Jordan Evans ’14, Founder of Buoy expands to The University of Michigan

Jordan Evans ’14, Founder of Buoy expands to The University of Michigan

Have you subscribed to the Buoy Brown newsletter? Buoy Inspirations LLC is a social impact company that was started by Jordan Evans ’14 as a first year at Brown.

“In December of 2010 my world almost collapsed. It was the winter break of my freshman year at Brown University and I found out I FAILED Principles of Economics…

Never in my life had I experienced that much stress, anxiety, and depression. Fortunately, I had my peers and teammates who picked me up with motivational and encouraging words that gave me the confidence that I could make it…and I DID!

After reflecting on my experience I wanted to create an authentic resource that would enable Brown University students to inspire, motivate, and encourage one another on a regular basis. Today that resource is an authentic, fun, and encouraging monthly email newsletter with over 900 Brown University student subscribers!

The mission of Buoy is to enable diverse student communities across the country to inspire one another through authentic student-centered testimonials.”

Jordan has interviewed and featured over 75 Brown students and most recently launched a Buoy network at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry partnering with their Diversity & Inclusion Office.

Jordan loves connecting with inspired Brown students interested in entrepreneurship so please don’t hesitate to reach out to him at jordan_evans@alumni.brown.edu. He has been actively involved with the Nelson Center most recently participating in focus groups for the Center’s Diversity & Inclusion Action Plan. #staybuoyed

Patrick Brown, a young entrepreneur making a difference in communities with Surv (formerly Rent Sons)

Patrick Brown, a young entrepreneur making a difference in communities with Surv (formerly Rent Sons)

After Patrick’s first year at the University of Rhode Island (URI), he was struggling to find a way to support himself through college. He started doing odd jobs around the area but it still wasn’t enough. This lead to the creation of his first company, Aqua.

Aqua created water shows and special effects for concerts across the country. Patrick saw quick success with Aqua. During his senior year at URI, he “interned” for himself and went on tour with one of the biggest DJ’s in the U.S.

Aqua continued to see huge success but the concert lifestyle quickly grew old. It didn’t bring the fulfillment that Patrick was searching for in his life, so he quit. He left his own company in search of a more well-rounded lifestyle.

He started thinking about how to live a full life. As he searched, he realized that he found meaning in community. That is when he had the idea for Surv.

Surv

Surv is comprised of diverse, multi-talented young adults with a passion for making a positive impact in other people’s lives. The platform connects “neighbors” to “sons or daughters”. Neighbors can pay “sons or daughters” to do odd jobs such as landscaping, painting, shoveling, etc.

Surv officially launched in May 2017 and they now have 70 sons and daughters in RI & Boston, with 1,600 neighbors currently on the platform. The venture is fully self-funded and is growing at 4X rate.

“We have kids growing up who are so attached to their phones that they have a hard time navigating life. We are passionate about teaching people that life is meant for thriving, not just surviving.”

Surv is focusing on growing the upcoming youth and helping connect communities.

Advice from Patrick

“Your biggest dreams are just a handshake away.”

Go to the top of a mountain with nothing and
dream your biggest dreams and just do that!

Roundtable Recap: Steph Korey ’09, Co-Founder and CEO of Away, Emphasizes the Importance of Vision and Customer Engagement in Building a Sustainable Brand

Roundtable Recap: Steph Korey ’09, Co-Founder and CEO of Away, Emphasizes the Importance of Vision and Customer Engagement in Building a Sustainable Brand

By Chuck Isgar ‘20.5

On October 30, 2018, The Nelson Center for Entrepreneurship and Brown EP hosted Steph Korey ‘09, co-founder and CEO of Away, for a roundtable discussion as part of the Roundtable Discussion Series moderated by Chuck Isgar ‘20.5.

Participants at the roundtable were excited to learn more about Away, as well as Korey’s prior experiences. After an hour of close discussion, students walked away with valuable insight into building a successful direct-to-consumer brand. Korey shared practical advice about the importance of gaining in-the-field entrepreneurial experience before launching a company.

Building a D2C brand

Participants were interested in Steph’s experience launching a direct-to-consumer (D2C) brand. Being a D2C brand has allowed Away to bring their various luggage products to consumers at a lower cost than if they used a retailer to sell their products. Cutting out the middleman is only one part of the advantage of being a D2C business. Very importantly, by being a D2C brand, Away owns their customer feedback and relationship loop. As a customer-conscientious brand, Away heavily uses input from customers to tailor future decisions.

While the D2C model has worked well for Away, Korey explained that running a D2C brand has its host of challenges, most notably the fact that many operations must be done in-house, such as the web platform for selling product, user experience design, and more.

More than a luggage company

Away is highly regarded for its effective marketing strategy. Korey attributes much of Away’s branding and marketing success to her Co-Founder, President, and Chief Brand Officer Jen Rubio.  

The principle behind Away’s branding is quite simple. According to Korey, they “treat people like people.” You’ll never see an Away product say ‘best in the world.’ Rather, their branding and advertising takes a focused effort to connect with people who care about experiences. Korey explained that their customers don’t have any one thing, such as age, in common. Instead, the Away brand focuses on tapping into traveler’s shared passion for the unknown.

Away is a travel brand, not merely a luggage company. This notion was clear from the inception of the company. Korey explained that in the summer of 2015, when they knew they wouldn’t have inventory until the spring, they made a book about travel that customers could purchase in conjunction with a gift card that would be redeemable for a carry-on once the product launched in the spring. It was an impactful strategy for several reasons: it helped bring in orders before the product had even launched, and most importantly, it set a precedent that Away was a brand focused on travel, not just luggage.

In discussing how Away raised its first venture round of fundraising, Korey explained that she and Rubio had a very carefully-planned strategy. In knowing that they would be meeting with many VC’s in a short period of time, coupled with the fact that the world of VC is a well-connected community, they arranged to meet with many VC’s in the course of one week. By doing so, Korey knew that they would create buzz around Away, and even ignite some “FOMO,” or ‘fear of missing out’, amongst venture capitalists.

It worked. And this past June, Away closed on a $50 million Series C round.

Setting yourself up for entrepreneurial success
Participants at the roundtable wanted Korey’s take on how they can set themselves up for entrepreneurial success. Korey emphasized her belief in the value of gaining experience at growing startups before launching your own company. Prior to launching Away with Jen Rubio, Korey was the Head of Supply Chain at Warby Parker as the company grew from 30 to 300 employees.

Following her experiences at Warby Parker, Korey consulted for Casper, of which two co-founders are Neil Parikh ’11 and Luke Sherwin ‘12. In these roles, Korey gained invaluable experience about building brands and companies, especially how to navigate the supply chain and waters of being a D2C business. Korey explained just how valuable every year of work at a startup is before launching your own business.

Participants were interested about the types of startups at which Korey recommended they look into interning or working. While Korey didn’t recommend a certain industry, she did emphasize that you should seek to join a company led by founders with a strong vision for the future. She explained that over time, you develop pattern recognition when it comes to figuring out whether or not founders have a vision for the company.

Cultivating a company culture

Korey has learned her fair share about trying to create a company culture from the inception of the business. Korey expressed that creating a clear set of values is very important. Everyone needs to be on the same page, and having established values will make this easier. Korey explained to the new and aspiring founders in the room that despite best intentions, drama within the company is inevitable, but you can learn how to minimize it.

Hiring based off “culture-fit?” Not at Away, according to Korey. Away places a strong emphasis on having people with various ways of thinking, and hiring based off “culture-fit” would create a homogenous way of thinking. Korey explained that they strive to hire employees whom are a “values fit, but culture add.”

What’s next for Away

The group was eager to learn about what Away has planned for the near future. Korey shared that we can expect to see the brand and community platform expand in bigger ways. Additionally, you can expect to see a continued rise in the media division of Away. The company recently forayed into the media space with their release of Here Magazine. The early success of this initiative indicates that media production could become an important component of Away’s efforts to create the ultimate travel brand.

Korey warned entrepreneurs in the room that not everything is going online, and that roughly 80% of purchases still happen in stores. To this end, Away has been recently developing select in-person retail locations, including a new store in London.

Korey is an advocate for having a vision and relying on your strengths to achieve your goals. When starting Away, Korey admits that she knew nothing about suitcases. She relied on her detailed knowledge of supply chain that she had gained in earlier roles. By having a vision and knowing what to ask for, she and Rubio were able to build the Away brand without very much product-specific knowledge. This serves as a valuable lesson to entrepreneurs who might be fearful to get going on their business due to a lack of product-specific knowledge.

The roundtable was a special opportunity for participants to learn about the facets of creating a lasting brand, as well as the importance of connecting with customers. Korey helped students to better understand the pro’s and con’s of being a D2C business. Participants left the roundtable full of practical knowledge that will be beneficial as they plan their summers and years ahead. Most importantly, they walked away inspired and excited about the many pathways that entrepreneurship can provide.

 

Isabella Giancarlo ‘14 Launches Queer Beauty Brand, Fluide

Isabella Giancarlo ‘14 Launches Queer Beauty Brand, Fluide

Environmental Studies concentrator and visual artist, Isabella Giancarlo ‘14, never imagined cosmetics would be her future, but in creating the first genderqueer beauty brand, Fluide, she may have found her calling. Giancarlo’s foray into beauty emerged as she was working as a brand strategist and designer in NYC, and saw an opportunity to “create something new and empowering for people of all gender expressions—to locate makeup outside of the paradigm of cis-female beauty opens up the potential for makeup to be an empowering form of self-expression for all people, rather than a representation of all the ways you don’t measure up.”

Launched in January 2018, Fluide is a collection of colorful, cruelty-free makeup available online and through a growing list of U.S. retailers. Founded in Brooklyn, New York, with business partner, Laura Kraber, Giancarlo explains that Fluide was created with the belief that makeup is a tool of transformation and a powerful means of self-actualization. “From a personal place, I wanted to ensure that queer folks like me were both in front and behind the camera as much as possible. I knew that a younger me was dying to see queer beauty represented by queer people and I know the process of coming into my queer identity would have been a lot easier had I had more gender-expansive role models, says Giancarlo.

Fluide has been well-received by the media and covered by outlets from Teen Vogue to Buzzfeed to Fast Company and is looking forward to increased distribution and continuing to make the world a little bit sparkly-er in 2019. 

 

More About Fluide:

A mission-driven startup, Fluide donates five percent of profits to organizations that support health + legal rights in the LGBTQ community. Fluide’s collection includes liquid lipstick, lip gloss, nail polish, eyeshadow, and glitter free from potentially harmful and/or endocrine-disrupting chemicals including phthalates, parabens, formaldehyde and triclosan. By naming lip and nail shades after queer spaces around the globe, Fluide seeks to pay tribute to the importance of safe spaces for the LGBTQ community. Get in touch with them here – info@fluide.us.

Manny Gorotiza ’19: a passion for ideas and learning new languages

Manny Gorotiza ’19: a passion for ideas and learning new languages

Nelson Center Peer Entrepreneur in Residence

Manny Gorotiza ’19: a passion for ideas and learning new languages

Before coming to Brown, Manny took a gap year in Brazil where he worked with a small social enterprise. During his first semester, he was a part of Brown’s Innovation Dojo a fast paced 8-week introduction to entrepreneurship. In his second semester, he became a mentor for the program. And in his third semester, he led it. He’s helped students get their ideas off the ground through mentorship and coaching and some have even gone on to win awards and funding, such as Cloud Agronomics and Akeso. Manny is concentrating in Geology-Physics/Mathematics and has worked as a researcher in Brown’s Rock Deformation Lab, studying high pressure cracking in micro-scale rock samples to create better models for predicting earthquakes. After winning a scholarship from the Taiwanese government to study Mandarin in Taipei, he took the fall semester off to pursue the opportunity. Most recently, Manny was the lead organizer for Startup@Brown, which took place this past September. Talk to him about applying for Nelson Center explore and expand grants, and more. Sign up for his office hours, here!