ECenter Director, Ian Grant, had the pleasure of mentoring Andrew DeMeo (COLSA '18) of Honey-Do and Geno Miller (Paul College '17) of Schtudy as they prepared to compete in the 2017 student-track of the Social Venture Innovation Challenge, hosted by the Center for Social Innovation and Enterprise.
Honey-Do, a cooperative, full-service, beekeeping business took first place. Said Andrew, "When I first came to the ECenter, Honey-Do was a loosely defined, half-baked concept. The ECenter connected me with Ian Grant, who helped me refine and simplify the business principles, presentation, and core concepts behind my SVIC entry. The choice to closely follow his advice (even his suggestion that I wear a bee-suit in the final presentation) has ended up being one of the best of my life. Looking back, it is clear to me that without Ian's help our idea would not have been competitive in the contest."
Schtudy, the second place winner, is a value-based company dedicated to delivering proven educational solutions to prepare students for academic success. Geno developed a passion for helping students achieve academic excellence after he struggled and persevered through rigorous college classes upon arrival at UNH.
"I truly wish there was a resource such as the ECenter my freshman year of college," said Geno. "We continuously improve literally every day when we talk to an advisor or make a connection through the people here at the ECenter. Whether it is exploring a gap in our product, or connecting me with someone who may be interested in what we’re doing, we get a step closer to success everyday. As entrepreneurs, we have business meetings everyday that we may appreciate or not care for. I look forward to every single one at the ECenter because I know it will help me improve."
Congrats, Andrew and Geno!
