What does civilian life look like after active duty? For some veterans, they forge their own path by pursuing entrepreneurship. Veteran entrepreneurs bring a unique perspective to the table: from the battlefield to the business world, they bring unmatched tenacity, dedication, and discipline which serves them well in both areas. In honor of Veterans Day, our latest blog article highlights Patrick Jardini, U.S. Air Force veteran, Pitt alum, and Owner/President of American Gas Lamp Works, as he shares snippets of his military experience and how he incorporates the lessons learned into his entrepreneurial philosophy.
The world of entrepreneurship is riddled with risk, and just the risk of experiencing failure alone is enough to make most people feel uncomfortable and doubt themselves. However, Pitt medical student and Founder/CEO of Korion Health Anna Li has a different approach to failure -- she has learned to not only embrace it, but also transform it into an empowering asset. In celebration of Women Entrepreneurship Week, Anna shares how her personal and professional life experiences have shaped her encouraging philosophy towards failure and discusses some key insights on adopting a similar state of mind about this daunting topic.
In honor of homecoming week, our Big Idea Blog is showing some Panther pride with a new article written by Pitt College of Business Administration alum and former student-athlete Michael Vardzel '19, Founder & President of AithELITE! In our latest blog post, learn how Mike used his experience as a student-athlete and passion for coaching to develop his sports tech startup. Also, Mike shares some sport-inspired lessons that influenced his approach to entrepreneurship.
In celebration of all Pitt Saxbys cafe locations opening on Monday, August 29, get to know the Pitt and College of Business Administration students who run them! In our newest blog post, Pitt Saxbys Student C.E.O.s Shivani Gandhi '25, Dylan Minnick '24, and Maggie Yu '25 (pictured above, left to right) talk about their Saxbys experience and lessons they've learned so far, what their favorite Saxbys menu item is, what things they're looking forward to this semester, and more!
Fundraising is one of the two hardest tasks entrepreneurs undertake. The other, even harder, task is to spend the money you do raise wisely. This short article will focus on the first: raising capital for your startup company. As for my background, I have been on both sides of the fundraising table, entrepreneur and investor. As an entrepreneur, I have successfully raised capital for startups and venture capital funds where I have been a founder and executive or general partner. As a venture capitalist, I have invested in dozens of companies and entrepreneurs and decided not to invest in hundreds (if not thousands) more.
The BakedbyMaansi Story: The reason I started BakedbyMaansi was because of the pandemic. I was bored at home with nothing going on, so I started baking (a lot) to pass the time. I loved baking prior to the pandemic, especially in my free time, but it was hard to find the extra time to bake -- I would bake maybe once or twice in a span of six months. During lockdown, I was able to bake at least three or four times a month, and I would post my baked goods on my Snapchat story. However, I wanted to start sharing my desserts for more than twenty-four hours so others could remember the creations I’ve made. As a result, my Instagram account BakedbyMaansi was born!
Earlier this month, I took a trip down to Atlanta, Georgia -- also known as the birthplace Coca-Cola! During my stay, I visited the World of Coca-Cola, a museum dedicated to the history of America's favorite beverage. Along the way, I learned some cool things about the creation and innovation of Coke:
The FlowCellution team (pictured from left to right): Maya Bhat, Becca Segel, and Priscilla Prem. Photo courtesy of Becca Segel After our 2022 Randall Family Big Idea Competition Virtual Awards Ceremony, we at the Big Idea Center caught up with the grand prize winning team, FlowCellution, to discuss how three PhD chemical engineering candidates became entrepreneurs and what their next steps are for their mission to provide the testing capabilities necessary to create next-generation flow batteries. Their idea, the comprehensive FlowCell testing system, offers an accelerated framework for scientists to quickly identify optimal flow battery compositions.
Over the spring break, I had the chance to visit Charleston, South Carolina – a city along the Carolinian coast that anyone who visits can easily fall in love with. The town is almost like a perfect melting pot of history, industry, art, and tourist attractions! Along its coastlines, starting from the historic district, are beautiful walks and parks, rows of colorful mansions, and a myriad of restaurants and resto-bars. Go further north and you’ll see ports and their tall container cranes, as well as tall steam stacks of huge industrial plants. All these are a testament to Charleston’s thriving economy.
