On Friday, May 4th Grand Junction YEA! student and CEO of Sleepy Sheepy, Nick Silzell, won the 2018 National Young Entrepreneurs Academy People’s Choice Award at the YEA! Saunders Scholar Competition in Rochester, New York. At the all-day competition, Nick competed against 70 student businesses from across the country, who were all vying for the same title, “America’s Next Top Entrepreneur”. Out of those 70 student businesses, Nick was selected to be one of only six students to move on to the Finals. Nick went on to take home the 2018 YEA! People’s Choice Award for his business Sleepy Sheepy, along with $20,000 in college scholarships. He is the first Grand Junction YEA! student to make it to the Saunders Scholar Final competition, and the first to be awarded the People’s Choice Award.
Nick Silzell’s winning product, the Sleepy Sheepy pillowcase will make falling asleep a dream according to its CEO! With bamboo fleece on one side and bamboo fabric on the other side, this pillowcase allows you to regulate your temperature ensuring you get the perfect night’s sleep. Nick came up with the idea for the pillowcase while researching different fabrics. From his research, he discovered that bamboo fabric does different things with temperature. Currently, Nick is manufacturing the Sleepy Sheepy pillowcases himself, with the help of his family. In the future, Nick hopes to be able to find a manufacturer in China to produce the pillowcases, and he is looking to begin selling on Amazon. Sleepy Sheepy pillowcases are available in the standard and king sizes.
When Nick isn’t winning awards for his businesses ideas, he attends East Middle School, where he is a part of the Challenge program. Along with being a young entrepreneur, Nick enjoys skiing, playing tennis, and programming robots. For more information on how you can purchase the award winning Sleepy Sheepy pillow case, contact YEA! program manager Darcy Weir, at Darcy@gjchamber.org or 970-263-2916.
Nick Silzell, CEO of Sleepy Sheepy
2018 National Young Entrepreneurs Academy Saunders Scholar Competition Finalists