Meet the Juniata College students that are turning business ideas into reality.

 

The 2019-20 Student Entrepreneurs

 

Syed Shirazi '20

Syed Storage

Being an international or out-of-state resident can make a student's move to and from with all their belongings difficult. Syed Shirazi realized this after struggling to find someone to help transport his items to a local storage facility. Moreover, upon picking up his belongings he found that some of his boxes were chewed by rodents and damaged by water. After seeing and hearing about similar problems experienced by other students, Syed test piloted his idea for a better storage rental service in the summer of 2018. He reserved a storage space in the College's Sill Business Incubator, and after filling the space in just under two weeks and generating a list of students on a waiting list, Syed knew he had hit a good idea.
The following semester, Syed launched Syed Storage. Tristan Moore who has an entrepreneurship P.O.E helped a lot throughout the moving process. This startup made moving and storing items for students easier by picking up their belongings and delivering them to a secure and temperature controlled location during the summer. When the students return for the school year, Syed Storage will deliver the items back to the dorm rooms a few days before they arrive.
Syed Storage plans to expand by creating a mobile app to simplify signing up for their services. They also plan to offer more storage options for students to choose from and provide their services to other colleges.

 


 

Morgan Instone '20 & Alex Flocken '20

M&A Cupping TherapyAlex and Morgan at LAS

Morgan Instone and Alex Flocken are excited to start a Cupping Therapy Service. Morgan is certified to perform Cupping Therapy which is a hands-on and holistic approach to providing therapeutic, non-invasive medicine.

 

Julia Newman '21, Sarah Borgardt '21, 

& Evelyn McCammon '21

Gambian Art Coalition

GAC purchasing goods from a local artisan 
By starting the Gambian Art Coalition (GAC), this team is launching an e-commerce store to help promote Gambian artist and sell their incredible work. 
At the Gambian Art Coalition, our goal is to promote sustainable development in The Gambia through collaborating with local artists and investing in their communities. We will be traveling to The Gambia for five weeks this summer to meet artists, learn more about the country, and purchase our initial inventory of artisan crafts, jewelry, and other goods to be sold online through our website.
We are working with Juniata College’s Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership (JCEL) and the Sill Business Incubator to develop the business model for the Gambian Art Coalition. In March, we earned a NextStep Fellowship – a program run through the JCEL. Through the NextStep Fellowship, we are provided with funds to run customer interviews and software to help us design our business plan. We are anticipating an August launch of the Gambian Art Coalition.

Dallas Huff '19 and Kyle Bargo '18

 Bizi MarketplaceBizi Marketplace at Juniata Coleege

Realizing the exorbitant cost students pay for textbooks each year, Kyle Bargo and Dallas Huff created the Bizi Marketplace mobile application. This app allows Juniata College students to buy, sell, and exchange products. By signing up with their school emails students will be able to see products listed by their classmates. Huff and Bargo also have reached out to local businesses to support the application with in-app promotions. They feel that the connection between the town and the students deeply benefits both parties involved. Bizi Marketplace will be coming to IOS and Android this Fall.

 

Issac Fisher '20

Dimensions
Dimensions at Juniata College

Isaac Fisher has created a 3D printing business called Dimensions where he creates various products for people throughout the Huntingdon community. Working with Dr. Johnathan Burns (Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Cultural Resource Institute) Isaac has been able to scan and print copies of artifacts from a local site called Sheep Rock Shelter. These copies enable anyone, from elementary school student to seasoned archaeologist, to examine these relics while keeping the originals safe. Check out the story local news station WJAC recently aired about their work. 
 
Isaac has also worked closely with AssureTech, another JCEL startup, to help develop and print their insulated EpiPen container. In addition to that, he has been busy creating and printing a functional prototype of a tool designed to aid first responders, making attachments for Dr. Richard Hark (Professor of Chemistry and Chair of the Chemistry Department) LISB gun which helps analyze metals and printing mounts for various cars.