Entrepreneurship

Alum Embarks on Search For True Happiness—Finds It All Across the USA

Posted on by Claire Hall

Michelle Wax poses for a photo in front of the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee.
Michelle Wax ’12 (BUS) poses for a photo in front of the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee. (Contributed Photo)

She should have been on top of the world.

Alumna Michelle Wax ’12 (BUS), was in her mid-20s and already the owner of two successful companies in the food industry. Business was great, yet something was amiss. Continue Reading

Travis Bloom ’13: Avoiding the $10k Vet Bill

Posted on by Claire Hall

Travis Bloom poses with his cat, Ginny.
Travis Bloom ’13 (BUS) takes a minute from his day to take a picture with Ginny Bloom, his CCO (Chief Cat Officer) at Pawlicy Advisor. At Pawlicy Advisor, Travis offers a variety of insurance options for pet owners, and seeks to make it as transparent and easy to use as possible. (Contributed Photo)

As soon as alumnus Travis Bloom ’13 (BUS) tells people that he co-owns a company that brokers pet health insurance, the stories begin.Continue Reading

UConn Alums Want You to ‘Roast’ Them

Posted on by Claire Hall

From left, Kwame "Ato'' Eyiah, Ben Morneault and Chris Mueller, alumni from the Class of 2019, are launching their new Roast Me game.
From left, Kwame “Ato” Eyiah, Ben Morneault and Chris Mueller, alumni from the Class of 2019, are launching their new Roast Me game.(Nathan Oldham / UConn School of Business)

Three recent UConn alumni are on the verge of releasing their first entrepreneurial venture, a unique card game called Roast Me. The game brings a twist to good-natured comedic gibes among friends, with a gameplay style similar to “adult” card games that have become popular in recent years.Continue Reading

KeyBank Gives $75K to UConn Program for Veteran Business Owners

Posted on by Claire Hall

KeyBank has presented a ,000 grant to the UConn School of Business’ Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans, which helps U.S. military veterans become small business owners. Pictured from left to right are UConn EBV program graduates Jorge and Jessica Rodriguez, KeyBank Corporate Responsibility Officer LaKisha Jordan, KeyBank Market President Jim Barger, and UConn EBV Director Michael Zacchea.
KeyBank has presented a $75,000 grant to the UConn School of Business’ Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans, which helps U.S. military veterans become small business owners. Pictured from left to right are UConn EBV program graduates Jorge and Jessica Rodriguez, KeyBank Corporate Responsibility Officer LaKisha Jordan, KeyBank Market President Jim Barger, and UConn EBV Director Michael Zacchea. (Contributed Photo)

The KeyBank Foundation on Thursday presented a $75,000 grant to UConn in support a School of Business program that helps U.S. military veterans become small-business owners.Continue Reading

Startup That Recycles Toxic Sludge Wins UConn’s Wolff Competition

Posted on by Scott Slater III

UConn Today – A startup that could rid the earth of vast cesspools of toxic sludge won UConn’s annual Wolff New Venture Competition, and a $20,000 prize, on Monday night.

The entrepreneurial competition honors some of the strongest startup programs with a UConn affiliation. All five of the teams that participated have spent at least a year refining and developing their business plans under the guidance of the School of Business’ Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation.Continue Reading

UConn’s Entrepreneurship Program for Veterans Celebrates 10 Years

Posted on by Claire Hall

Portrait of Michael Zacchea.
EBV Director Michael Zacchea (pictured above) reflects upon the ten year anniversary of the program (Nathan Oldham / UConn School of Business)

Tony Audette is a former U.S. Marine combat veteran, and award-winning industrial designer, who is using his degree in automotive engineering to start a custom-made, high-end motorcycling manufacturing company in Manchester, Conn.Continue Reading

CCEI’s 2019 Entrepreneurship Summer Fellowship Champs

Posted on by Claire Hall

Summer Fellowship Finale group photo with Michelle Chao, Michael Martin, and Nicolas Myers, of Phoenix Tailings. Emily Yale, of Land Maverick. Christian Heiden, of Levo International. Derek Hargrove, and Xiuling Yu, of Nami Therapeutics. Brendan MacIntyre, and Nikolas Franceschi-Hofmann, of Geyser Remediation.
Left to right: Michelle Chao, Michael Martin, and Nicolas Myers, of Phoenix Tailings. Emily Yale, of Land Maverick. Christian Heiden, of Levo International. Derek Hargrove, and Xiuling Yu, of Nami Therapeutics. Brendan MacIntyre, and Nikolas Franceschi-Hofmann, of Geyser Remediation. (Evan Olson – UConn School of Business)

The startups at this year’s CCEI Summer Fellowship Finale presented vastly different entrepreneurial ideas, but all were united by a common, altruistic thread.Continue Reading

xCITE Conference: Bolster Women Entrepreneurs by Starting Younger

Posted on by Claire Hall
xCITE 2019 Keynote Speaker Cristal Glangchai speaking into a microphone.
xCITE 2019 Keynote Speaker Cristal Glangchai (Zack Wussow/Zack Wussow Media)

When Cristal Glangchai asked a 5-year-old girl if there was a problem in her life that she would like to solve, the youngster said she was tired of getting scolded for eating Play-Doh. Continue Reading