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TO HONOR GABRIELLE GOODWIN, A SECOND-GRADER AT HARBISON WEST ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, AND TO CONGRATULATE HER FOR HER SUCCESSFUL BARRETTE BUSINESS AND FOR BEING NAMED A 2015 SOUTH CAROLINA YOUNG ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR.
Whereas, the South Carolina Senate is pleased to learn that eight-year-old Gabrielle Goodwin has designed and marketed a line of hair barrettes called GaBBY Bows; and
Whereas, in April 2015, Governor Nikki Haley named Gabrielle Goodwin as a South Carolina Young Entrepreneur of the Year, the youngest person ever to receive the award; and
Whereas, Gabrielle was selected as one of fifteen finalists to compete in the United States Small Business Administration 2015 InnovateHER Business Challenge, which offered her the opportunity to vie for a share of thirty thousand dollars in prize money divided among the top three contestants during the live-pitch competition on May 8, 2015, in Washington, D. C.; and
Whereas, since the rules of the competition require the pitch person to be at least eighteen years old, Rozalynn Goodwin, Gabrielle's mother, had to make the sales pitch to the judges for her, the only child in the competition. Although she did not finish in the top three, Gabrielle promises herself that she is not going to give up; and
Whereas, a student in Lexington-Richland 5's magnet program for academically gifted elementary students in Escolares Academy at Harbison West, Gabrielle began designing barrettes with her mother that could survive the daily life of an active little girl; and
Whereas, although her mother, a lobbyist for the South Carolina Hospital Association, thought she did not have time to start a business, she took steps to help her daughter's dreams become a reality. Through trial and error over three years, they designed a more secure "Double-Face Double-Snap" barrette that they began to market in February 2014 as GaBBY Bows; and
Whereas, Gabrielle's faith and persistence encouraged her mother to forge ahead even when she wanted to stop because she realized that Gabrielle had an idea that could succeed; and
Whereas, the barrettes are currently sold in fifty-one Bi-Lo stores around the Palmetto State and in forty Walgreens throughout South Carolina and Georgia, as well as online in thirty-two states and five countries; and
Whereas, the young co-founder and self-proclaimed president of the company, Gabrielle works hard on the weekends to help fill orders and enter data, and she continues to propose new colors and designs for the barrettes; and
Whereas, Gabrielle takes tap and ballet lessons and loves to read books and to play with her younger brother, Michael. She enjoys traveling as part of owning her own business, and as she holds events, she promotes anti-bullying and sponsors a children's shelter, where she invites the children to play with her and encourages those in the community to bring a wish-list item for the shelter; and
Whereas, the South Carolina Senate deeply appreciates the entrepreneurial spirit in Gabrielle Goodwin and look to hear of her continued accomplishments in the days ahead. Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the Senate:
That the members of the South Carolina Senate, by this resolution, honor Gabrielle Goodwin, a second-grader at Harbison West Elementary School, and congratulate her for her successful barrette business and for being named a 2015 South Carolina Young Entrepreneur of the Year.
Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be forwarded to Gabrielle Goodwin.
This web page was last updated on May 20, 2015 at 7:27 PM