Creativity and dedication have paid off for Brock LINC's latest Navigate pitch competition winners.
Navigate program participants Muskaan Waraich and Abhilesh Gaikwad (BBE '22) took home top honours for their startup business pitches, along with $2,500 each to help bring their entrepreneurial goals to life.
Abhilesh Gaikwad (BBE '22) was one of two winners to take home top honours and $2,500 at Brock LINC's Navigate business pitch competition on April 2.
The competition, which took place April 2, wrapped up the 11-week Navigate program, which guides participants like Waraich and Gaikwad through a hands-on process designed to explore and develop early-stage business ideas.
Waraich, a fourth-year student with a double major in Political Science and Women and Gender Studies, is the founder of EmpowerUp.
The digital platform aims to provide personalized menstrual product recommendations, all expertly reviewed by menstrual health experts, as well as educational resources, chat room support, period tracking capabilities and menstrual product identification specific to geographical areas. EmpowerUp includes a personalized subscription model to provide one-on-one expert consultation and a personalized product delivery system.
Waraich said she's grateful for the support of her Navigate mentor, Innovate Niagara Client Advisor Katie Poissant-Paul, and her friends and family.
"This opportunity means so much to me, and I'm excited to use the prize to continue developing the app over the summer," she said. "It's a meaningful step forward in advancing menstrual equity, and it's given me even more motivation to pursue my future business goals with purpose and passion."
Waraich plans to spend the $2,500 award on app development and design, marketing and outreach, partnerships and collaborations with EmpowerUp, and other operational expenses.
Gaikwad, a Brock Business Economics graduate, said participating in Navigate was a great experience, and he is looking forward to taking the next steps in building his business, Chain Financial.
The startup aims to offer a flexible financing solution for small- to medium-sized enterprises that offer "buy now, pay later" purchasing options.
"Navigate has been a great help to validate my hypothesis for my business. It gave me a guided approach to take one step at a time and focus on what's important. The mentorship and guidance received has been extraordinary," he said. "It also helped my business build trust with my customers by being part of a recognized university like Brock."
Applications are now open for the spring cohort of Navigate. The deadline to apply is Wednesday, April 30 at 5 p.m. The program begins Wednesday, May 7 and is open to Brock students, faculty and staff as well as members of the Niagara community.
For more information, contact Brock LINC Entrepreneurship Program Manager Tamara Jensen at tjensen@brocku.ca
