Judges in the 21st round of Salisbury University’s Philip E. and Carole R. Ratcliffe Foundation Shore Hatchery entrepreneurship competition sipped their way to tranquility, awarding adaptogenic tea Zenjoy with this semester’s top funding amount of $35,000. 

Mack Anderson, Tim Brumbaugh and Daniel Osborne of Zenology, LLC, impressed the judges with the call to “find your zen.” The stress and anxiety relief tea company boasts a proprietary “Zen Blend” that works to lower cortisol using natural ingredients. 

The funding will help expand distribution beyond the company’s current 400 retailers across Maryland and Washington, D.C. 

Held at the university’s Dave and Patsy Rommel Center for Entrepreneurship at SU Downtown, the competition featured 37 applicants from throughout the Mid-Atlantic vying for their share of $103,000 in prize money. 

Other winners included: 

• Gifts Fulfilled – Kim Shanahan: This mission-based company from Berlin, was founded to create jobs for people with disabilities. The company creates, assembles and delivers gift baskets, boxes and care packages – $25,000 

• Salisbury Dance Academy – Elena Manakhova: This facility provides Salisbury and surrounding communities with hands-on opportunities to learn and perform professional dance skills in individual and class environments – $10,000 

• Counter-Intuitive Cooking – Maxwell Wieder: The Eldersburg-based company introduced Celcy, the automated countertop robot that combines a freezer and oven to offer on-demand, quality food – $10,000 

• Keppel and Kismet – Nichole Sullivan: The Baltimore-based small-batch manufacturer partners with small-to medium-sized businesses to offer inventory production, custom signage and merchandise of bespoke goods made of wood and other quality materials – $10,000 

• Quantum Senses – Justin Lee and Gregory James: Based in Prince George’s County, this company provides organic, innovative and affordable technology solutions to enhance the holistic experiences of the five senses to improve consumers’ quality of life – $8,000 

• Elucidi – Suker Li, Kelton Clark and Mark Jeutten: With a focus on facilitating and diving the sustainable future of the Chesapeake Bay, this Baltimore-based business enables technologies for both farmers and restorationists – $5,000 

This round’s winners join the program’s 108 previous award recipients, who have self-reported estimated profits of some $29 million, creating 1,071 jobs. 

Administered by the Perdue School, the goal of the Shore Hatchery program is to fund and provide guidance to entrepreneurs with active small businesses in order to achieve greater scale and market reach. 

Up to $200,000 annually is available for those applying for grants through the Shore Hatchery program. Its board of directors selects recipients based on presentations. 

For more information, call 410-546-4325 or visit www.salisbury.edu/academic-offices/business/shore-hatchery/.