Bria Reeves took home first place in the 2026 College Cup for her skin-sensitive perfume business — The Essence of B.L.R. She was awarded $7,000 to put towards her venture based on her pitch to a panel of judges and an audience filled with TU representatives and students, business leaders and friends and family.

The Essence of B.L.R. is a versatile, all-natural fragrance company for skin and fragrance-sensitive individuals. Bria describes her products as functional, chemical-free fragrances that are “kind on the skin and gentle to the nose” that just happens to be insect repellent.

Bria founded her company because she saw family members struggle with skin fragrance sensitivity and “decided to use her entrepreneurship skills to aid with that issue.”

This is the second year Bria, a psychology major minoring in entrepreneurship, has competed in the College Cup.

“I learned a lot more than I learned last year and I was inspired by being connected with all the advisors and people that were willing to help and who have been in this position before,” she said.

“To be the winner means a lot to me,” said Bria. “My family is the reason why I’m standing here. So this win was not just for me, it was for my family and those who may feel like they are not able to. I wanted to show people that look like me and feel like me, that they can make an impact and it does take one person to change the world.”

Watch Bria’s first place pitch

About the Towson University College Cup

The College Cup is a university-wide challenge, offered through the StarTUp at the Armory, designed to help students develop new ideas and innovations to positively impact the world.

Over six weeks, students participate in workshops to help them transform their ideas into pitch-ready ventures. Students gain the skills, confidence and structure needed to pitch their company on the main stage of the StarTUp at the Armory for a chance to win up to $7,000. 

John Gonsalves, a computer science major, won second place and was awarded $5,000 to put toward his venture, Opsify, a small-business, back-office AI-enabled software.

He said the programming tied into his passion for business development and said the College Cup provided him with tools to help him articulate his ideas into a winning business that he could actually pitch to investors.

“Being able to pitch my ideas as a computer scientist, in the intersection of computer science and business, has been a really fun thing for me,” said Gonzalez. “We learned a lot about our businesses and got to do a deep dive into our branding and identity … everything. And, I’m taking a lot of business knowledge away from it.”

View images of the 2026 College Cup

2026 College Cup finalists

1st Place ($7,000)

The Essence of B.L.R. by Bria Reeves
A skin care product for very sensitive skin, with a great scent and mosquito repellent

2nd Place ($5,000)

Opsify by John Gonsalves
A small-business, back-office AI enabled software

3rd Place ($3,000)

Veltara by Michael Kimack and Duy Pham
A healthy ramen dispensing device

4th Place ($1,000)

InvenSnap by Regina Bhandari and Abim Shrestha
An inventory management software for small retail stores, integrates with existing POS systems

5th Place ($1,000)

A La Bar Carte by Frinee Mendez
A mobile bar where you can craft your own themed drinks for your event

6th Place ($1,000)

Unhid by Raymond Mbam and Doowuese Igbazua
A social media platform for graduate students to create community, collaborate, discuss jobs and research opportunities 

Other students won $600 for their ventures:

  • Dear Draftspire, Makayla Mitchell 
  • Kay’s Mane Remedy, Kaliya Mackey 
  • Odera, Anish Boddu, Newton Nguyen and Gabriel Cargo 
  • OnRealty, Ashley  Carrigan 
  • PlateMates, Luis Dale Gascon 
  • The BRDGE, Elijah  Brantley 
  • Wearable, Maytal Fleisher 
  • WeatherWear, Folashade Agbolade and Tolulope Banjo 
  • Zenzy Smoothies, Zaniah Kwaw