thinkBIG! SUMMIT
The culmination of thinkBIG! Challenge, the thinkBIG! Summit is an inspirational one-day conference where the thinkBIG! finalists compete for cash prizes and the Veale Innovation trophy.
Attendees will participate in hands-on activities, hear from a seasoned, serial, successful entrepreneur, observe live pitches, network, and win prizes!
Participation in the thinkBIG! Challenge is not necessary to attend this event.
Breakfast and lunch are included.
Registration for thinkBIG! Summit opens December 2, 2024.
Johnny Cupcakes
CEO, Johnny Cupcakes | Award-Winning Entrepreneur and Brand Hysteria Expert
The 2025 thinkBIG! Summit will start off with keynote speaker Johnny Earle, founder and CEO of the t-shirt brand Johnny Cupcakes!
If you dream of inspiring cult-like brand loyalty — the kind that involves mile-long queues and even permanent tattoos — then Johnny “Cupcakes” Earle is for you. The founder of the world-renowned t-shirt brand Johnny Cupcakes, Johnny equips audiences with the blueprints for building brand loyalty, creating memorable experiences, and inspiring innovation.
Johnny’s bakery-themed, frosting-scented t-shirt shop has clothing displayed in refrigerators with orders pulled out of a secret, smoking oven! It’s a true Willy Wonka-esque experience that sees some people walking out with a t-shirt and others hangry and empty-handed — but 100% of them leave with a memory and a story to share. Despite being in one of the most difficult product categories to stand-out in, Johnny’s strategy to create a unique brand experience has earned him customers that loyally line-up around the block, time and time again, to sport his logo on their clothing.
With global pop-ups, thousands of customers with his logo tattooed on themselves, people who camp out for his products, and high-profile collaborations with giants such as The Simpsons, Power Rangers, and Nickelodeon, Johnny was named “America’s #1 Young Entrepreneur” by Business Week and “Top Innovator in Retail” by The Boston Globe. He has also been recognized four years in a row in the Inc. 500/5000 list of fastest growing independent companies in America.
Johnny has also been featured in media such as MTV, NPR, Forbes, WIRED, Newsweek, and as a case study in several branding and business books. He is a TEDx speaker whose past clients include Apple, L’Oreal, Disney, IBM, Audi, Harvard University, Wieden+Kennedy, Marriott, and P&G.
Ariana Smith, Educational Engagement Manager at The City Club of Cleveland will serve as the emcee of thinkBIG! Summit.
Smith was born and raised in Shaker Heights, Ohio, and graduated from Shaker Heights High School. Upon graduation, she attended John Carroll University focusing on entrepreneurship and business management. However, it was the experiences had outside of the “traditional classroom” that truly set her on her professional path. Notably, the ECITY program, dedicated to nurturing youth entrepreneurship, and the Freedom School program, designed to instilling a passion for reading among young minds, both played pivotal roles in shaping her career trajectory.
Over the last 15 years, Smith has taken pride in her role as an educator, focusing primarily on nurturing the intellectual growth of middle and high school students. Her instructional portfolio encompasses a diverse range of subjects such as entrepreneurship, character/leadership development, financial literacy, and career preparedness. Thus far, her work has left a impact on more than 6,000 young minds and the numbers continue to grow.
Currently, Smith serves as the Educational Engagement Manager at The City Club of Cleveland and is a recent graduate of Cleveland Leadership Center’s Bridge Builders program.
Ariana Smith
Educational Engagement Manager of
The City Club of Cleveland
Students will participate in our attendee favorite mini-maker hackathon led by the staff at Upcycle Parts Shop. After the keynote presentation, each table of students work as teams to craft physical representations of innovative ideas made from recycled materials and create a short 60-second pitch to describe the concept. Prototypes are brought to the front of the room for judging. Four finalist teams are chosen to pitch their ideas to audience members and panel of judges. Students from the winning team are awarded prizes.
2024 thinkBIG! Challenge Winners!
FIRST PLACE
Wild Wreck - Olmsted Falls High School
Elisabeth Flanagan, Eleeana Gates
& Samantha Hoffman
SECOND PLACE
Good Chick - Laurel School
Camille Jackson, Serene Hameed,
Kayla Pierce & Amelia Glasier
THIRD PLACE
The Eco-kit - Chagrin Falls High School
William Asplin
FIRST PLACE
Flashback - GlenOak High School
Katie Galvin, Braeden Keyes,
Morgan Stoker & Becca Klotz
SECOND PLACE
Spark Motion - Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy
Benjamin Meybaum, Abigail Hayes
& Carson Weaver
THIRD PLACE
Clicker Cleats - Solon High School
Evan Adler & William Webb