The 2018 annual Sales Club competition (photos here) was held in Smith Labs on April 12th where contestants pitched a new item to the Holy Cross bookstore. Eight groups from all four class years entered the competition and were given five minutes to pitch their idea to a panel of judges.
After listening to the pitches, the judges stepped outside to deliberate while the contestants awaited the final decision. After 15 long minutes they returned with their decisions…
3rd Place: $100 – Clare Connolly ’18 and Kim Hickey ’18 took home the third place prize for their ultimate gift basket. This prepackaged gift basket is a low cost way to incentivise consumers to purchase more than they normally would.
2nd Place: $150 – Gabe Castagna ’18 was awarded second place for pitching the Tile, a bluetooth device tracker that makes it easy to find anything from your keys and wallet to a teddy bear. Gabe demonstrated the strong need for this item on campus and pitched an effective sales and marketing strategy.
1st Place: $250 – Matthew Whalen ’18 and Johnny Rourke ’18 took home the first place prize with their energetic pitch for Holy Cross hawaiian shirts. From top to bottom, Matt and Johnny’s pitch captivated the judges and had them saying, “I need one of those Hawaiians!”
Thank you to our judges, and the other student teams who presented:
Kevin Finnegan ’20 & Matthew Wilcox ’20
Donny Ganim ’20
Mackenzie Breen ’21 & Hope Goodman ’21
Graham Struthers ’21
Andrew Williamson ’21 & Owen O’Connell ’21
Want photos? Check out the Facebook album. Recap written by Ben Lodge’18, co-chair of the sales club.
Your WOMEN IN BUSINESS NEWSLETTER is finally here!
We are so excited to announce the first edition of The Purple Pulse! In addition to the annual Women in Business conference, the goal is to support this amazing community year-round with a quarterly newsletter – to uplift, strengthen and inspire!
What can you expect? The student committee will focus on what’s new, upcoming events, spotlights and more!
Check your inbox for the *first* edition of the Women in Business NEWSLETTER! #hcwib#purplepulse
What do the Hilton, Carnival Cruise Line and Wolfgang Puck all have in common? They are all successful hospitality empires!
Join this alumni-led workshop on April 14th to learn how you can make it big in the land of giants. Learn what it is, how to get in and the various career options from entrepreneurship to marketing and finance.
“I really enjoyed the overall experience of Fullbridge. It definitely proved beneficial to my understanding of the business world. I really was unsure about continuing in the certificate program, however after this program I definitely will continue.”
– English Major, Class of 2019
Registration now open for the May and August 2018 sessions! Find more info at fulbridge.com/holycross
The Ciocca Office of Entrepreneurial Studies held the Shark Tank Competition on February 22, 2018.
Intensity was in the air last night as Holy Cross held its annual Shark Tank competition in Hogan Suite A. This year the competition was fierce among nine teams pitching for seed money (about $1,000) with just three minutes to pitch, or venture money (over $10,000) with five minutes to pitch. After each presentation the judges had time to ask a few questions before heading to a private room to deliberate. While waiting, the audience got the chance to vote for a new category, the People’s Choice Award. The contestants waited anxiously as the room filled with fellow Holy Cross students and alum. Around 8pm the judges returned with three oversized checks in hand… Check out photos from the event HERE.
Winners:
$5,000: Dillon Carmichael ‘18 pitched Redefining Black Masculinity, a platform for those actively redefining black masculine identity. Dillon said “the event is intimidating and inspiring. To see different people come with such great ideas and motivations makes you want to improve and keep on doing better. Hearing some people go before me almost disuaded me from giving my pitch, but once those jitters settled, it served as additional fuel for my fire. It’s competitive, but a healthy competitive because it comes from a place of genuine passion. Winning still comes as a surprise, but I am beyond grateful that I did and had the opportunity to share my idea with everyone at the event.”
$5,000: Riley Benner ‘20 launched a bespoke men’s fashion line produced by refugees for his company Phoenix Haberdashery. Riley commented “Holy Cross’ Annual Shark Tank was a really unique experience. It’s not often that you get the opportunity to share a night with other aspiring entrepreneurs and get to see the wide range of projects that they’re working on. We have a great community of support here on the Hill, especially from Ja-Nae and Professor Chu and many faculty members, but I think the most rewarding support that we can receive is from our peers who are all just trying to make their dream ideas into reality. Winning the competition was an honor, and it’s a reminder for me to keep working towards fulfilling the mission of Phoenix Haberdashery, because the judges clearly believed in that mission. It’s a wonderful affirmation of the hard work that my team and I have been putting in for the past 6 months, and we’re excited to use the money we received to further that mission.”
$2,500: Brad Ross ‘18 wants to improve goal accuracy for soccer players with his idea Scopum. Brad commented “The Shark Tank event is a really fun and exciting way to engage the entrepreneurial side in all of us. The prospect of pitching in front of judges with incredible backgrounds and experience while competing for real cash prizes allowed us to think as true entrepreneurs. This coincides with the exciting new entrepreneurship program at Holy Cross that provides us as students a platform to truly find our entrepreneurial spirit and bring it out the right way. Thinking about not only specific projects or ideas, but also the market opportunities, business plans, and go-to-market strategies that are necessary to consider in the real world.”
$1,140: Christina Nee ‘19 is interested in upcycling food waste to make delicious treats with her company named Top Banana. Christina wants to say “Thank you to everyone involved last night! I’m so excited to be able to pursue a business that will help combat food waste!”
$100: Hawar Haddadi ‘19 and Michael Lyons ‘19 won the People’s Choice Award for their idea, The Device Doctors. This company is a door-to-door phone repair service for campuses, starting with the College of the Holy Cross. Hawar commented “The event really brought to light the competitive nature of the entrepreneurial world. Everyone really came with their A-game and it was clear that everyone was extremely passionate about their idea. It was great to see such a high level of competition and excitement from Holy Cross students. I had a blast presenting and we received some really awesome feedback on how we should advance with our business!”
Thank you to our runners-up:
Anthony Saltarelli ‘18 presented his mobile app, The Networking Assistant, a tool to help students organize their network.
Nick Lacasse ‘18 pitched Table Split, a mobile app to divide checks amongst a table of friends at restaurants.
Nate Chung ‘18 launched a mobile app named EchoMe that enables users to live broadcast music and listen together in real-time, regardless of geographic location.
Michael Lowther ’18 pitched Undercover Difference Makers, an online platform to highlight those making a difference in the world.
Special thanks to our judges:
Stacy Chin ’12, CEO & Co-founder, HydroGlyde Coatings
Prof. Daniel Klinghard, Director, J.D. Power Center, Holy Cross
Tyler Scionti ’15, Product Expert, Hubspot
Thank you to Ja-Nae Duane, EIR, and Ben Lodge ’18 for making this event a true success. Looking forward to next year and hearing about all the incredible ideas the next group of Holy Cross students have!
Group photo at the 2017 Shark Tank competition. From Left to Right: Bryan Sparkes ’04, Dylan Oliveira ’17, Ed McLaughlin ’78, Mary Kate Vanecko ’17, Paul Wiley ’20 and April Lukasik P16.
Have you seen the show Shark Tank? Did you know we had our own version of it here at Holy Cross? YES! It’s run by the Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Ja-Nae Duane, where current students will pitch their ideas to a panel of alumni judges for real money. Don’t want to compete? Come watch the show!
The annual competition will be held on Thursday, February 22 from 6-8pm in Hogan Suite A …followed by an alumni networking event! Stay tuned to see who the alumni judges will be.
>> Want to compete? Join us for a prep session held on: Monday, February 5 and Monday, February 12 at 6PM in Stein 216. *Must attend one prep session to compete.
MORE INFO: Meet with Ja-Nae via Google Hangout or stop by the new co-working space in Stein 129C.
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UPDATE: Interested in who will be on the judging panel this year? Come to the event to meet them and mingle during the networking hour with a number of alumni entrepreneurs!
Stacy Chin ’12, CEO & Co-founder, HydroGlyde Coatings
Prof. Daniel Klinghard, Director, J.D. Power Center for Liberal Arts & the World, Holy Cross
Tyler Scionti ’15, Product Expert, Hubspot
Founder of the online business, Jeff is excited to announce the launch of Eridu Market and Magdalena Premium Colombian Coffee just in time for the holiday season.
Jeff was a Russian Studies Major at Holy Cross taking several courses on international politics and history. Through his liberal arts education, he was exposed to opportunities and experiences with international communities first hand. During his travels, he met with local business in different corners of the world. Jeff was so captivated by the stories and techniques of the artisans he met, he kept in touch with them long after leaving South America.
By creating Eridu, Jeff has established a platform to sell artisan made products and the Magdalena Coffee. Here he hopes to both expose the world to the talents of artisans, and help the artisans share their stories and sell to the U.S. market. Jeff believes his company shares the values of his liberal arts education of authenticity, quality and cultural exchange.
Authentic Products with Authentic Stories: Welcome to Eridu
Through close personal relationships and equitable partnerships with talented artisans and coffee farmers, Eridu brings you authentic styles, designs, and high-quality products from unique corners of the globe. Eridu currently only has products from Columbia, but Jeff and his team are working on expanding his network of artisans to Peru, Haiti, and Tanzania. Jeff’s goal is to empower people through culture and commerce. Discover Colombian art and culture today!
Unlike the vast majority of craft coffees in the US, Magdalena is purely single origin. The coffee is farmed, processed, roasted, and packaged in a mountain-side village by the people and culture who know coffee best- a true import product. The farmer, Leila, is one of the only female coffee farmers all of Colombia. This is the first time her coffee and this style of indigenous roast have been sold in the United States. Click to learn more about her story and the unique, aromatic flavor of Magdalena Café.
Pictured: Jeff Reppucci ’14 hand delivering his first online order to Prof. David Chu at Holy Cross.
MEET JEFF and see all of his products first hand at the Holiday Bazaar in the Hogan Ballroom tomorrow (12/8/17) from 10am-4pm for some holiday shopping. See you there!
— Thanks to Sarah Anderson ’20 & Rosangel Cruz Cabrera ’18 for collaborating to share this story.
Miss the annual Women in Business conference? No worries! Read a review of the 2017 Women in Business conference, written by committee members Sarah Anderson ’20 and Kate Beckerman ’20. Special THANK YOU to Provost Freije for interviewing Deirdre Latour ’95, Senior Advisor, VP & COO at GE.
This year at the Women in Business Conference, we are ~shaking~ things up! Out with the old and in with the new. We’ve transformed our keynote address into a keynote interview and to celebrate the evolution of the Conference, we’ve interviewed four students from four different majors. They have shared their insights into the Conference and gave some of the biggest tips they’ve learned over the years! Be sure to read up about their experiences and sign up for the Conference at holycross.edu/business/wib
TESS ANDREKUS ’18
Sociology Major
Q: How did you hear about the Women in Business conference?
My mom is an alumnae (Moira Garvey ’78), and she actually brought me to a Women in Business conference back when I was only 11 years old. I got to go to some of the panels and I was hooked. Then once I got into HC, I made sure to sign up for the Prebusiness program so that I could keep an eye out for the conference each year.
Q: What year did you attend?
I’ve attended every year that I’ve been at HC, so that would be 2014, 2015, and 2016. Plus the time when I was 11!
Q: What was your favorite part of the conference?
I’ve really enjoyed when the alumni at the table engage with us students and try to figure out what helpful advice, tip and tricks they can give us. They have insight that is super helpful.
Q: What was one lasting connection you made at the conference?
I have made sure to talk to Mary Donahue Quinlan every single year. She had a panel at the conference when I went as an 11 year old, and from then on I have been a loyal fan!
Q: What are you most looking forward to at the conference this year?
This year I’m a senior so I think any advice that alums have for me will be helpful. Hopefully I can make some connections that will help me achieve success and happiness.
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Thanks to Casey Carty ’18 for this interview. Hope to see you all at the conference this year on Saturday, November 11, 2017. Registration is OPEN so be sure to sign up!
The Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Ja-Naé Duane, is working with the student club HCEG (Holy Cross Entrepreneurs Group) to offer a series of workshops designed to help you make your idea a reality! Get involved and compete in the annual spring Shark Tank competition.
Each Wednesday meeting is held from 6:30pm-8pm in Hogan 402/403. See you there!
> Wed., October 18th: Pitch Night! Have a project or an idea you are working on? Could you use a little money to work on it? Come to this open mic and tell us about your idea or project and why you could use some financial help. Then your peers will decide. No slides. No suits. Two-three minute pitch. Just you and your idea. That’s it!
> Wed., October 25th: Rapid Prototyping When you have an idea sometimes you just need to put together a prototype for people to see. Within this session, we will go through the different types of prototypes you can create, how to do paper prototypes, as well as digital prototypes.
> Wed., November 1st: Find a Co-Founder Networking Event Want to do a startup, but need a co-founder or to build out your team. Come to this networking event and meet like-minded individuals who might have an interest in teaming up with you and doing something great.
> Wed., November 15th: Pitch Night!
Have a project or an idea you are working on? Could you use a little money to work on it? Come to this open mic and tell us about your idea or project and why you could use some financial help. Then your peers will decide. No slides. No suits. Two-three minute pitch. Just you and your idea. That’s it!
CONTACT: Ja-Naé Duane, Entrepreneur-in-Residence & Lecturer at the College. Stop by her office to say hello in Stein 129C and check out the new co-working space.
