now thinking
of changing her major to business.
"After graduation, my dream now would be to start up
my own pet boutique in the city with maybe a little pet grooming on
the side.
"It would be much more enjoyable than going out and
doing psychology, even though that would earn more money," she said.
"If I could start my own little shop in Manhattan, I
would be so happy."
OTHER WINNERS
The top prize winners of the Bank of America Youth
Entrepreneur Awards were:
Grand prize: Ravneet Kaur, 22, provides free
screenings for heart disease and cancer, and physician care for
South Asian immigrants throughout the five boroughs. Her
organization, South Asian Community Health Project, has screened
over 3,000 people, diagnosing 515 people with disease before it was
too late.
First prize: Queens resident Qing Yun Xie, 16,
launched his own Web hosting firm, which serves over 500 clients and
manages a technical support team in India that assists while he is
in high school.
Second prize: Nathaniel Younger, 21, of
Williamsburg, Brooklyn, can "turn a Pinto into a Picasso" with his
car customizing business, Beyond Limits.
Third prize: Baruch Shemtov, 18, of Manhattan
designs and sells luxury ties to Fifth Avenue boutiques like
Takashimaya. He recently launched a line of T-shirts on Rodeo Drive
in Beverly Hills.
"Each of these kids is a testament to the power,
potential and creativity of youth in today's marketplace," said
Peter H. Kostmayer, president of Citizens for New York City. "They
are the future of New York City, and from what they have achieved at
such a young age -- not only through their business acumen but
through their passion for their communities -- I can say without a
doubt, New York City's future is very bright."
By Carolyn Rushefsky
Reprinted here with permission
from the
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