Seeking great entrepreneurs

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Entrepreneur magazine looking for business owners to enter its Entrepreneur of 2011 contest sponsored by The UPS Store. The contest seeks small business owners who can share how their business makes a difference in their industries and communities and to their employees.

The criteria for the three award categories is as follows:

Entrepreneur of 2011: No more than 100 employees; gross sales revenue of at least $3 million in 2010

Emerging Entrepreneur of 2011: No more than 12 employees; at least $350,000 in gross sales revenue in 2010.

College Entrepreneur of 2011: Entrants must be either an undergraduate or graduate student between the ages of 18 and 25 during the time of submission. College students may pitch their business ideas for a shot at $5,000 in startup capital.

Last year's winners included Entrepreneur of 2010 Daniel Lubetzky of Kind Healthy Snacks, Emerging Entrepreneur of 2010 Derek Zobrist of Enovative Kontrol Systems, and College Entrepreneur of 2010 Allen Kim of Bebarang. Learn more about their businesses, read their stories and watch videos about their experiences at the magazine's website.

Judges include representatives from Entrepreneur's editorial department and Mail Boxes Etc. Inc., franchisor of The UPS Store. The panel will base its decision on several criteria, including business growth, effect on industry, community, employees, and customers.

All three winning entrepreneurs will receive two round-trip tickets within the continental U.S. and a profile in the January 2012 issue of Entrepreneur magazine. The three winners will also be honored at an awards luncheon and ceremony in January at Entrepreneur's fourth-annual Growth Conference. In addition, the winners will receive a gift certificate for $500 in free services at The UPS Store, a three-year subscription to Entrepreneur magazine and a selection of Entrepreneur Press books.

Entry criteria and the complete rules can be found on entrepreneur.com/e2011/rules, or for the college contest, entrepreneur.com/e2011college. The deadline is June 15.