Creativity and dedication have paid off for Brock LINC\u2019s latest Navigate pitch competition winners.<\/p>\n
Navigate program<\/a> participants Muskaan Waraich and Abhilesh Gaikwad (BBE \u201922) took home top honours for their startup business pitches, along with $2,500 each to help bring their entrepreneurial goals to life.<\/p>\n The competition, which took place April 2, wrapped up the 11-week Navigate program, which guides participants like Waraich and Gaikwad through a hands-on process designed to explore and develop early-stage business ideas.<\/p>\n Waraich, a fourth-year student with a double major in Political Science and Women and Gender Studies, is the founder of EmpowerUp.<\/p>\n The digital platform aims to provide personalized menstrual product recommendations, all expertly reviewed by menstrual health experts, as well as educational resources, chat room support, period tracking capabilities and menstrual product identification specific to geographical areas. EmpowerUp includes a personalized subscription model to provide one-on-one expert consultation and a personalized product delivery system.<\/p>\n Waraich said she\u2019s grateful for the support of her Navigate mentor, Innovate Niagara Client Advisor Katie Poissant-Paul, and her friends and family.<\/p>\n \u201cThis opportunity means so much to me, and I\u2019m excited to use the prize to continue developing the app over the summer,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s a meaningful step forward in advancing menstrual equity, and it\u2019s given me even more motivation to pursue my future business goals with purpose and passion.\u201d<\/p>\n Waraich plans to spend the $2,500 award on app development and design, marketing and outreach, partnerships and collaborations with EmpowerUp, and other operational expenses.<\/p>\n Gaikwad, a Brock Business Economics graduate, said participating in Navigate was a great experience, and he is looking forward to taking the next steps in building his business, Chain Financial.<\/p>\n The startup aims to offer a flexible financing solution for small- to medium-sized enterprises that offer \u201cbuy now, pay later\u201d purchasing options.<\/p>\n \u201cNavigate\u00a0has been a great help to validate my hypothesis for my business. It gave me a guided approach\u00a0to take one step\u00a0at a time and focus on what’s important. The mentorship and guidance received has been extraordinary,\u201d he said. \u201cIt also helped my business build trust with my customers by being part of a recognized\u00a0university like Brock.\u201d<\/p>\n