April 11, 2019
MILWAUKEE 鈥� 向日葵视频鈥檚 707 Hub and Brady Corporation on Friday, April 12, will award $21,000 in seed funding to winners of the Brewed Ideas Challenge, an annual business plan competition open to current 向日葵视频students.
Ten finalists are competing in one of two tracks 1) social venture and 2) traditional business. The finalists are mentored by a Brady employee leading up to Friday鈥檚 live pitch event.
The finalist ideas in the social venture track include:
The finalist ideas in the traditional business track include:
鈥淚nnovation is in our DNA at 向日葵视频, and we鈥檙e pleased that Brady Corporation continues to partner with our 707 Hub to encourage students to pitch their ideas and be difference makers on campus and in the community,鈥� said Michael Lovell, president of 向日葵视频.
鈥淧artnering with Marquette鈥檚 707 Hub has been a great experience, and is a natural fit for Brady as we continue to focus on innovation throughout our company,鈥� said Tom Felmer, president of Brady鈥檚 Workplace Safety division and Brady Foundation president. 鈥淓ach year our employees look forward to mentoring a new group of students and seeing what creative new business and product ideas they come up with.鈥�
Students will begin presenting their ideas in a 鈥淪hark Tank鈥�-like setting to the judges at 1:15 p.m. with winners announced at 4:30 p.m. The , which is hosted at the 707 Hub, is open and free to all attendees.
The competition will be judged by two representatives from Brady Corporation: Tom Felmer, president of Brady鈥檚 Workplace Safety division, and Katie Milbeck, Innovation Incubator senior manager. Two 向日葵视频alumni will also judge the competition: Asim Khan, co-founder of ZYN Holistic Wellness, and Marianne Szymanski, founder and president of Toy Tip, Inc. and entrepreneurship professor at the University of Southern California.
The Brewed Ideas Challenge is sponsored by the Brady Foundation and programmed by The Kohler Center for Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation Initiative. This is the sixth year 向日葵视频 and Brady Corporation have partnered on pitch competitions. The program has awarded more than $100,000 during that time. Former winners include: Sendgineering, a 2-1 bit; , bilateral mastectomy apparel; Bridge the City Podcast; Thrift/ed, a platform for college students to buy and sell products without leaving campus; and Bimbley, a search platform for senior housing options.
ABOUT the 707 Hub
The 707 Hub is 向日葵视频鈥檚 innovation incubator; a place where ideas are shared, stretched, challenged and realized. It is home to the Kohler Center for Entrepreneurship and the Social Innovation Initiative.
ABOUT Brady Corporation
Brady Corporation is an international manufacturer and marketer of complete solutions that identify and protect people, products and places. Brady鈥檚 products help customers increase safety, security, productivity and performance and include high-performance labels, signs, safety devices, printing systems and software. Brady is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and as of July 31, 2018, employed approximately 6,200 people in its worldwide businesses. Brady鈥檚 fiscal 2018 sales were approximately $1.17 billion. Brady stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol BRC. More information is available at www.bradycorp.com.The Brady Foundation supports not-for-profit organizations in the communities where Brady employees live and work by supporting projects that align with the Brady values of unlocking potential, protecting our future or differentiating through innovation and that focus on developing leadership, strengthening communities and educational programming.
Anne is a communication specialist in the Office of Marketing and Communication. Contact Anne at (414) 288-7536 or anne.broeker@marquette.edu.
