Arriving at Clinique’s sleek offices, headquartered in the General Motors building towering above Fifth Avenue in New York City, visitors could be forgiven for thinking they’d stepped inside some high-tech, space-age lab. The sleek offices are high-gloss modern, bathed in surgery theater lighting.

Inside an industrial space filled with exposed brick walls and ceiling pipes overlooking the East River in Brooklyn, cameramen are setting up their shots while an assistant director gives last-minute instructions to a small studio audience. The place is buzzing with energy and tension. Over in makeshift backstage rooms, five finalists, divided into two teams of young college students/would-be entrepreneurs, are practicing their final elevator pitches.