Entrepreneurship Students Take on Final Pitch Night
At Wednesday’s Incubatoredu Final Pitch Night, five teams presented their business ideas to a panel of sharks who had some challenging questions about competition, marketing, patenting, and overall product viability.
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A special congratulations goes out to the winning team for their product, ENRGY, a healthy caffeine bar. Members of the winning team included Molly Craig, Matt Anesi, Julia Kakish, and Jimmy Doherty. They were mentored by Chris Efken SHM ’79.
“Starting with our first meeting, the team was eager to learn, explore, and take risks. They listened to stories of how my clients approached product development (including the successes and failures!), and leveraged those learnings when crafting their marketing and product development plans. By providing a safe space to fail, the team was eager to experiment with different ingredients and baking times to craft their ideal ENRGY bars,” Chris Efken said. “Overtime, the team became more confident taking risks, more assured of themselves as business professionals as they approached each task and challenge. In the end, Team ENRGY members were so personally invested in their product and business plan, any of them could have stood alone on the stage and successfully delivered the final pitch.”
Pitches from the four other student groups included BuyForHumanity, a clothing company that donates 15% of each hoodie sold to charity; Productimals, a focus app for children and teenagers; On-Par, “a golf specific mobile app designed to connect golfers and provide free golf training to users who wish to improve their skill;” and Sandman Supplements, an all-natural sleep aid.
While his group didn’t take home the night’s big prize for Sandman Supplements, Michael Ferrazzuolo '11 found the mentorship experience to be rewarding for all.
“I absolutely loved being a part of this course,” Ferrazzuolo said. “As an entrepreneur myself, I am often asked how to get started in the business world, and this program provides students with an opportunity to explore entrepreneurship in a hands-on way that was not available to me when I was in high school.”
Mr. David Lyons guided students from concept to business plan in the fifth year of the program. He, with the generous assistance from volunteer mentors, provided them with an experience that surpasses a traditional entrepreneurship class and serves as a great foundation to apply to college business programs.
“For these future business professionals to get the most from the experience, mentors are needed to help guide, challenge, and encourage students as they learn these new concepts. Who better than our alumni to answer this call?” Efken said. “We have walked in their shoes, have experienced successes and failures, we can instill business ethics and teach them to take calculated risks to achieve their goals.”
We share our appreciation for all involved in making INCubatoredu’s fifth year a success, including the 17 alumni mentors and sharks, and to the students who participated in the Final Pitch Night.
BuyForHumanity
Jimmy Bielarz
Ryan Camblin
Alec Daniels
Tyler Urban
ENRGY
Matt Anesi
Molly Craig
Jimmy Doherty
Julia Kakish
Productimals
David Calhoun
Grayson Dossett
Margaret Fecko
Luke Petersen
On-Par
Jeffrey Beckert
Joe Dillion
Marcello Lanzi
Aidan Marshall
Sandman Supplements
Katie Cloud
Ross Davis
Ally Swanson
Mentors
Kristen Bremer ’90
Alex Campbell ’10
Lou Capizzi ’99
Paul Costello ’05
Jon Dean
Dr. Angela Duke SHM ’82
Chris Efken ’79
Michael Ferrazzuolo ’11
Cassandra Haupers ’04
Tim Hogaboom ’11
Brian Kopp ’00
David Kosticki
Jane Lambesis SHM ’79
Maureen Meersman SHM ’79
Alex Mueller
Marissa Panarese ’15
Diane Vadnal ’07
Sharks
Jim Bristol ’73
Jim DeBlasio ’04
Katie Ford ’89
Patrick Moroney
Tim Wheeler
Tim Wheeler
Saint Viator High School
Located in Arlington Heights, IL, Saint Viator High School is a private, co-ed, Catholic school for grades 9-12. Students benefit from a challenging academic program, fine and performing arts, competitive athletics, and a wide selection of extracurricular activities.