Double success at Student Pitch Competition

Congratulations to ākonga Solly Armstrong and Ashlee Drummy, who received awards at Startup Dunedin’s Student Pitch Competition for semester one.

The competition is open to Otago Polytechnic and University of Otago students already working on a business, not-for-profit, social enterprise, or side hustle.

Along with cash awards to help fund the projects, Startup Dunedin's Audacious programme provides a free series of workshops to guide enterprising students on the right path, teaching them entrepreneurial skills, providing mentors, and helping them get their awesome ideas off the ground.

Solly Armstrong – in his first year of a Bachelor of Design (Product) - won the Best Product Award for his Base Chalk Bucket, receiving $500 to assist with continuing development.

Solly's flexible, portable bag is designed for people doing bouldering (rock climbing), either outdoors or at an indoor climbing gym.

“It just keeps all the bits you need in one place, including a clip for your shoes and places for things like a bouldering brush and gym tag,” he says.

“The inside of the bag is designed to be filled with powder chalk, which helps give you grip when you’re climbing.”

In his pitch, Solly was keen to focus on his use of recycled materials, along with the selling point of being locally made.

“The main part of my bag is created from an old curtain from an op shop. And the lining was an old sleeping bag.”

Solly gave a few samples to friends and family to test, making some changes based on their feedback.

And he’s already got Dunedin’s Resistance Climbing Gym interested in selling the bags, after making a few more tweaks thanks to their input.

Award winners get feedback from experienced entrepreneurs and investors, tailored support to take the next steps, and the chance to connect with Dunedin’s startup community.

“It’s been really handy already and it’s given me extra enthusiasm. I’ve met heaps of people and got to attend the last Startup Dunedin Founders' breakfast which was a great event,” says Solly.

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Meanwhile, second year Bachelor of Culinary Arts student Ashlee Drummy won The Entrepreneur Award for her small home bakery and edible flower growing business, In The Flour Garden.

Ashlee says her focus is on “classic flavours and real ingredients, decorated with fresh edible flowers” and she works to provide vegan options.

“It was really nice to win The Entrepreneur Award,” says Ashlee.

“Especially as those are words I'm only just getting used to associating with myself!”

She says she’s very grateful for Startup Dunedin's continued support.

“They were the only business-related people I could chat to when I first had the idea to start my own business, and they're so supportive of student endeavours.

“I'm hoping the mentorship, alongside my Bachelor of Culinary Arts, will assist me to refine my business plan as I have so many ideas!”

Ashlee won $200 as part of her award, which has gone towards a commercial gazebo to help her expand into outdoor markets and events around Dunedin.

Senior Culinary Arts lecturer Tim Lynch says they're now working with Ashlee to help shape the rest of her second year, allowing her to focus more on her fledgling business while using it as a form of research for her culinary arts degree.

Ashlee's goal is for In The Flour Garden to be her full time job when she graduates from Otago Polytechnic.