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Western student wins Rocky Mountain Madness national sales competition

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GUNNISON, Colorado: In a competition that whittled a field of 64 students down to just one, Western Colorado University senior Porter Fox came away as champion of the fifth annual Rocky Mountain Madness (RMM) Sales Competition.

The top talent from 16 schools around the country – from Washington to Florida, North Dakota to Louisiana, and even one university in Finland – came out for the competition hosted by Metro State in Denver from October 23 to 27.

But it was Western, which was one of the smallest programs to compete, that came away the victor, as well as having a second finisher, senior Abby Gridley, among the elite eight.

Director of the Professional Sales Program at Western, Stan Weil, who had an impressive 40-year career in sales and coached the Western team, said, “Porter’s victory at RMM is a testament to the high caliber of students we have at Western. Both have taken all the available sales courses offered at Western and worked incredibly hard to not only have the chance to represent Western at the competition but to win.”

Participants are put to the test in a series of challenges that provide a sales scenario and put them head-to-head against another competitor to see who can come up with the best pitch, with a professional from E.W. Scripps/Channel 7 News determining the winner.

While it was Fox’s first RMM competition, Gridley has been in several other competitions during the past three years. To prepare, they competed among their classmates at Western and then went through extensive one-on-one role-playing scenarios during the competition.

After five rounds, Fox, who said he didn’t have much experience in sales before arriving at Western, won against Louisiana State University with a winning pitch that required him to play the part of a television advertising sales representative selling airtime to a company that provides inpatient rehabilitation services.

“I’m incredibly honored to have won the RMM Sales Competition. It was a tremendous learning experience, and I’m grateful for Professor Weil’s support and guidance,” Fox said. “I joined the professional sales program because of my interest in sales but ultimately decided to stay in the program because of Professor Weil, who provided a real-world approach to sales. Now, I plan on pursuing a career in sales or entrepreneurship and feel prepared to join the real world.”

For more information about Western Colorado University’s School of Business and its programs, please visit western.edu.

About Western Colorado University: Established in 1901, Western is a four-year public institution in Gunnison, Colo. that offers undergraduate and graduate programs in over 100 areas of study. Our campus on the Western Slope of the Rocky Mountains is home to more than 2,000 resident students, while approximately 1,600 additional students take courses at the University remotely.

Author Credit: Seth Mensing
Photo Credit: Mason Schultz

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