Big business ideas go to high school
There are many reasons to look back on high school fondly, but for these students, they get to say they took care of business. That’s because they crafted an idea that won the grand prize at Pitch Night at LFHS. Their product? SimplyNav,“an easy-to-use, multi-use navigation app that provides students with step-by-step directions as well as resources to help students better navigate the high school experience”. The team consists of Brennan Riley, Molly Kelly, Tessa Poulton, and Josh Dueringer, all students at Lake Forest High School.
A lineage of innovation
They follow in the footsteps of 2021’s winners, Brush Bestie, a high-quality, four-in-one brush that makes makeup routines easier and more efficient. Here’s how seniors Ally Galiene, Colin Martens, Julia Grum, and Lauren Milanak describe it, “Brush Bestie attempts to make your life easier, one brush at a time.”
Both teams were given the opportunity to present their concepts for the chance to win resources to further develop their ideas into full-fledged products.
In Brush Bestie’s case, they were awarded $4,000 and a full year of support from LFHS Alliance (a mentorship from Fresh Start Business Incubator and access to LifeWorking’s coworking space throughout the year) to help their business thrive.
The SimplyNav team was awarded $5,775 to start-up their business and, hopefully, begin to make the lives of high school students easier, one day at a time.
Support from CIC and LifeWorking
The LFHS Alliance program is supported by a collaboration between the CIC and LifeWorking. They came together to offer students like the creators of Brush Bestie and SimplyNav real entrepreneurial opportunities, giving them the tools they needed to create and develop their own product or service.
Students in the program receive coaching and mentoring from real entrepreneurs and business experts from our community and beyond. The best part? The creators of SimplyNAV become an actual client of the CIC Business Incubator to help them as they continue to grow and improve their business.
So, what is SimplyNav?
The innovative app is currently in its infancy phase, but the team is hard at work bringing their vision to life. The easy-to-use GPS system takes the stress off new students trying to navigate through the halls of their high school.
The team also competed in the 2022 INCubatoredu National Pitch Competition on July 13th, representing their high school as one of the top 5 business incubator groups in the country! For more information on SimplyNav, and to follow their journey head over to their Instagram. You can also pre-order their app here!
Finding space for your future
If competitions like the ones happening at LFHS are any indication of what we can expect from our future generations, we couldn’t be more excited to hand over the reins. They embody the passion, drive, and determination that makes coworking spaces like LifeWorking so important. Our space is specifically designed for driven individuals from different backgrounds to come together to create something bigger than themselves.
To see how LifeWorking can help you develop and move your passion forward, visit https://www.mylifeworking.com/contact-us/ to claim your free LifeWorking day pass and experience productivity at its finest!
