by Amanda Sedlak-Hevener
Launch League’s weekend-long SparkAK event ended on Sunday, February 19, 2017, with a pitch session straight out of the television show “Shark Tank.” Five out of six groups of local entrepreneurs presented their business ideas for a trio of judges that consisted of Drew Holland, owner of eyemg, Phil Brennan, CEO of Echogen Power Systems, and Dan Collins, owner of Wastebits. Prizes were awarded in six different categories.
Launch League is an organization aimed at scalable startups in the Akron area. It provides mentorship and help to people who want to start small businesses in the community through a series of workshops and other options. SparkAK, called a “hackathon for your own ideas” by Executive Director Courtney Gras, started early in the morning on February 18. The attendees—some of whom didn’t know each other prior to the event—formed small groups and came up with ideas for business. These ideas were presented the next day, giving the attendees experience at asking for funding and working through their plans.
Five of the six groups formed on February 18 went before the judges at the Nightlight Theatre on S. High Street in downtown Akron. Their ideas included Shoebox, an app that holds all your home information in one place, from manuals to warranties and Not Yo’ Daddy’s Mexican Hot Sauce, a hearty hot sauce made from an old family recipe consisting of fresh ingredients. Another was Rubber City Tales, an independent bookstore and meeting place. Two more ideas were aimed at the tech community: Maker Duet, a program aimed at tech employee retention, and YourSensei.com, a combination website for professional technical trainers and an online community marketplace.
Amanda Sedlak-Hevener is a local historian and freelance writer. She has an M.A. from the University of Akron, and is working on an M.L.I.S. at Kent State University.
(Photos by Meghan Goetz.)