From left to right, Target representatives Eric Estevez, Angel Blanco, and Ariel Grillo.

The fourth annual International BizFest had all the familiar sights and aromas of the popular event. The Ryder Business Building’s south lawn was alive with activities, music—this year provided by Breaking Tides, a local band—other performances; international cuisine, and members of all the business student organizations providing information to students who want to get involved.

It also was marked by a new presence: representatives from Target. The company served as the event’s sponsor, providing financial support as well as soft drinks, desserts, and paper goods.

“We chose to sponsor the event because we know there’s great potential at the university and we thought BizFest would be a good opportunity to meet students and to recruit,” said Angel Blanco, store team leader from Kendall Target, whose district team leader, Humerto Collado, worked out the financial arrangements with Annabelle Rojas, the college’s director of External Relations and Resource Development.

Blanco was delighted with the immediate results.

“It was a great experience for us, since we got to interact with students in a very informal atmosphere,” he said.

He was equally pleased with the potential down the road.

“We were able to establish relationships with some of the student organizations, which paves the way for future recruiting,” he said. “Retail has a stigma because people think you work 100 hours a week, so we want to change the mentality by letting students know that, at Target, we run businesses. This was a chance for us to share our excitement about the businesses these students can run, the money they can make, and the size of the teams with which they’d be involved.”

One of the many hard-working students, Lourdes Lourido, president of Alpha Kappa Psi, also was enthusiastic about the event.

“This year was full of energy and was by far the most successful BizFest we’ve had,” said Lourido, a finance major who will graduate in April. “We saw many more students and a lot more activity than we have at previous BizFests. We were able to pass out information about our organization, our events, and ways to rush.”

The fourth annual BizFest, attended by between 300 and 400 people, was held January 19, 2006.