Getting Intimate with the Top 26 — Part 1
You heard it here first: roll out the red carpet and grab your fanciest dress shoes. Awards Ceremony season is here! The 2015 MassChallenge Awards Ceremony is taking place on October 28, at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.
The festivities begin at 5 with the startup showcase providing a dazzling display of talent and innovation by all 128 startups. Then at 6 PM, the real show begins — truly inspiring pitches by the top 26 companies, speeches from our impressive keynotes, and so much more is in store for the lucky attendees of this event. Here’s what the top 26 had to say about their journey:
World Tech Makers:
How has your experience at MassChallenge helped your company grow and what is the one milestone you’re most proud of?
We were able to clearly define the 3 different service/product lines we now offer (on-site bootcamps, online bootcamps and Nativo Digital, our gamified and adaptive technology education platform for kids and teenagers), to define a strategy for B2B, and to close our seed round. We started piloting our proprietary software.
What does being chosen as a top 26 finalist mean to you? What advice would you give future finalists to help them make it to the top 26?
Being part of the top 26 means we have to work even harder now to unleash human potential through our work. Future finalists: don’t stop or sit on your laurels, this is just the start.
If the media were to tweet about you, what would that tweet say?
World Tech Makers is leading the technology education revolution in Latin America.
Unshrinkit:
What was the status of your company pre-MassChallenge?
Prior to MassChallenge, Unshrinkit had not selected an end-to-end supply chain partner, we had not conducted independent testing on our product, and we had not re-launched an enhanced version of Unshrinkit on our online channels. This summer provided a critical period for us to update and align key facets of our business.
How has your experience at MassChallenge helped your company grow and what is the one milestone you’re most proud of?
MassChallenge provided an ecosystem by which we met relevant and invaluable mentors. They advised us on critical investment meetings and retail strategies. In addition, it was helpful to have a go-to source of guidance and resources at the MassChallenge headquarters. We are most proud of being selected a top 10 finalist with Quickbooks to win a free BIG GAME commercial this February and MassChallenge has been incredibly supportive during the competition.
If the media were to tweet about you, what would that tweet say?
Tweet: #Sweaterweather is here to stay. Unshrink favorite wool sweaters & more. Unshrinkit.com #savethesweaters #woollove #masschallenge
SidelineSwap:
What does being chosen as a top 26 finalist mean to you? What advice would you give future finalists to help them make it to the top 26?
We never asked ourselves “what can we do today to win MassChallenge?” We focused on building the business. Every day our team did an incredible job driving growth. I’d tell future finalists to identify one metric that will make your business successful — then set daily, weekly, and monthly goals around it. Work with your mentors to build a strategy that will allow you to reach your goals, and hold yourselves accountable by sending mentors weekly reports. The more they know, the more they can help.
If the media were to tweet about you, what would they say?
.@SidelineSwap is changing the way people buy, sell and trade sporting goods — and turning the $10b industry on its head.
Orange Photonics:
What does being chosen as a top 26 finalist mean to you? What advice would you give future finalists to help them make it to the top 26?
It is a tremendous honor to be among such strong finalists. Dylan Wilks takes pride in the fact that he is beginning his entrepreneurial journey in the footsteps of three generations of Wilks spectroscopists and entrepreneurs. We found that we needed to have laser focus on our development milestones and be highly selective about how we spent our time.
As a finalist, you have unprecedented access to a smorgasbord of information, resources, people, and workshops. Your job is to be disciplined and pinpoint exactly what you need and connect with the resources that can move you toward your goal.
If the media were to tweet about you, what would that tweet say?
#Cutting-edge analytics startup poised to take marijuana industry by storm.
Hydroswarm:
How has your experience at MassChallenge helped your company grow and what is the one milestone you’re most proud of?
Turning the research lab robot into a prototype product AND a company — that was a huge milestone. The incredible support, feedback, and enthusiasm I got at MassChallenge gave me a ton of confidence to go ahead with what one would call an extremely challenging hardware startup. I always knew that unless one breaks the laws of physics, everything should be possible. Even though it sounded straight out of a sci-fi book, people at MassChallenge were able to picture it.
One of the big milestones was to be able to exhibit at the hardware alley in Techcrunch Disrupt SF and winning there the wildcard despite of being such a super early 5 months old startup. I love the MassChallenge team- they are one of the most genuine group of people I’ve met who truly care about YOU, and helping YOU to succeed.
What are your plans post-accelerator?
Keep making cool science happen so we can put everything into the ocean. We will keep expanding the team.
If the media were to tweet about you, what would that tweet say?
#Meet the girl who wants to map the Oceans. :)
This is truly going to be one of the most amazing events in the Boston entrepreneurial ecosystem of the year! So amazing that tickets are sold out! Sign up for our wait-list and keep your eyes peeled for released tickets!
- Andrea Hewett & James Maynard — MassChallenge Marketing & Social Media
Originally published at masschallenge.org.
