The University of Delaware’s Lerner College of Business announced the winners of the annual Hen Hatch, the school’s premier business startup funding competition. After competing since early March by pitching entrepreneurial ideas to a panel of expert judges in order to receive recognition and funding, three teams in two tracks emerged as the winners of this year’s competition.
Teams were made up of students, alumni, faculty and staff, and pitches were evaluated by a panel of expert judges, including Neil Book, president and CEO, Jet Support Services; Brian Harvell, vice president, Product Engineering, SevOne; Jennie Horn, founder and chief creative officer, Second Base; John Petterson, senior vice president, Operations, Tiffany & Co.; Mike Phelan, venture partner, Osage Venture Partners; and Mark Parsells, executive chairmain and CEO, GDR Acquisitions Company.
After all pitches were completed, the judges awarded monetary prizes from a $50,000 prize pool to each of the teams.
Student teams recognized included:
- $5,100 to ShopTutors, an online tutor booking platform, led by Nathaniel Matherson, Matt Lenhard and Nathaniel Taylor;
- $4,900 to Udwell, a comprehensive website for off-campus housing, led by Yael Bloom and Tali Cohen; and
- $3,500 to Board to Death, a company that builds and designs customized snowboards, led by Chris Melillo and Krista Adams.
Awards given to alumni, faculty and staff included:
- $8,500 to PenguinAds, an out-of-home advertising media that uses the everyday commuter, led by Mac Nagaswami;
- $2,000 to Jaggery, an improved process for jaggery manufacturing, led by Asmita and Anand Atre; and
- $1,800 to Grasshopper Solutions, an eHarmony.com for your career, led by Liz Brenner, Nicole McCabe and Deb Stambaugh.
