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StartUp Lab 2022 Year in Review Newsletter

Dec. 19, 2022
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Here it is StartUp Lab fans – your 2022 Year in Review!  StartUp Lab began 2022 in another state of lockdown as the pandemic raged.  We came back to the space in hybrid-mode in March and continued to ramp up until Laurier went 100% on-campus in September.  It was fantastic to finally get to meet entrepreneurs and mentors face to face, after communicating largely online since March 2020!  Some notable developments in StartUp Lab for 2022 include staffing, success, opening our doors to our ventures, hosting social events, and our swank new door wraps!  We also ran a 4-session training seminar for mentors to help build coaching skills – “How to Successfully Coach an Entrepreneur: Specialized Techniques to Guide Them from Vision to Reality”. Finally, StartUp Lab staff ran the ‘Design Project’ entrepreneurship programming for SHAD Laurier 2022, to rave reviews from SHAD Canada.

Staffing

Startup Lab got BUSY this year!  We started the year off by welcoming Adrian Krebs, our new Program Lead.  Adrian came from running his own startups as a programmer and brought new ideas and energy into the ‘Lab. Shortly after Adrian’s arrival we said goodbye to Program Assistant Cheryl Beaupre as she sailed off into retirement after a 37-year career at Laurier.  Sonia Gallardo joined StartUp Lab in April and it’s hard to believe she hasn’t been here for years as she has fit in seamlessly and quickly become the glue that holds StartUp Lab together! With our team finally assembled, it was time to kick things into gear…

Ventures

StartUp Lab began 2022 with 10 returning ventures and 6 newcomers.  Overall, we saw 34 startups come through the doors in 2022, with 15 currently still working on their businesses.  With the renewal of our social media presence (thanks to Sonia and Erin), we saw a steady increase in applications, to a new record of 22 applications in the fall semester alone!  Some notable events in 2022:

  • HustleHawks spent September in their beachhead market of New Orleans, focusing on business development and better understanding the market.
  • CuriAwesome grew steadily but its founder, Tanya, decided to pause operations indefinitely while she focuses on her promising career.
  • VAE Labs secured a yet-to-be-disclosed raise and are speeding toward a major launch of their product.
  • Quickscope secured Mitacs funding to produce research while building their product.

Mentors

StartUp Lab wouldn’t be possible without a fantastic group of mentors who approach mentorship with the heart of a teacher.  We are incredibly grateful for the time and effort of the 15 returning mentors as well as the 9 new mentors who joined us in 2022!  Thank you all so much for all you do for the ventures and for us at StartUp Lab!!!

Looking ahead to 2023

With a greatly increased funnel, StartUp Lab is facing a capacity challenge.  We are looking for creative ways to address this to ensure that we are able to help all that come in with a great idea and an open mind.  We have a bunch of new ideas for 2023 that we are working on, starting with a workshop for interview skills and techniques on Jan. 18th. 

Tips for Startup Success

  • Test your ideas in your market. Until you do, it’s all speculation. 
  • Your mentors are here to help, but mentees need to ask for help.
  • A startup can’t be built in a few hours a week.
  • Get a co-founder – solo entrepreneurs have a short shelf-life.
  • Reflect often. What skills gaps do you have?  How can you address these?
  • Set clear goals and be honest with yourself about reaching them or not.
  • Execute, execute, execute.
  • Read
  • Listen 
  • Say what you’ll do and do what you said.
  • Above all else, remember – progress, not perfection. 

Happy Holidays and see you in 2023!

 

Want to get involved? Ask us how by dropping my StartUp Lab or apply HERE