LAUNCH® 2020 Cohort Spotlight: Celeste Maksim

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Get to know LAUNCH® participant, Celeste Maksim!

What exactly is your business?

Software to automate content mapping and updates. The platform facilitates the flow of information in the manufacturing process chain. It streamlines data from supply chain through manufacturing to regulatory review at government agencies and then to improving post-market reporting. The platform offers distinct advantages for currently available products- it provides administrative efficiency, reduces errors, is scalable, and is transferable to any regulated industry.

How did you come up with your business idea?

This idea organically developed from encountering pain points in multiple industries. I started my career in teaching and science research and then moved to regulatory affairs. In regulated industries, I learned that so much content is repetitive; machine learning could be applied to drive efficiency, reduce errors, and allow experts to put more focus on content and much less on pulling in correct information or formatting.

How did you find out about Aviatra?

I met Nancy through LinkedIn by searching local people that could help me develop a business plan. We’ve been friends since!

What is your inspiration?

I am inspired by a lot of things, and have been blessed with many supportive mentors and friends. I try to read/listen to a book a week which keeps me motivated and helps me continue thinking of new ideas. More specifically, I am inspired by creating products that will have lasting impact and improve people’s lives!

What has been your biggest accomplishment with your business so far?

Honestly, sticking with it! It would be easy to develop this idea but be satisfied with the status quo. The pursuit of creating a useful product is exciting!

What was the biggest challenge you faced when starting your business?

Refining the idea, it took 2 years to formulate how the software should and could work and we are still learning. Every conversation with a potential user has given me insight. Learning that the product has to serve the customer needs (and identifying who that is) has been essential. For example, I started developing a database that worked very differently than the current software, but through talking to potential customers, database designers, and through working with software developers, the idea was refined to the current platform. And it continues to be refined as we recognize need to adjust to account for unique aspects of each industry sector! Developing that mind-set was not natural for me at the beginning. Learning to think with the “Build-Measure-Learn” feedback loop has been transformative and is an area where I continue to grow!

Where do you hope to be in 5 years?

Versions of the software used in across many industry sectors, valued at multi-billion.

Any advice for future Aviatras?

Join when the time is right. I considered joining in 2019 but the time was not right. Then I got caught up on feeling like I was too late or should be “further along” in my business. Now, being a member of the class in 2020, I can see that waiting a year provided many advantages such as having a valuable perspective from refining the idea for another year and being in a better financial situation to fund the software development.

HER MILLION DOLLAR MY$TERY: EPISODE 010 – ALISHA GRIFFEY, DAINTREE CAPITAL

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On this podcast, we have been digging into the possible reasons that we just aren’t seeing the revenue results in women-owned businesses like we are for male-founded entities. Much of what we are learning is that Venture Capital is just not being invested into businesses founded by women and/or minorities. In fact, for women, it is only 3%!

Alisha Griffey, Founder, Daintree Capital, says “enough of this!” Let’s stop beating our heads against a glass ceiling and walls that might not even be the right room we are trying to enter! Bring on Daintree Capital and reinvent the industry of capital for women owned businesses. Leave it to a bright young woman to figure this out. Many women owned businesses need a capital infusion, but not the traditional VC funds that create a loss of control and/or revenue over time. Alisha has reinvented “debt funding” by offering non-collateralized loans to women owned businesses with a solid track record and at least $100,000 in revenue.

I love how Alisha Griffey calls the VC world the “Death Valley of Funding” for women. I couldn’t agree more. VC is sometimes exactly the answer, and I don’t discourage the right type of business at the right time to seek out Angel and VC funding, but many businesses founded by women just don’t fit the mold. And that is just fine but we need more options like Daintree Capital to provide fertile money ground for women and minorities in ALL industries. Listen in to this episode to hear how Alisha developed this concept and attacks the “3% issue” head on!

Listen to the podcast here.

LAUNCH® 2020 Cohort Spotlight: Margo Moskin

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Get to know LAUNCH® participant, Margo Moskin of SoMi!

What exactly is your business?

SoMi is an adventurous product development company revolutionizing solutions for active and working parents.

How did you come up with your business idea?

With the birth of my second child, I noticed that being a full-time parent and a full-time employee/business owner/active member of the community required a lot of juggling. Tools available on the market are limiting to satisfy today’s modern parent needs. Because I could not find the solutions I needed, I decided to create them!

How did you find out about Aviatra?

Through Cincinnati’s amazing entrepreneurship network.

What is your inspiration?

Every active mom and/or dad obsessed with the well-being of their children and pursuing their passions at the same time; my children.

What has been your biggest accomplishment with your business so far?

Successful Kickstarter that raised 30k and having our amazing early adopters actually using the second version of our first product MOX.

What was the most valuable thing you gained from your experience with Aviatra?

Framework for long-term planning and many wonderful connections in general–and specifically with amazing female entrepreneurs.

What was the biggest challenge you faced when starting your business?

Finding the right people with the correct set of skills to fill in the gaps between your own abilities and successful execution of company’s goals.

Where do you hope to be in 5 years?

Selling online and in stores everywhere!

Any advice for future Aviatras?

Take advantage and spend some time with every task the program suggests. Stay connected with the individuals you’ve met on your entrepreneurship journey by sending out regular company update emails (business update, product update, highlights/lowlights, help wanted, thank yous) – you never know who may have another connection, valuable information, or advice for something you are going through.

 

2020 LAUNCH® Cohort

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We’re so excited to announce our 2020 LAUNCH cohort!

1. Keri Kilroy – Donna’s Gourmet Cookies

Keri Kilroy is the Chief Cookie Officer at Donna’s Gourmet Cookies based in Cincinnati, OH. She’s the leader of an amazing team of women who get to create a great culinary experience by making the best cookies, brownies, and bars. I guess you could say she’s living the dream!

2. Margo Moskin – SoMi

Margo Moksin has over a decade of experience in business, finance, law, and a keen understanding of a modern parent’s needs. She gained her business and finance experience while working in the investment banking field and with the PwC’s international tax planning group, assisting large corporations with their domestic and overseas tax strategies. Margo is an attorney licensed in the State of Ohio, a fierce inventor, an author and a mother of two.

3. Megan McClendon – One Sweet Box

At One Sweet Box, we adore celebrations.  And yeah, we’re complete freaks about the details. But all that crazy makes for some badass happy. So we wrap it up and share it. One Sweet Box at a time.

4. Bailey Bryant – Health Match 360

Bailey Bryant is a licensed clinical psychologist a serial entrepreneur. I love creating new ways to help people become the best versions of themselves.

5. Heather Couch – Couch Family BBQ, Catering, and Desserts

Heather Couch is a School Counselor in Cincinnati, Ohio. She received her MA in counseling from Xavier University and BA in music education from Mount St. Joseph University. She completed her teaching assignments in schools across the city in diverse settings. Heather has published a book through Routledge Publishing for first year school counselors.

6. Celeste Maskim – Software Developer

Celeste Maksim has over a decade of experience in regulated industries including pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and in vitro diagnostics. Her broad spectrum of experience enables her to identify key processes then design and implement strategies to improve workflows and address compliance issues. She is a true innovator and committed to creating useful products that improve people’s lives and transform regulated industries.

 

 

LAUNCH® 2020 Cohort Spotlight: Heather Couch

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Get to know LAUNCH® participant, Heather Couch of Couch Family Cuisine!

What exactly is your business?

Couch Family Cuisine is a Cincinnati-based, family-owned catering and mobile food business operated out of Findlay Kitchen. Founded in 2018, this father-daughter duo provides timeless recipes that have been passed down for generations.

How did you come up with your business idea?

Rick Couch, my dad and co-owner, has always dreamed of having a restaurant and loves to cook. He initially started out with the idea as a food truck and I helped with getting the getting the business set. The food truck idea evolved into catering and we hope to provide carry out. My dad wanted to be in a small business that he could share with the family. Cooking has always been a family initiative. He used to cook with my great grandma growing up and I used to sit on her lap to knead dough as a toddler. My grandma, aunts, and dad always let me help in the kitchen and I loved to bake.

How did you find out about Aviatra?

I found out about Aviatra through Nancy Aichholz when I was running for Cincinnati School Board in 2019.

What is your inspiration?

My great grandma and grandma. Their recipes have been loved by all in the family and we like to put our own twist on them.

What has been your biggest accomplishment with your business so far?

I believe our biggest accomplishment has been to get accepted into Aviatra. We have been able survive the past two years by doing small events and being at Findlay Market. We’ve been able to get our product to people and the positive responses we’ve received.

What was the biggest challenge you faced when starting your business?

The biggest challenge has been understanding how to run a business and getting it off the ground.

Where do you hope to be in 5 years?

We hope to have our own brick and mortar to work out of.

 

Her Million Dollar My$tery: Episode 009 – Allison Chaney, Bootcamp Digital & Bare Knuckle Marketing

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Allison Chaney all but invented “SEO.” She was perfecting SEO for businesses before SEO was even a “thing!”  She spent 12 years doing marketing, digital, and SEO for a company she worked for when she decided to go out on her own and freelance. As a single mom, this was a huge leap of faith, but she took her own advice and ‘Stood Up, Stood Out, and Stood her Ground.” That moxie paid off as she left to do her own thing. Social media was emerging, and she knew how to create fully-integrated strategies long before businesses knew how to use social media to market their brand and sell their products.

Talking to Allison, on the podcast or in everyday life, is a full-energy experience! Positivity and “I can do this” emanates from her every pore! This energy drove her to build her business, with the help of Aviatra (when we were Bad Girl Ventures), take the advice of trusted mentors, and eventually exit her Bare Knuckle Marketing business for a tidy sum and freedom do what she really loves.

Listen in on how this “Bad Girl” created an industry around her skill set and teaches others to do the same!

Listen to the podcast here.

 

 

LAUNCH® 2020 Cohort Spotlight: Bailey Bryant

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Get to know LAUNCH® participant, Bailey Bryant of Health Match 360!

What exactly is your business?

Health Match 360 is a therapist matching platform that connects clients with mental health therapists using a proprietary matching algorithm. We streamline access to quality mental healthcare.

How did you come up with your business idea?

Finding a therapist is absurdly difficult and time-consuming. I had my own difficulty finding a therapist even though I’m in the field and understand the system. I believe in the value of therapy and know from personal experience that the quality of the fit between client and therapist is crucial. I’ve had some wonderful therapists who helped me through pivotal moments in my life, and I had a not-so-great therapist that made my life more difficult. As a psychologist myself, I hear these sentiments echoed by patients, friends, and colleagues. The problem was well known in my field, yet the solution was nonexistent. The idea to create a matching platform hit me like a bolt of lightning while I was on a walk one day, and within the week, I got to work. The rest is history!

How did you find out about Aviatra?

I first heard of Aviatra at StartupCincy in 2019, and the idea of joining an accelerator stayed rolling around in my mind. Recently a colleague recommended I apply for LAUNCH, which was the final push I needed, and I’m so glad I followed her advice.

What is your inspiration?

Helping people become the best versions of themselves. Trauma, toxic messages, unsupportive relationships and systems keep far too many people from reaching close to their potential. My personal mission is to help as many people as possible shed the layers that bog us down and replace them with that which builds us up. Psychotherapy is an effective vehicle to achieve just that.

What has been your biggest accomplishment with your business so far?

Getting our MVP up and running! The full version of our matching platform launched on March 3, 2020, and that day will forever stick in my mind.

What was the most valuable thing you gained from your experience with Aviatra?

Structure, guidance, and support. Being an entrepreneur can feel lonely, and figuring out where to focus my time and energy can be a struggle. There are never-ending things to do and learn, so to have a community in my corner and facing similar problems puts wind in my sails.

What was the biggest challenge you faced when starting your business?

Finding a technical team that could help me turn my vision into a reality. My first shot at hiring a software developer was a bust in a big way; but it was also an important learning experience for me. I have since brought on board a technical co-founder, Jeremiah Harlan, who is fantastic at what he does, and together we have been able to turn my concept into a functioning product.

Where do you hope to be in 5 years?

Making my exit from Health Match 360 and creating my next business that will help people become their best selves.

Any advice for future Aviatras?

Seek community! The entrepreneurial ride will be one heck of a roller coaster, and it’s more fun to ride it with others.

You can learn more about Health Match 360 by visiting https://www.healthmatch360.com/.