Business leaders... under 17

George Ortega had a unique idea. He designed a timer in the shape of a germ, which he named Germery, to remind children to brush their teeth for the dentist-recommended two minutes.

Then Ortega created a detailed marketing plan, submitted it for patent protection and wrote a business pitch.

The idea, which germinated from his mom's complaints about his little brother's too-quick brushing technique, evolved into a company called Germies, and it won the Goldman Sachs Foundation's Entrepreneurship Expo Thursday along with a $1000 cash prize.

But the most impressive detail is that Ortega is only 16, a student at New York City's Dalton School, and one of 27 student entrepreneurs from around the country who competed in the exposition for teenagers between the ages of 14 and 18.

Ortega says the win "validates all the work that I've done" and he plans to put his reward toward the cost of patenting his invention and securing manufacturers.