BABSON STREET NEWS JULY 2020
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Babson Street’s Biggest Stars
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Keeping it in the Family
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It’s a WIN
Word on the Street
BABSON STREET TURNS ONE
Babson Street: a small idea imagined from some of the world’s most famous shopping streets (think Fifth Avenue and Rodeo Drive) has officially hit the one year mark! In that time our virtual marketplace, home to alumni owned and founded businesses, has grown from 26 to more than 200 featured businesses. A true representation of Entrepreneurship of All Kinds®, Babson Street features everything from breweries, fitness apps, and hotels, to consulting firms, nonprofits, and more. The marketplace is home to 70 women-led businesses, 51 family businesses, and provides more than 130 discounts to our alumni family. Offering a space for alumni to support alumni, our hearts are warmed when we hear stories of families booking vacations and staying at an alumni-owned hotel they found on Babson Street. The world may be large, but Babson can be found everywhere on Babson Street.
TAKE A STROLL
Looking for a new restaurant to try? Maybe you’re in need of a new fitness routine or pair of shoes?
No matter where you are in the world, you can shop and support fellow alumni and access special Babson discounts on Babson Street. | PAGE 1
JULY 2020
BABSON STREET’S BIGGEST STARS Over the past year there was a lot of window shopping on Babson Street. Here are some of the biggest stars.
Quvel
Katherine Clase ‘03 Jose Diaz ’01 Personalized shoes? Sign us up! Quvel uses an online design tool to create custom shoes, handmade from premium materials, delivered right to your door.
Kannoa
Italic
Philip Boultan ’97 Spruce up the outdoors with Kannoa, an outdoor furniture company that designs functional pieces that harmoniously integrate with the environment.
Jeremy Cai ’17 Derek Tu ’18 Have you ever wanted designer goods, but without the labels? Italic is a pioneering retailer providing luxury fashion, accessory, and home goods, without the label or a middleman.
Tufankjian Dealerships United States
Camus France
JD’s BBQ and Grill United States
Rooster Natural Booster Costa Rica
KEEPING IT IN THE FAMILY Family businesses are significant drivers of our global economy and entrepreneurial behavior. From Massachusetts to India, Costa Rica to Australia, Babson Street is home to more than 50 family businesses in a range of industries.
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JULY 2020
IT’S A WIN
Babson’s WIN Lab (Women Innovating Now) provides a community of women entrepreneurs and a hands-on, experiential, five month accelerator... and you can shop these businesses on Babson Street.
OPEN UP SHOP It’s easy to open up shop on Babson Street. There’s no need for long months of store construction and grand openings. All we ask is you share a few details with us through our submission form.
Artyfactos
Athens Direct Travel
Angela Sanchez MBA’11, WIN Lab ‘17
Greece
Artyfactos takes recycled natural materials, like orange peel, melon seed, and coffee beans, and repurposes them into unique jewelry, crafted by vulnerable women artisans in Latin America.
Jaipur Rugs India
Naumi Hotels
Australia, New Zealand, Singapore
Petwell Supply
Emily Lagasse MBA’15, WIN Lab Holistic remedies to support your pet’s best health. From food and treats, to toys and supplies, Petwell has it all.
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JULY 2020
WORD ON THE STREET Go behind the scenes of the businesses on Babson Street. Discover more about the alumni founder/owners like what drives them and their business, some fun facts, and how Babson helped pave the way.
Ebru Ipekci, Butterfly Chocolate
Sianna Elise ’18, Fande
Chia Pan ’14, TabeTomo
Q: What has been the biggest challenge in running your own business?
Q: What is your favorite Babson memory?
Q: How do you decompress during these stressful times?
A: The business you create becomes your baby, you want to take care of every aspect by yourself. It takes time to understand that you have to know how to delegate.
A: CWEL was a big part of my Babson experience and the source of many of my friendships. During my freshman year we had a bonding event in Reynolds where we painted and talked. At the end of the exercise, I had five abstract canvases that I hung up in my dorm room in North. The people I sat with making those paintings are still my friends. Those paintings filled my room with joy year after year. I brought them with me to Liberia, and they fill my apartment with the same warmth.
A: I recently took my first yoga/meditation class through Zoom. It was a great way to internalize problems, alleviate stress, and find inner peace.
Allison Grekin ’13, Moviing
Kamaal Jarrett MBA’12, Hillside Harvest
Q: Do you have any message to show your fellow alumni that we are all #OneBabson?
Q: What is your favorite part about working in the food industry?
A: I grew up in Paris and decided to leave for the U.S. for my undergraduate degree. Leaving Paris meant leaving my friends and family behind. Although I was anxious, the entire Babson Community embraced me. I was able to connect on a deep intellectual level with my teachers and met so many exciting people. I remember thinking to myself, “This isn’t just a school, this is a family.” So in that sense, I guess Babson really taught me the true meaning of “community”. I left school with a whole new perspective on the effect that humans can have on humans, which is why I started my own business.
A: There are a lot of reasons. Chief among those would have to be the connections that I have been able to make across local communities. I’ve met great folks, from customers to competitors, who have been integral to growth of Hillside Harvest and to my development as a business owner. I also love that my current product line allows me to be a purveyor of happiness and adventure. Hot sauce may be one of the few products where you’re guaranteed to get a smile and possibly a story even when someone is turning down your offer for a tasting.
Balaji Viswanathan MBA’14, Invento Robotics Q: What part about running or growing your business do you enjoy most? A: Building new product ideas and taking it from concept stage all the way to production. We now have built a full chain in product development and can rapidly iterate and bring new product designs locally. What kind of reaction would you get when you would tell people you planned to create intelligent robots? It ranges for incredulous (wow, that is awesome) to dismissive (robots won’t work in these situations) to anger (will robots take away jobs?).
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