Northeastern Student to Compete in Global Entrepreneur Competition

Boston, MA – September 22, 2008 – When Dominic Coryell began driving a delivery truck for Husky Express to make some extra cash his freshman year, little did he know how that job would impact his future and lead him to becoming a young, successful entrepreneur.

Coryell, an accounting/finance major in the College of Business Administration, became an equity partner and CEO of Husky Express after only a year with the company and has helped make Husky Express the business that it is today.

In fact, Coryell was selected as one of 30 students worldwide for his work with Husky Express by the Entrepreneurs’ Organization. In November, Coryell will be in Chicago with other student entrepreneurs for the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards with the chance to win more than $100,000 in cash and prizes.

Husky Express, established in 1999 by Northeastern student Adam Jacknow, has grown from an informal laundry service for students to a business that serves more than 1,300 customers across metro Boston. Husky Express has developed laundry plans for both students and non-student residents in the area, and currently, 45 percent of their customers are not from the Northeastern community. The company has doubled its’ sales each year and hopes to reach the $800,000 mark in 2008.

Although the laundry is not actually done by students, the business end is solely operated by Northeastern students – many of whom co-op with the company and then turn into full-time employees. The software, which allows customers to track their laundry online, from pick-up to delivery, was developed entirely by co-op students, creating a user-friendly tool for customers.

Due to a security issue at pick-up and drop-off locations, Husky Express installed 25 secure lockers located throughout the city of Boston to ensure that laundry is safe from theft, which resulted in sales doubling.

Coryell hopes to expand Husky Express to a national – and hopefully international – business, increasing the types of services offered to customers as well. Currently, they are looking to identify a strategic partner for this expansion with hopes of creating independent or company-owned franchises across the United States.

“Our business model is a scalable entity that can be duplicated, and it has the potential to be successful in other markets,” said Coryell.

Coryell doesn’t stop there. He is currently working with Paul Zavracky, the Dean of Northeastern’s School of Technological Entrepreneurship, on developing new and innovative placements for co-op students. By collaborating with local venture capital firms and interviewing several CEO’s of start-up companies, they are identifying the best placements for co-op students to see first-hand how a company is built from the ground up.

“By sending students to work alongside the CEO’s of young companies, they will truly experience what it means to be an entrepreneur and create the important link between academics and the entrepreneurial spirit,” said Zavracky.

They hope to have some of these placements available as early as the Spring 2009 semester.

In addition to classes and the work that he does as CEO of Husky Express, Coryell will also spend time this semester gearing up for the GSEA competition. In June, he was awarded top prize for the virtual competition, which qualified him for the upcoming international competition.

“Being recognized by the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards is a tremendous honor,” added Coryell. “Because I don’t always have the time to look back at my accomplishments, the greatest part about being involved in this competition has been the opportunity to reflect on the challenges we’ve faced – and overcome – as a company.”

For more information about Husky Express, please visit www.huskyexpress.com or contact Jenny Eriksen at (617) 373-2802 or via email at j.eriksen@neu.edu.

About Northeastern

Founded in 1898, Northeastern University is a private research university located in the heart of Boston. Northeastern is a leader in interdisciplinary research, urban engagement, and the integration of classroom learning with real-world experience. The university’s distinctive cooperative education program, where students alternate semesters of full-time study with semesters of paid work in fields relevant to their professional interests and major, is one of the largest and most innovative in the world. The University offers a comprehensive range of undergraduate and graduate programs leading to degrees through the doctorate in six undergraduate colleges, eight graduate schools, and two part-time divisions. For more information, please visit www.northeastern.edu.