A Golden Valley entrepreneur competes for a $30,000 business venture prize.

It’s Super Bowl weekend, but Thursday at US Bank Stadium was a different kind of competition — with thousands of dollars on the line.

Hy-Vey hosted the competition at its third “OpportUNITY Inclusive Business Summit” to support businesses owned by women and people of color.

Among the entrepreneurs involved was Melissa Taylor of Golden Valley. Taylor founded Beauty Lounge Minneapolis in Uptown.

“It’s like Shark Tank. They talk about your business and explain exactly why you need to invest,” Taylor said.

Taylor’s business was among 15 selected for the competition out of nearly 150 applicants. Each gave a five-minute speech. The winning competition, determined by a panel of judges, received a $30,000 prize.

Taylor said she would use the money to further her career if she won.

“Muscle has gotten us there up to this point. Commitment we got there. But we have not received any funding to push us forward or accelerate our growth,” she said.

Uptown Beauty Lounge in Minneapolis

The beauty salon business model focuses on embracing all hair types and textures.

“I’ve always done all kinds of hair and hairstyles and I think the brand really grew out of what I did,” Taylor said.

As part of her business, Taylor started an online hair tutorial to help multicultural adoptive families. She also developed a training program to help stylists better understand styled hair.

“I think people are starting to understand that they need to understand how to work with all textures, and they can’t just rely on what they learned in cosmetology school,” Taylor said.

And the $30,000 grand prize winner? The judges chose Plymouth-based Momease Solutions, founded by Ashley Mooneyham.

See also: Brooklyn Park Hair Salon, Customer Statement in Support of CROWN Act

Golden Valley | Plymouth