Over the last few weeks, I’ve had the chance to learn a lot about how to work successfully at a startup during my internship at Arist. Here are a few of my takeaways: 1. Always communicate. With the advent of tools like Slack, the modern workplace is not necessarily centralized around one physical location. No…
As startup companies prepare to launch, they are presented with an opportunity to make a great first impression which defines their brand for years to come. A startup’s culture is important because it lays the groundwork for future organizational success. The businesses in our Summer Venture Program are learning how to navigate this crossroads of…
Does your business have a presence on Facebook? Did you know that you could bring significant sales traffic to your business through Facebook advertising? SVP participant Lucas Lee-Tyson ‘20 was able to create an entire business of his own by teaching other businesses how to do just that, founding Growth Cave. Recently I met with…
During the early stages of their ventures, founders are faced with many choices that could have implications down the road. It can be easy to make decisions that benefit business growth in the short term, but seriously stifle the long-term success and flexibility of the venture, especially in regards to pursuing funding and initially structuring…
To kick off our series of Summer Venture Program startup profiles, I recently sat down with Elia Innamorati ‘20, founder and head designer of Porté Bags. Porté’s makeup bags are made for neatly storing and transporting cosmetics and jewelry. With customizable compartments and dividers created especially for storing makeup products, as well as two removable…
Pitching and selling: what’s the difference? While they are both important in the life of a startup, they are actually very different and require distinct skill sets. On June 12 and 13, Kate Merritt, owner of KMP Consulting, took some of the Summer Venture Program teams through an intensive B2B Sales Training workshop to help…
Imagine: you have developed a groundbreaking new product or service, but you only have one minute in line at Starbucks or in a crowded elevator to explain it to your dream client. Would you be able to make a great first impression for your venture? This scenario is far more common than you’d imagine, so…
Week 3 of Summer Venture Program focused on presentation skills, which are essential to the success of any startup as they communicate their value propositions and seek funding. Each week two SVP teams make Hot Seat pitch presentations to the rest of the cohort, and all of the ventures are preparing to present at July…
After the relaxing holiday weekend, SVP teams returned to Boston last Tuesday for a busy week of growth and ideation which allowed them to refine their customer-product fits. Tuesday, May 28th SVP teams informed each other of their accomplishments since last week and their goals for the week ahead during our Team Updates at Babson…
A key component of the Summer Venture Program is its location in downtown Boston, giving the student entrepreneurs a chance to immerse themselves in the Boston startup ecosystem. To help orient us in our first week of SVP, Blank Center Executive Director Debi Kleiman gave us an introduction to the ecosystem. The Boston entrepreneur is…
