Current and former UW-Madison students-turned-entrepreneurs spoke of the ups and downs of turning passions into professions at a crowded forum in Memorial Union Wednesday evening.
The Wiscontrepreneurship Panel, an event hosted by the UW-Madison Department of Corporate Relations, featured founders of ExchangeHut, Sconnie Nation, TurboTap, Prep Cosmetics and the co-creaters of ""Chad Vader.""
Kris Dressler, co-founder of TurboTap, said the idea for his rapid-dispense beer tap came from Matt Younkle, a UW-Madison 1997 graduate, after waiting in lines at the Memorial Union Terrace.
""[Younkle] was sick of standing in line, so he came to me and said ‘I've got this idea,'"" Dressler said.
After countless prototypes, a salesman convinced companies at Wrigley Field in Chicago to test TurboTap at beer stands for free.
""We set records at the bleachers for the number of beers sold at Wrigley Field,"" Dressler said.
Troy Vosseller and Ben Feichtner, co-founders of Sconnie Nation, said they had numerous ideas—including online dating—before settling on their non-traditional Wisconsin apparel.
""We even considered going out to gas stations and bringing [gas] back to fill up mopeds,"" Vosseller said.
Vosseller and Feichtner started Sconnie Nation with the intent to create a movement to take pride in Wisconsin, and have since expanded their business with custom screen-printing apparel for student organizations and various university departments.
The panelists emphasized passion and innovation as the keys to entrepreneurial success.
""There is [only] one person up here who was actually in the business school,"" said Nathan Lustig, co-owner of ExchangeHut, of the panelists.
Vosseller and Prep founder Lauren Frank also stressed the need to take business risks to succeed.
""You have four years—you know you're going to class the next day,"" Vosseller said. ""Start early, take those risks early, and the end product is just that much greater.""
The discussion panel was held in observance of EntrepreneurshipWeek USA, presented by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, The New York Times and Inc, an entrepreneur website and magazine.
""UW-Madison received a $5 million grant from the Kauffman Foundation to promote entrepreneurship on campus and ultimately around the state,"" said Charles Hoslet, UW-Madison Department of Corporate Relations Managing Director.
The grant, which was rewarded in December 2006, kicked off the Wiscontrepreneurship Initiative at UW-Madison and aims to encourage students to venture as entrepreneurs.
""It's not just about starting a business,"" Hoslet said. ""It's about being creative and thinking outside the box.""
