Company Profile
Bacon Boxes
Creators of savory treats made from bacon
The Pitch
South Florida college students Kimberly Hruda and Logan Rae realized that they shared a love for cooking and an entrepreneurial spirit. After Rae had created a bouquet made of pieces of bacon that resembled roses, she realized she had stumbled onto a creative new business concept. She joined forces with Hruda, and Bacon Boxes was launched in 2015. One year later, the company relocated to an industrial kitchen in Boca Raton, developing a menu of the creative, savory treats. Bacon Box's signature Bacon Roses are crafted using high-quality ingredients that are free of hormones, steroids, and antibiotics. Boxes ship nationwide and come in an assortment of flavors.
Traction
Nominated by the Adams Center for Entrepreneurship at Florida Atlantic University, Bacon Boxes was founded in 2015 and follows a direct sales model. The company is run as an e-commerce-based business with additional channels, subscription boxes, and pairing events. Hruda and Rae made initial investments, and since then the company has bootstrapped. The company is currently seeking investment funding to further its product line and to expand its distribution facility. Bacon Boxes has been featured by such major news and media outlets such as CBS12, Fox News, ABC7, Good Morning America, and Yahoo.
Note: All data as of 1/31/17
Boost Linguistics
Artificial intelligence provider to help marketing teams engage customers
The Pitch
Boost Linguistics develops artificial intelligence that supports marketing teams by helping them produce content that engages customers. The company's editor analyzes texts for emotion and suggests changes that will raise the overall impact on a customer. Emotionally charged content facilitates a relationship between brand and buyer while educating the buyer about services. Firms using emotionally charged language, on average, have seen an increase in conversion rates by 49.5 percent over their competitors. Instead of spending hours editing content and hoping for the desired effect, Boost Linguistics' technology, backed by artificial intelligence, allows audience engagement by boosting written content.
Traction
Since its founding year in 2015, Boost Linguistics received first place at the Baiada Institute's Business Model Competition and subsequently won third place at the Baiada Institute's Business Plan Competition. The company is one of the 19 presenters at the 2017 SXSW trade show and is also a recipient of the Close School of Entrepreneurship's Entrepreneurship Co-Op. Boost Linguistics' own introduction to content marketing class--Boosted University--has 50 students enrolled.
Note: All data as of 1/31/17
Drone MVP
Connecting those with drone-service needs with qualified pilots
The Pitch
Drone MVP is a platform that connects people who need drone services with the best pilots in their area. There is no easy way for pilots to showcase their skills or for clients to find quality pilots who can work at any time. The company charges less than existing solutions, prides itself on its amazing quality, and has the ability to edit what it films in a fast turnaround time. So far, Drone MVP has completed projects for real estate and indie film jobs. The company already has a network of the best pilots capable of completing any task. Content seekers can save money and pilots can earn profits. The opportunity for drones is now and the company is confident it will become a main player in the industry.
Traction
Drone MVP has created a large network of quality pilots, cinematographers, editors, and innovators who want to work in the drone industry. The company currently has very little costs as it most utilizes resources provided by the University of Southern California. In its first year, the company's revenue share exceeded 50 percent on almost every transaction. Drone MVP gained traction by completing independent jobs and securing larger deals with Sotheby's John Aaroe Group. An influential board of advisers--including actor Sylvester Stallone of Rogue Marble Productions, Steve Harris of Electric Gaming, and photographer Travis Geske of the Los Angeles Times--helps Drone MVP target industries the company wants to break into. Its content has been featured on Truila, Zillow, and Redfin. The company is currently in talks with indie filmmakers.
Note: All data as of 1/31/17
Fair Harbor
Men's swimswear made from recycled plastic bottles
The Pitch
Fair Harbor aims to help eliminate ocean pollution with its products. Focusing on mens' swimswear, the company makes each swimtrunk with 11 recycled bottles to ensure that less plastic ends up in the oceans. Inspired by the small town of Fair Harbor on New York's Fire Island, the brother and sister duo translated their love for the ocean into a tangible, environmentally friendly solution.
Traction
Within its first year of launch, Fair Harbor booked $24,000 in sales, with numbers more than quadrupling the following year. The company began with $20,000 in grant money from a Shark Tank-style event at Colgate University in 2015. Its Kickstarter campaign proved to be another success, with approximately $25,000 in preorders, which was 225 percent of the company's initial goal. Fair Harbor projects revenue of $250,000 in 2017, with a new spring line of boardshorts and swimtrunks to debut as well.
Note: All data as of 1/31/17
Find Your Ditto
A mobile platform for in-person peer support for those with chronic illnesses
The Pitch
Over half of American adults live with chronic illnesses, amounting to 120 million individuals. Find Your Ditto is the first mobile platform that connects individuals living with the same chronic illnesses. In early 2016, the company validated the need for Find Your Ditto through a low-tech, on-campus pilot at the University of Michigan. Within just a few weeks, over 100 students signed up across 40 different illnesses. Sixty-three percent of them reported an increase in emotional support after their first Find Your Ditto experience. The company aims to create a world where no individual living with chronic illness has to ever feel alone.
Traction
Find Your Ditto currently partners with three large universities and has a strong ongoing relationship with Novo Nordisk, a Danish multinational pharmaceutical company. As of March 2017, the team is undergoing discussions for its seed round of funding with multiple potential investor entities. The company's CEO, Brianna Wolin, is a chronic illness patient herself, and recently received the International Patient Innovation Award from Lyfebulb and Novo Nordisk for starting Find Your Ditto. Through grants and competitions, the company has secured $20,000 in funding. Additionally, Find Your Ditto has taken top prizes in the Detroit MedHealth Summit and the Michigan Business Challenge Social Impact Track in 2017.
Note: All data as of 1/31/17