Startup Spotlights

Kelly Davis ’23 celebrates International Women’s Business Week by launching Wo-manly

March 8, 2021

“I’ve always grown up in spaces that were male-dominated,” says Kelly Davis ’23 (Whitman and Newhouse), a native of Boston majoring in television, radio, and film, marketing, and entrepreneurship. Before she was targeting social media posts as head of communications for the LaunchPad, she was literally aiming at targets as an archer in high school.

Archery, being a very male-dominated sport, meant that Davis was subject to a lot of insensitive comments. “I was always told that I couldn’t do as well as my male counterparts.” She explains that, “People wouldn’t take me seriously or thought that I didn’t know much about the sport.” Despite gender bias, Davis persevered to become a member of the Renee Crown Honors Program, a Whitman Leadership scholar, and hold multiple internship positions, a small sample of her many great achievements. As she’s transitioned to her time at Syracuse University, she wants to provide women with a network that she never had growing up.

Davis has always dreamt of becoming an impactful entrepreneur, and, after joining the LaunchPad she looked to her coworkers as motivation to start her own business. She says, “I’m truly amazed at the work ethic and intelligence of the entrepreneurs in the LaunchPad.” Using her past experiences as fuel, she’s excited to unveil a company that provides support for driven women just like herself.

Women around the country have been deprived of safe community spaces to participate in male-dominated hobbies and interests. Wo-manly strives to fix this by building an online platform by women for women. Despite progress toward equality and inclusiveness, there is still a gender imbalance in our society. Women don’t feel welcome or empowered in male-dominated sectors such as athletics, stem, and entrepreneurship.

That has personal significance to Davis. She explains, “There’s currently not a lot of female founders so I felt a little intimidated coming in.” Davis continues, “I didn’t know if I had the confidence to start my own business, but luckily I was able to push through that.”

She found inspiration in fellow LaunchPad entrepreneurs like Kelsey Davis, founder of CLLCTVE, and her ability to build such a large and interconnected network of young people.

In her communications role at the LaunchPad, Davis is excited to take the valuable social media skills she’s learned and translate that into her new company. “As I got more comfortable with how to properly build a social media presence, I knew I could create a platform around it.”

Davis currently runs the LaunchPad’s LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter accounts so she’s confident in her ability to create an online community for Wo-manly. She credits Linda Hartsock, executive director of the LaunchPad, as one of the people to push her to go through with her business and use the skills that she was hired for.

Davis hopes that she can help at least one woman “try something new and feel comfortable knowing that there’s a community of support behind her

If you want to be a part of a community that empowers women, follow Wo-manly on Instagram

If you’re inspired by Kelly’s work and would like to help out and join the Wo-manly team, email Kelly at kdavis21@syr.edu.

Story by Jack Lyons ‘22, LaunchPad Global Fellow; photos and graphics supplied

Ethan Tyo ’17 G’21 publishes his first book on plant-based food to promote a sustainable lifestyle

March 8, 2021

A health entrepreneur, an indigenous human rights advocate and a social media planner. These are some of the tags that Ethan Tyo received over the past few years that he has been involved in the Syracuse community. But this time, he decided to go with the title of a food storyteller.

Tyo, with help from some friends, just published his first cookbook, “Fetagetaboutit,” in February.

This is his first project as a Food Studies graduate student at David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics of Syracuse University, which took almost two years for him to finish the adventure. Nevertheless, his interests in food and lifestyle have been with him for a long time.

During his undergraduate time at SU’s School of Information Studies, Tyo realized that he had a strong interest in food since 2015 when he was studying abroad in London. He experienced a huge weight loss there and changed to a plant-based diet as a matter of interest. Eventually, he was exposed to “a whole new world of color” and started exploring the journey with food through a different perspective toward understanding the importance of nutrition and lifestyle, he said.

Back then, Tyo was also active on social media platforms and had worked with several global entrepreneurs and food companies to create content and do content planning. Nevertheless, he was not motivated in these works but really hoped to start his own project someday.

“I spent the break between undergrad and grad time trying to think about how I (could) approach the stuff that I was interested in via social media after going through a lot of personal stuff and personal growth,” Tyo said. “And so, I dropped off social media because I really wanted to focus more on, how am I going to approach sharing my work and how I want to shape my career.”

With a strong interest in food and a willingness to promote a healthy lifestyle, Tyo decided to pursue his graduate degree. At Falk College, he said that he can really focus on food systems on a larger scale and see the implications that food has on people. Moreover, he is also eager to dig into the history of food because the food systems have developed and released in such a “fascinating way.”

“I wanted to be someone who creates content that was valuable and something that people would use to help better themselves with,” Tyo said, after working in the field of media for several years. “This cookbook is a way to kind of taking a step toward (solving the puzzle) of ‘I don’t know how to cook, what to eat or even where to start’ when people don’t want to sustain themselves on eating out all the time.”

To Tyo, he perceives this book as a foundational ground for people to be like “Hey, here are some simple recipes and ingredients for plant-based food,” so that people can know where to get them and what to look for in the kitchen.

Divided into different sections, including breakfast, entrees, snacks, and drinks, the book tells the story of Beatmaster Bobby Slay, star chef by day and master DJ by night, as well as his recipes. More notably, besides teaching people how to cook, the book also aims at educating people to eat plant-rich meals and reduce food waste, Tyo said.

And that is about sustainability, something that this cookbook hopes to highlight. It provides readers with tips and tricks not only on grocery shopping and produce storage but also on effectively using food scraps in composting or recipes, the website reads.

Tyo also wants to thank his colleagues for working on this book with him: SU alum Kyle Blaha G’17 brought him a fun, satirical twist to the traditional cookbook with short stories on Bobby’s adventures, meal plans (playlists), and the overall voice of Bobby. The book tries to cover all the essentials that a plant-based kitchen needs to get started. Each recipe also has a song accompaniment so that people can listen when they are cooking or eating. Laura Markley — the graphic designer and a current Ph.D. student in the Civil and Environmental Engineering program — also offered minimal-waste guides and tips.

*Autographing his book at the LaunchPad at Bird Library*

He will be working with the LaunchPad and other campus partners on the rollout of the book. For Tyo, this cookbook is not the end of his journey with food. It is more like the starting point for him to keep pursuing this career and discovering more about food and, more importantly, the culture and self-identification that lie behind it.

“In my next project, I really want to focus more on my cultural movements and bring them back to this aspect of how I integrate my own cultural understanding and cultural knowledge growth through the work that I do,” Tyo said.

He has been a mentor to other LaunchPad student entrepreneurs working in the creative space and in the food sector and will be a judge for the upcoming Hult Prize with its theme, “Food for Good.” His book will be added to the LaunchPad’s innovation and entrepreneurship collection at SU Libraries in both print and digital versions.

By Kaizhao Zero Lin ‘21, LaunchPad Global Fellow

Kyra Thomas ’21 is creating accessible solutions with her startup, Signal

March 1, 2021

Browsing the grocery store, Kyra Thomas ’21 (Engineering and Computer Science) scans the products on each shelf to determine if they fit within her dietary restrictions as her friends do the same. Her eyes dart from ingredient list to ingredient list, searching for the offenders that could spell out a violation of her ethics, or worse, elicit a severe allergic reaction.

“I’m always conscious of what I can and can’t eat,” Thomas says.

In that moment, she decided that there has to be an easier way to do this. Perhaps she could harness technology to ease the process?

Thomas, a Syracuse University senior majoring in computer science, hopes to use her knowledge to create a company that provides technology solutions that help with accessibility and inclusion.

This is the story of how Signal was born.

“A lot of people are experiencing the progression of technology, so I wanted to make sure everyone is included in that,” Thomas says.

She says this would especially be important for people of color or for those suffering from disabilities, both of whom are often excluded from the technology revolution.

“Most apps are first created with a certain customer in mind and then later made accessible. We want to start with the accessibility first.”

To kick off Signal’s solutions, Thomas began with a singular app idea: InfoBytes. She and her team are creating InfoBytes as an app that would allow users to input sets of dietary restrictions then simply scan products and be told if they are safe to eat. This would be a major step forward in technology, particularly for those who are visually impaired.

A creative problem solver that surrounds herself with innovative thinkers, Thomas is collaborating with three other team members to make this a reality: Jeremy Gavrilov, Lauryn Rivers, and Tiara Logan. She explained that creating a strong team means listening to each other because by creating a welcome and supportive environment, teammates can share different outlooks to ultimately improve an idea.

That says, her team comes from a background related mainly to computer science.

“Creating a startup was new to us. We had to learn to think about things from a business perspective instead of just a tech perspective.” The team had to adapt to considering factors like efficiency and costs. Although the path wasn’t easy, Thomas persevered in helping her team evolve. They worked with the LaunchPad team at SU to make their first pitch at the ACC InVenture Prize campus competition earlier this semester.

Having grown up in a STEM-based all-girls school that provided her with strong encouragement to take on leadership roles, Thomas grew up to be a natural leader herself.

“I always knew I wanted to have a big impact on people, and that’s part of being an entrepreneur. We need to recognize that this potential for impact is a big responsibility that entrepreneurs have.”

As technology evolves, Thomas envisions that more ethical issues will continue to arise (such as those involving machine learning, algorithm bias, AI, or data privacy). It’s vital to remain aware of these ethical questions.

“What precautions can I take when creating tech solutions to avoid, say, bias or privacy concerns?” Thomas asks.

Thomas explained that “innovation is directly tied with creativity.” That is, an innovator is someone who creates solutions to problems in a way that is different than what’s been done or thought about before. Signal aims to be that creative solution.

Thomas recently filed the paperwork to confirm Signal as an LLC and is turning her attention towards finishing the development of an app prototype for InfoBytes, conducting user testing, and looking for more funding.

After receiving positive feedback from the Blackstone LaunchPad & Techstars from their ACC InVenture prize pitch, Thomas’s team learned how to strengthen their business plan moving forward.

“Even though we didn’t win the competition, we still won a lot of other things,” Thomas says in reference to the knowledge and experience her team gained.

She encourages other entrepreneurs to utilize all of the resources they have access to, such as Blackstone LaunchPad & Techstars, and to reach out to people with questions.

“Just email someone, or if you don’t know who to ask, pull up LinkedIn. If someone’s job sounds interesting, message them just to ask a few questions about what they do.” This is precisely how an entrepreneur can learn and grow from more experienced advice.

Following graduation, Thomas will be working with Lockheed Martin on the next manned space vehicle, but her team will continue balancing the development of Signal.

“I believe that we can make it work,” she says, nodding to herself with a smile on her face.

Signal’s website is still yet to be completed, but to learn more about Thomas’s current and upcoming projects, you can find her on LinkedIn.

Story by Sasha Temerte ’23, LaunchPad Orange Ambassador; photo supplied

Patrick Linehan ’21 launches The Commute to Class podcast series

February 28, 2021

The alarm goes off. Snooze. You know you have to get out of bed, but you just don’t have the motivation. The day seems like this looming monster that awaits you outside of your covers. This is a process that college students are all too familiar with. During a global pandemic, it can be difficult to muster up the willpower to take on a sometimes stressful and overwhelming day. Patrick Linehan ‘21 (Newhouse) wants to make that dreadful morning wake up and walk to class a little brighter. His podcast, aptly named The Commute to Class, provides listeners with a fifteen-minute spark of motivation they need to tell themselves, “Hey you know what I can do it”.

The Commute to Class is a new podcast brought to you by Blackstone LaunchPad & TechStars at Syracuse University Libraries. The series sits down with recent LaunchPad alumni who have gone on to create successful ventures. From Forbes 30 under 30 recipients to CEOs getting multi-million-dollar investments, the guest list is quite expansive and inspiring. Despite all their successes, host Patrick Linehan sits down with them to discuss their struggles and failures. As you listen, you might just become more motivated to follow your passions.

Linehan, a former economics major turned newspaper and online journalism major, struggled himself to be honest about what he truly wanted to do. He says that “In high school I suppressed the more artistic side of myself in order to fit what I thought was best for me.”

Since he’s gotten to Syracuse University Linehan has embraced the creative storyteller inside him. From jump-starting a magazine publication on campus to filming music videos for a local band, he has created quality content that he is passionate about. He is now a LaunchPad Global Fellow, producing stories and digital content for the Blackstone LaunchPad & Techstars at the university.

Although he never thought of himself as an entrepreneur, he came to see himself that way from LaunchPad director Linda Hartsock, the first guest on the podcast series. You don’t necessarily have to have a business venture to be an entrepreneur. You need a way of thinking about your life and how you approach the world. Linehan explains, “She has taught me that being an entrepreneur is more about mindset than anything else which has encouraged me to put my ambition towards projects I have a passion for.”

Now as he faces his newest creative project, he’s excited to provide valuable insight from some of the brightest business minds to his audience. Featured guests will include Kelsey Davis, founder of CLLCTVE, on Forbes 30 under 30 list this past year; Julia Haber, founder of WAYV and Home From College; and Dylan Kim, founder of Brevité. “This podcast is meant for people who want to achieve something great but maybe don’t exactly know how they are going to make it happen.”

Over the nine interviews in the series, Linehan dives deep into topics he didn’t think he would be hearing from successful entrepreneurs. As dual major student who is engaged in so many campus projects and his own passion pursuits, he really resonated with his conversations about burnout, stress, and humility. He says, “It’s nice to hear that these super successful people encounter the same challenges that we all do.” He hopes listeners find their own comfort, as well as motivation from these stories of struggle and failure.

Like any successful company, Linehan recognizes the team effort required to produce a captivating podcast. He says that he really couldn’t have done this without the help of Nick Barba (podcast production coordinator), Connor Johnson (original music scoring), and Sloane Sexton (graphic design and branding), who are all fellow LaunchPad members.

https://open.spotify.com/show/4OyxEdqIXdMFNjvi4FSqmnIf you want to hear impactful discussion about the triumphs and failures of Syracuse University’s most successful entrepreneurs, tune in as the first few episodes of The Commute to Class have been released on wherever you listen to your podcasts. Be sure to come back often here.

Story by Jack Lyons ‘22, LaunchPad Global Fellow; photos and graphics supplied

Zain Elwakil ’21 launches The Singing Buildings Project

February 22, 2021

Some places invoke an accompanying melody. A quiet church with stained glass windows where the walls seem to reverberate solemnity just begs for the majestic notes of an organ or the crystal tones of a choir to fill its spacious ceilings. The relationship between space and sound, though not one commonly discussed, is one that links two detailed processes of capturing beauty and structuring artistic possibilities. Zain Elwakil ’21, studying in the School of Architecture, hopes to create dialogue surrounding the intrinsic relationship between architecture and music through his new project The Singing Buildings.

Elwakil has always been tireless in his pursuit of creating and re-imagining art. In his final year of architecture, he’s spent long hours designing spaces to support community needs, align with utilitarian requirements, and combine the detail and precision of construction with aestheticism. Part of his artistic process has always included the imagination of auditory music to accompany the spaces he’s constructing.

“Day-to-day, when I enter a space, I have a vision of what the space sounds like and what I’d like to hear in that space.” Elwakil spoke of his creative process.

In his personal life, his natural combination of space and sound has taken place through his film and composition hobbies, where he films explorative scenes of outdoor nature or beautiful buildings, often set to a soundtrack matching his conceptions of the space. He also often composes his own music, a process he finds similar to architecture.

“It’s related to how I feel. When I play notes [at my keyboard] they’re usually in some kind of harmonic relationship, removing boundaries. It translates similarly to space- I close my eyes and have that imaginative process.” Elwakil spoke of the similar creative process in his own life.

Hoping to create new conversations surrounding this natural relationship, Elwakil created a film project showcasing musicians performing in intricate and architecturally complex spaces. During a time where the traditional performances in large-scale concert venues are on pause, these smaller, more intimate concerts Elwakil hopes will combine musical performance with architectural showcase.

The Singing Buildings’ first project, which premiered on February 15, showcased a collaboration between ZAC and Jawuan, two emerging Syracuse University musicians in the historic Center for the Arts in Homer, New York. The building, constructed in the late 18^th century, was originally a church drawing architectural inspiration from Romanesque and pre-Gothic stylistic elements. Its lofted arches and rose windows create a presence of peace and wonder, calling to be paired with the explorative notes of modern music.

See the first video here and subscribe to the new series where “music and architecture share a stage” here on You Tube.

While The Singing Buildings project has only just started, Elwakil’s vision for the project’s growth seeks to create a platform for artists to showcase their work while opening minds to hidden architectural beauties. He hopes to create a consistent series for small artists to host these concerts on a global platforms and showcase their skills combined and inspire minds to the harmonic relationship between architectural elements and melodies.

The true wonder of The Singing Buildings project lies not in its artistic ingenuity or seamless fusion of artists and buildings but in Elwakil’s miraculous prowess in adding this project on top of his other work. The legacy of architecture school in its grueling work is no secret, and as a fifth-year student currently constructing his thesis on top of running his company, Zuluecho Initiative, his ability to head another project is inspiring to say the least.

For Elwakil, the secret lies the blend of passionate pursuits. “ I do all these different things and it seems related- all my work is me figuring out how to tell a story from the LaunchPad to design and to the Singing Buildings project. At the end of the day it’s still a business that you have to run like an entrepreneur.”

Elwakil’s combination of passions leads itself to seeing possibilities in combinations of different fields- whether that’s design and business, or in this case: music and architecture. The drive to create beauty is apparent in every artistic field, but the ability to see the fusions and relationships between differing fields creates atmospheres and inspirations of beauties to inspire us all to embrace differing passions and embrace new possibilities.

Story by LaunchPad Global Media Fellow Claire Howard ’23; photo supplied

Trevor Miller ’20 on creative expression through drag

February 14, 2021

It’s no doubt that the COVID-19 pandemic has halted business operations across many sectors. With shutdowns of the Broadway stage, nightlife and nearly every performance space across the country, it has become incredibly difficult to land a position in the entertainment industry. Actors, actresses, drag queens and many other creative entrepreneurs have needed to be extra resourceful just to survive amidst this economic and public health crisis.

Pursuing his bachelor’s degree in English and sociology at Syracuse University’s College of Arts and Sciences, senior Trevor Miller was ready to launch the next phases of both his drag queen and acting careers before the world was sent into quarantine back in March 2020.

“I was preparing to send a short-film that I had been working on to a prestigious editor in NYC, and I was going to do a summer tour as Lizanga through a couple of different states,” says Miller. “And literally all on the same day, everything was cancelled.”

Miller started performing back in 2017 when he debuted as Lizanga at the SU Drag Preliminaries. After sweeping that round of the competition with ease, Miller went on to win the final round, a moment in which he recalls “literally collapsing.”

“Unlike any other year, they didn’t announce a runner-up, and so I thought I won runner-up when I was the first name called. I got to the end of the runway and someone from the balcony yelled ‘girl, you won,’” recounts Miller, who had the opportunity to meet famous drag queens Trixie Mattel and Milk while they hosted the event.

From his gaudy and whimsical performances as Lizanga, inspired by Hairspray’s iconic Edna Turnblad, Miller found immense passion for the performing arts and the self-expression that comes with it.

With innate curiosity pumping through his veins, he then auditioned for many films in hopes of gaining a different kind of acting experience. He landed the starring role in psycho-thriller “Daddy Knows Best,” a new film by LaunchPad alumni film production company 410 Pictures. Entering the 2021 Film Festival Circuit, the film explores the twisted world of Johnny Peters’ masculine psyche.

Founded by Syracuse VPA alumni Peter Hartsock ’19 and Daniel Simoni ‘19, 410 Pictures “is one of the most welcoming production companies that I have ever been a part of,” shares Miller, who has previously struggled with landing roles on sets with predominantly straight white male casting crews.

“Whenever I go into an audition, no matter what I’ve prepared, I’m always walking in with the worry on my shoulders of how I look in my clothes, how people are seeing me and how I am presenting myself to them,” says Miller, who came out as gay back in 2010.

Initially receiving little to no acceptance of his sexuality from family and friends, Miller is very familiar with the negative social stigmas placed on LGBTQ+ individuals, all of which prevent substantial and truthful queer representation from existing in media to this day.

Luckily, 410 Pictures wants to change that narrative by lending its platform to champion diversity in all respects.

“From the minute I met Peter, he acknowledged my queerness and worked with it, unlike any other director I’ve encountered in the past” says Miller, bringing his drag queen persona to every scene on set. In fact, his drag queen persona is one of three key components to his acting formula.

“When I act, I give a piece of myself (actual Trevor), a piece of Lizanga in the dramatization of how I would normally do drag, and then a piece of what I think the director wants, and I put that all together cohesively,” he says. Lizanga most certainly shines through in every piece of his work.

After reflecting on his drag persona’s larger-than-life personality and trademark characteristics, Miller was enthusiastic to share that “she fills the void of literally everything that I am not in my daily life. She’s so unafraid.”

Although there are still challenges, Miller feels fortunate to be living in a time when drag has never been more socially accepted. “When I first came out in 2010, drag was still underground. It was something that when you spoke about it, straight people would be confused. And now it’s on billboards across multiple states,” says Miller, whose career would not be the same without the brilliant femininity of his drag identity.

With an Instagram platform followed by more than 1,500 people, Miller has made it his mission to be a source of light and love for everyone currently struggling in life.

“I just want to be the person that I needed when I came out of the closet,” he says, and he most certainly will be with his unapologetic confidence as both an entertainer and individual.

Story by Christopher Appello ’21, Blackstone Global Fellow, advertising major, S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications; artwork and photo supplied

Erica Morrison ’21 is inspired to create a legacy

February 14, 2021

Erica Morrison and her grandmother — *Erica Morrison ’21 with her grandmother*

To touch another person’s life in a positive way is the legacy many of us dream of leaving. Though we may want fame or a Fortune 500 company, deep down the thought that just by simply being ourselves we inspire those around us to be their best and change the world in their own way may possibly be one of our highest hopes.

Erica Morrison ’21, studying Finance in the Martin J. Whitman School of Management and Public Relations in the S.I. Newhouse School of Communications, is a living example of the power one person can have on another’s life. Through her personal lifelong legacy of using innovation and entrepreneurship to possibly benefit the world around her; her inspiration has always stemmed from one person: her grandmother.

Morrison, currently holding an internship with NASA in Knowledge Management, is without a doubt an accomplished and fearless visionary. In high school she decided to join her science club and competed in the Connecticut Student Innovation Expo for 3 years. During her sophomore year she created a product to help test antibiotic resistance in meat, helping change her perspective on meat consumption and its impact on humans and the environment. In her junior year she created a water bottle detector to test for lead traces in water; inspired by the water crisis in Flint, Michigan and then her senior year she created a patch for leaking underground pipes utilizing the slime of hagfish which expands when exposed to liquid.

In her college career Morrison has continued to use innovation and technology to succeed and drive social change. Her capstone project, WaxPax Solutions, creates an eco-friendly, biodegradable alternative to plastic packaging. WaxPax Solutions won Syracuse University’s Hult Prize competition and is currently preparing to compete in this spring’s Hult Regionals in the hopes of going on to pitch in front of the United Nations for the chance to win $1M.

“Maybe this will inspire somebody to think of something better than the status quo- COVID has shown us how many supplies we go through and how we need to be more sustainable at the source,” Morrison spoke in reference to their project and its importance in inspiring a continually innovative future.

Morrison’s lifelong determination to innovate a more sustainable future and her tenacity in chasing excellence stems from one person in her life: her grandmother. Morrison’s grandmother is Navajo and grew up in Brazos, New Mexico near the Navajo/Hopi reservation; shaped by the less-than-ideal living situations and little opportunities available. One Navajo custom her family observed was giving up the firstborn child to their parents to raise. However, when Morrison’s grandmother had her first child at a young age; she refused to give that child up and chose to run away from the reservation and build a future for her children utterly on her own- living in a whole new world while lacking all community and support.

“ No matter how much I’ve written about her I just can’t convey her spirit,” Morrison spoke. “She’s a ball of life. She had to work three times as hard as the normal person and I wondered how she could be so happy, so open, so optimistic. I want to be that person.”

Her grandmother’s unshakeable courage combined with the values of cultivation for the home we live in inspires Morrison every day to use her actions to pour passion and optimism into the world around her. To honor her grandmother’s legacy, she’s currently creating a documentary to showcase her incredible story and open the eyes of the world to a systemic lack of infrastructure in Indigenous communities. She’s received funding from a SOURCE grant and is focusing her semester on creating the film as her thesis within the Renée Crown University Honors Program.

To say passion exudes from a simple conversation with Morrison is an understatement. Her passion for the possibilities of life and her tenacity in her drive for excellence in all that she does is apparent in her remarkable array of accomplishments. Her determination in continual innovation to create a more sustainable future stems from the relentless optimism and perseverance of one person- inspiring us all to use our presence to continually improve the world and in turn inspire those around us.

To support COVID-19 relief in the Navajo & Hopi Community, please go here.

Story by Claire Howard ’23, Global Media Fellow; photo supplied

Meet the founders of Capricious Productions

February 9, 2021

Meet Cassie Leachman and Matthew Farrelly, founders of the music production, artist management, and record label Capricious Productions. They are the first to be profiled in new podcast series called Young Entrepreneur Series (YES!) by Hunter’s Fund.

Cassie and Matthew were inspired to start Capricious Productions while studying at Syracuse University. Unlike large, corporate record labels, they are committed to transparency and offer custom contracts to artists that allow them greater freedom over their music and futures.

“We try really hard to educate the artists that we work with on all of the pieces and parts of a recording contract,” Leachman says. “It’s really hard for artists, and really scary if you don’t know what you’re doing, so we try to make that process as helpful and as educational as possible.”

On this week’s inaugural episode (also available on Podcast) of the Young Entrepreneur Series (YES! Series), Cassie and Matthew share how they started their company, how to avoid predatory record label contracts, how professors and networking have helped their business succeed, how they scored their first client, and advice for people wanting to break into the music industry.

The podcast series focuses on business, creativity and entrepreneurship and is hosted by Hunter’s Fund grant recipient Jacob O’Connor.

Watch it here: https://youtu.be/-N4c5xeEAtg. You can also listen to it on Spotify on “Hunter’s Fund.”

Learn more about Capricious Productions here: https://www.capriciousmusic.com/

Follow Hunter’s Fund on You Tube.

Hunter’s Fund is a program of the Hunter Watson Memorial Fund which was founded in response to the death of Hunter Watson, who, as a Syracuse University student, tragically lost his life as a passenger in a distracted driving auto accident. Hunter was a talented young student who had already demonstrated his abilities in music, computer technology, entrepreneurship, and performance arts. The Fund was initially begun by members of Hunter’s family and his university and high school classmates to honor Hunter’s memory. Its purpose is to encourage and support other young people who have displayed talents and achievements in areas similar to Hunter’s accomplishments but who often lack the financial means and support to carry their inspirations to fulfillment.

Hunter’s Fund has helped many student entrepreneurs follow their dreams. It also supports the annual Hunter Brooks Watson Spirit of Entrepreneurship Awards at Syracuse University as part of the RvD iPrize competition.

Grant Application: https://www.hunterwatson.org/grant-application-survey

Sign a Pledge: https://www.hunterwatson.org/sign-pledge

Hunter’s Blog: https://www.hunterwatson.org/hunter-blog

Become a Donor: https://www.hunterwatson.org/donate

Cassie Cavallaro ’21 on turning skills into freelancing and a career path

January 27, 2021

As the world was sent into a spiral last March, Cassie Cavallaro found herself homeless due to unfortunate family circumstances. She was living in her friend’s storage room. Simultaneously, the Dunkin Donuts location she manages was cutting hours, slashing her source of income. So, she turned toward her best skill and passion: illustration.

She spent the last of her bank account on equipment she needed and started putting her work out on freelancing websites like freelance.com and Upwork. Soon after that, she booked her first paid job.

“In the beginning, I felt full throttle fear,” said Cavallaro. “I was taking the last couple hundred dollars in my bank account and trusting that this job was going to follow through. And trust I’d make the money back and then some.”

Cavallaro, who plans to graduate from Syracuse University in May with a bachelor’s degree in Illustration, has been freelancing ever since, netting over $10,000 in her first quarter. She has developed relationships with many clients, built a website and broadened her network online. She worked 80 hour weeks over the past year to turn freelance illustration into a self-sustaining job. Throughout, she continued to manage her Dunkin Donuts store while keeping up with full-time coursework.

“Becoming homeless and having to crawl your way back up from the very depths of darkness,” Cavallaro said, “I think it changes a person.”

It can be very intimidating to start off as a freelancer, said Cavallaro. Putting work out there to be critiqued and analyzed is scary. But she has one piece of advice: just go for it.

“If you don’t put what you have out there, you can’t see how the market will react to it,” she said.

Freelancing takes a lot of planning, said Cavallaro. At the beginning, she would take whatever job came her way with no long-term goals in mind. She found herself floundering with too many competing projects. This semester she is focusing on getting plenty of sleep while developing her portfolio. And she thinks about where she wants her freelance work to take her, the world of children’s book publishing and art licensing.

She is also in the process of finding an agent or business partner to help make connections in that industry. The creativity in children inspires the young illustrator and businesswoman, driving her towards that profession.

“To take a child’s imagination and reinvent it and transpose it, I think it is possible to remember what it’s like to be a child,” she said. “To not be afraid to create, to forgive, and to look forward to conquering tomorrow.”

Cassie is launching a newsletter February 1, which will extrapolate on her creative process and share her illustrations. You can sign up for it through her website.

Interested in becoming Cassie’s agent/business partner? Reach out to her at: cassiannecavallaro@gmail.com

Story by Patrick Linehan ‘21, LaunchPad Global Fellow; photo and illustration supplied by Cassie Cavallaro

Nolan Kagan ’22 is building community through Gather, a venture designed around shared food experiences

January 15, 2021

Student entrepreneur in a suit facing the camera

Nolan Kagan ’22 has always been a problem solver. Nolan kept lists of ideas and solutions to everyday problems on his phone for years, only to realize that he had the agency to make those ideas a reality. From there, he knew entrepreneurship was his calling. Nolan graduated high school a year early and attended community college in his hometown of Los Angeles, California before coming to Syracuse University where he is currently pursuing a degree in Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises from the Whitman School of Management. Right now, Nolan’s main focus is Gather: an online platform centered around the use of food as a vessel for communication and connection.

Nolan envisions Gather as a platform with which people in a strange place, whether travelling or having just moved to a new city, can share a homecooked meal and a conversation with someone new. To him, eating dinner together is an integral part of what it feels like to be home. Gather allows the comfort of a dining room table to be carried with you through a network of participants around the world. Nolan wants Gather to provide support and comfort to users and hosts through shared meals.

Of course, a global pandemic creates some tricky obstacles for a venture centered around letting strangers into your home. However, Nolan believes that the current state of the world creates an even more pressing need for people to bond over the most common language of all: food. To this affect, Nolan plans to launch Gather as a recipe sharing service so that connections can still be made over delicious dishes.

Nolan is working with Blackstone LaunchPad & Techstars at SU Libraries to help bring his idea to life. He participated in several idea competitions this fall which helped his more fully shape his idea and looks forward to continuing to do discovery and development with the LaunchPad this spring.

Throughout the development of Gather, the most difficult thing for Nolan has been to keep motivated. This past semester was really hard for him, and he almost gave up on his idea. However, coming home, he realized it was up to him to direct his free time into his passion. Now, he’s full steam ahead. Gather is about improving the lives of people all around the world. Keeping this in mind has helped Nolan stay on task and push through development of his venture. He hopes to have a recipe sharing service available by the end of this coming semester and the full-fledged meal sharing service running in a year. To market Gather, Nolan will rely on word of mouth, influencers, and travel agencies who will recommend Gather to their clients.

Gather will be extremely easy to use. For meal sharing, hosts will have to go through a vetting process, while guests will be able to make a profile with interests and some fun facts about themselves to start a conversation. In terms of safety precautions, a guest will never be alone with a host, always accompanied at meals with their own travel companions or other guests who are seeking a meal. Hosts will be in charge of their own prices for meals and dishes. The recipe sharing service will also be user friendly. Users will even be able to offer cooking classes for those looking to improve their skills in the kitchen. Nolan himself is starting to cook, hoping to use Gather to expand his repertoire which consists mainly of pasta.

To Nolan, success will come with the first satisfied user who tells him about their meal sharing experience. Hearing that he has facilitated a personal connection for a group of people will be the sign to him that his hard work has paid off. Until then, he is working hard with his advisors and LaunchPad mentors as he gets Gather ready to bring people together. Nolan has a passion for people and believes firmly that cooking and food have the potential to forge connections and community.

Story by Ellen Jorgensen ’23, LaunchPad Orange Ambassador; photo supplied