OpenGrounds hosted the first IDEAmixer Thursday night, giving students and graduates a chance to pitch ideas — for everything from business ventures to research projects — to fellow students and community members.
Batten graduate student Ilgiz Saubanov, a marketing intern at OpenGrounds, organized and promoted the event, which he said he hoped would create a more collaborative space for development.
“There [are] a lot of things happening on Grounds in other fields, but it’s hard to find time where you can attend events and get involved,” Saubanov said. “I thought it’d be great to have a regular place where those ideas are presented in an almost speed-dating style.”
Sixteen presenters each had one minute to pitch their ideas, and the program aims to host similar mixers on every third Thursday of the month — aiming to attract students and graduates seeking feedback, funding or partners.
“We want more ideas,” Saubanov said. “We want art, architecture, science [and] engineering. We want people in these fields to come and present here.”
Fourth-year Engineering student Kevin Eisenfrats — founder of Contraline, the first non-surgical contraceptive for male cats and dogs — said he was looking to get as much feedback from attendees as possible.
“I think it was good practice,” Eisenfrats said. “To actually do it, real deal, is better practice and better help than any class.”
Eisenfrats said he would encourage students, especially undergraduates, to step out of their comfort zones and attend similar events.
“As an encouraging word, I always tell students to go for opportunities outside the classroom,” Eisenfrats said. “Just because you’re an undergraduate doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go for it.”
Eisenfrat’s product Contraline recently won the 2014 U.Va. Entrepreneurial Cup, which had a grand prize of $20,000 — a big leg up for his product, which is still in development.
For the Community Honor Fund, represented by third-year Commerce students Doug Chan, Dawn Lu and third-year College student Shreyas Hariharan, the goal of Thursday’s mixer was not only feedback, but also publicity.
“We’re a student organization, a non-profit, startup venture aiming to provide affordable loans for residents of the Charlottesville area,” Chan said.
Chan and his partners, like Eisenfrats, were competitors in the 2014 U.Va. Entrepreneurship Cup, and received an honorable mention and a prize of $5,000. The locally-focused, community-driven organization is hoping to build a better future for the working classes in Charlottesville. To do so, Chan said they are looking to spread the word about the Fund and to especially target the University.
Representatives from both Community Honor Fund and Contraline are in the first stages of formation — while other presenters, like fourth-year College student Hannah Rosenfeld, are seasoned veterans of marketing a pitch. Founder of Buddy Watch, a personal safety phone application, Rosenfeld said she has given pitches across the country about her California-based startup.
“I had no idea who was going to be here,” Rosenfeld said of the mixer. “But I’ve done this a million times.”
Saubanov said the event’s goals reached beyond presentation, however.
“This is not necessarily about business ideas, just creation,” Saubanov said.
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