By Elyse Pitkin
Each fall, Hiram’s Burton D. Morgan Center for Integrated Entrepreneurship hosts ideablitz, an opportunity where students get to creatively pitch their ideas for a new business or service. This year, seven teams participated and marketed their idea to a panel of select judges consisting of business owners and entrepreneurs.
“I love seeing how the students problem solve. We get to see what are the problems that they think merit a solution or a redo of a current solution to an already existing problem,” said Dr. David Strukel, director of the Burton D. Morgan Center for Integrated Entrepreneurship and professor in the Scarborough School of Business and Communication.
Students have five minutes to pitch their idea and then have a two-minute session of intense questioning from the panel of judges. “Students need to convey the market for their idea, what makes it special or unique, the value proposition, define the customer and how they the participants would develop relationships with the customer and how they would get the product or service to the customer,” said Strukel.
ideablitz! is an opportunity for students to look at the world around them and think of how they can make it better. At times this looks like improving what already exists or creating a completely new product or service.
Winners of ideablitz! 2022 include:
First Place: The Combo Load Laundry Basket by Dee Beckwith, Maliq Mooring, Kenedi Keesey, Brandon Lucas.
The Combo Load Laundry Basket holds more than just clothes and will eliminate second trips to finish your laundry efficiently.
Second Place: Palm Bands by Jarod Leynes, Ambrose Colliluori, Garrett Scheidegger, and Drew Ferrari.
Palm Bands is a form of protection for your hands, especially for weightlifters, to prevent callouses.
A tie for Third Place: Breathalyzer Key Fob by Jacob Kocuba, Christian Martinex, and Levi Willett and Temporary Graphics by Owen Cooper, Devin Ray, Luke Fowler, and Sierra Bean.
Breathalyzer Key Fob that would prevent someone from starting their car if they have had too much to drink.
Temporary Graphics are temporary graphic prints that can be pressed onto t-shirts. The prints temporarily remain on the clothing for about a week and the shirt can be reused.
