Welcome to another episode of The ShermCast! This week, Sam and Izzy virtually sit down with Rachel Domb and Aniyah Smith, the brains behind Rooted Living and Push Beauty and HSC's 1st and 2nd place winners! We discuss all things HSC and their ventures from experience in the pitch challenge, challenges they've been facing with the pandemic, and more so tune in for another great episode!
Rooted Living:
Instagram: @rootedliving / @rootedlivingeats
Website: www.rootedliving.org
Pitch in: https://ifundwomen.com/projects/rooted-living
Push Beauty:
Instagram: @push.beauty, @aniyah.s
Website: www.aniyahsmith.com
Available transcript:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ie5n2Yf9lMs256Yp3yLucWE1GQ_Vqlpqk5Z1MdlDjjA/edit
Welcome to another episode of The ShermCast! This week, Sam and Izzy virtually sit down with Rachel Domb and Aniyah Smith, the brains behind Rooted Living and Push Beauty and HSC's 1st and 2nd place winners! We discuss all things HSC and their ventures from experience in the pitch challenge, challenges they've been facing with the pandemic, and more so tune in for another great episode!
Rooted Living:
Instagram: @rootedliving / @rootedlivingeats
Website: www.rootedliving.org
Pitch in: https://ifundwomen.com/projects/rooted-living
Push Beauty:
Instagram: @push.beauty, @aniyah.s
Website: www.aniyahsmith.com
Available transcript:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ie5n2Yf9lMs256Yp3yLucWE1GQ_Vqlpqk5Z1MdlDjjA/edit
Episode 2 “A Look into Husky Startup Challenge 2020” Published 2/19/21
Izzy: Welcome back to another episode of the ShermCast. If you're new to the ShermCast, go ahead and listen back to our first episode, which was an introduction to entrepreneurship. But in today's episode, we focused on an entrepreneur's challenge that takes place right here on Northeastern's campus. We got the opportunity to talk to the first and second place winners of the Husky startup challenge.
We talked about why they entered, the details of preparing for the challenge and the effects of the pandemic on that process. So keep listening if you want to hear more about our two guests and Husky startup.
Sam: Hi, everyone. We're back with another episode of the ShermCast. If you're new to the ShermCast, we're Northeastern's very own podcast from the Sherman Center. I'm Sam.
I: and I'm Izzy.
S: And today we're not alone on the ShermCast.
I: That's right today we have two very special guests. First and second place winners of the Husky startup challenge. And actually, why don't I let them introduce themselves?
Aniyah: My name is Aniyah, I'm from Queens, New York. I am currently a first-year MBA student set to graduate in 2022 taking classes at Northeastern and I'm starting the co-op process hopefully in marketing branding in the CPG industry.
Rachel: Hi, my name is Rachel. I am a second-year psychology major and environmental studies minor. I was born in London but grew up in New Jersey. I'm in classes right now, but I'm starting co-op in the fall hopefully working for my venture.
S: Yeah, I'm actually also from New Jersey. But that's another side of it. Welcome to the ShermCast, you guys. Both of you, are actually our first guests for season four and we're really excited to get to talk to you guys today. We kinda have a bunch of questions and topics to get through, but I'm interested to hear what you guys have to say.
I: Yeah, we did this in the last episode, but we wanted to start a new thing this season where we ask each other what entrepreneurship means to us. So, you know, I'll start off with you guys. So what does entrepreneurship mean to you?
A: To me, entrepreneurship is the ability to find a space that you want to innovate and then bring your vision to life.
And it comes with a lot of trial and error, but in the end, you are building something that means a lot to you.
R: To me, I think entrepreneurship is being able to be both creative and logical. It's being willing and eager to learn. It's never feeling a hundred percent prepared because I think in order to grow, you kind of just have to throw yourself into things and learn as you go because if you didn't you'll think of a million reasons why not to.
And I think successful entrepreneurs are the ones that focus on the reasons why to do something.
S: Those are both really good answers and we wanted to have you both on the podcast today because I actually read an article, about both of you in the Northeastern News, about the Husky startup challenge and that's kind of how I learned what the challenge is and then how both of you ended up like being first and second place.
I: Yeah. I've been working with the Sherman center for, I mean, Almost three years now, as I'm finishing up my third year and I started the Sherman center my freshman year. So we've worked pretty closely with the Husky startup challenge.
And so I know a ton about it, but for those who don't know, could you guys maybe describe, what the Husky startup challenge is and you know, how do you enter, what do you guys do? All those fun details.
R: Yeah, I can give a little rundown about what it is. The Husky startup challenge is a semester-long set of workshops that teach you about some fundamentals of business, such as making a value proposition and go-to-market strategy, and so on.
And then the other huge part of it is learning how to create a pitch deck and successfully pitch your company. A group of around 12 to 15 people competes on demo day, which is in front of an audience of hundreds of people and then the top three ventures win cash prizes to fund their own endeavors.
I: Yeah, it seems like such a cool opportunity, honestly.
And I'm glad that Northeastern has that opportunity for people wanting to start their venture, which is really awesome. A little bit about rooted living and push beauty, and I'm actually the project lead for push beauty this semester for January. So it's really, really exciting.
And I'm glad I'm going to be able to kind of jump into that realm of entrepreneurship and we watched both of your pitches from demo day, but can you guys give us a quick elevator pitch about your companies and maybe the reason why you created your company and why you think, your company is important and like the impact.
A: Post beauty is a beauty brand focused on providing accessible beauty products to people with disabilities and people who just want more convenience in their daily routines and the products would hopefully be able to be opened and applied with one hand. And that's why I'm working with generate this semester with my amazing product lead Izzy to execute that idea.
R: That's awesome and Push Beauty's incredible. Rooted Living is a mission-driven eco-friendly plant-based snack company. We use compostable packaging and snacks that are free from any refined ingredients to allow consumers to snack without sacrifices.
S: Yeah, both of those companies, I was reading about it and I watched your demo day pitches too. And I was like, so interested because I haven't really heard many bigger companies, like whole foods, you know, like a makeup brand like makeup forever or something. They haven't really worked on the same stuff that you guys are working on. So I think it's really inspiring that both of your companies kind of help others when you guys kind of saw an opportunity or something that wasn't already out there or that wasn't up to your standards. and I actually went to your website, Aniyah and I read through some of your blog posts, and just like information you have up there and I read like the A-line zine, which was so cool. It was kind of like a magazine and I loved how you created it being a self-made female. It seems like you have a pretty solid following already and a company. What made you decide to enter into the Husky startup challenge?
A: It's kind of a funny story because I didn't fully know that it was a competition. I didn't like I knew there were prizes and I knew there was like something, but I didn't fully know the extent of what it was, but I knew that like I wanted to be involved and I knew I had this idea that I wanted to have the opportunity to flesh out. And I'd seen the workshop schedule I'd seen, I'd been to some of the entrepreneurship club meetings prior to them releasing applications.
And so I was like, you know what, I'm just going to take the leap. That leap has opened so many doors, but I was really excited to just be able to have access to those resources, that team and the entrepreneurship club executive board were amazing. The assistant director is amazing and they were super helpful in helping me really flesh out and define push beauty.
And then my mentor was amazing in helping me create that pitch deck, which is so solid. And I can't thank her enough for that.
I: Yeah. I feel like so many makeup companies out there, having used a ton, obviously don't focus on the quality of their products, but also like specifically the sustainability and its accessibility to its market.
But I think the sustainability in beauty is super important. Because there's so much that goes into it, like packaging and makeup housing and the mechanisms and the chemicals and et cetera. But that obviously feeds into our landfills and so many more makeup companies are coming to these sustainable practices, which is awesome.
But it's great, to be honest like personally to be working with a makeup company that has that goal, which is really great. And in terms of accessibility of products, I think a lot of us take that for granted. I know I've definitely like now that I'm doing a lot more research on it and actually leading a project on it, I know now that I put on makeup every day, I'm like, wow, I really do take this for granted.
But it's actually a really big part of inclusivity. and I know actually Selena Gomez recently launched her company Rare beauty and a lot of her products are designed for accessibility, which is really, really awesome. specifically people with lupus which I think is something that she is working through now, which is honestly really great.
And for someone like as high up of a status, like her to be able to kind of be more open and just be more truthful about all that stuff and to be able to make a brand that's able to, you know, comfortable with those people is really awesome to see and your company is so far ahead of other major companies that really lack in these censuses.
So it's really cool to see someone create a brand that has just gone so outside of the box and really push ahead of a lot of massive companies that we see every day.
A: Thank you. Thank you. Really appreciate it.
S: No, and I can't say that I've seen a lot of beauty companies focused on the sustainability of actual materials in the products rather than the quality of the makeup.
So it's interesting to hear about like Push Beauty's goals. And I was actually watching a video the other day where like a blind YouTuber. I think her name was like Molly Burke or something talked about the blind accessibility of beauty products. And it was interesting because as somebody , who has her sight, things like the texture of the packaging and the scent of the product, don't really, isn't something I ever really think about. so when she explained that she had to put little markers on her products, so she knows what is what or what color is something, that kind of just made me wonder, " should I be thinking about too?" so the idea of accessibility is completely overlooked, not just by beauty companies, but also consumers.
A: Yeah, for sure.
S: And Rachel, I know you're working on launching Rooted Living again this upcoming spring, but when I was watching your pitch from demo day, I also couldn't agree with you more when you were talking about like your frustration with plastic food packaging, because I'm also somebody that eats like plant-based.
So I know that so many snacks that I eat are packaged in plastic and I, it's kind of just frustrating because I want to buy them cause they're so good, but at the same time, it's not sustainable. And I know a lot of people are concerned about using things like plastic bags to grocery shops or just kind of the idea of things like reusable, tote bags and canvas bags.
But not many people have been thinking about the actual food packaging like you are. Um, but I'm excited to see what Rooted living does in the future. And again, I'm just curious as to why you also entered Rooted living into the startup challenge.
R: Yeah. So. I entered the Husky startup challenge. I also didn't really know what it was fully before entering.
I had gone through a program called We Build, the semester prior, my spring semester of 2020. And I developed the concept of rooted living there and was able to learn everything like market research, creating MVP, all the fundamentals. So after that, I went and I furthered my knowledge through IDEA. My initial intent with joining HSC was basically to kind of like go over all of the initial work that I had done.
So my first, which was basically my first draft of my business, my first value proposition, my first user research, like all of that, and then refine it through HSC. And what I gained from the whole experience was a lot more than I expected. And to be honest, I, yeah, I didn't even know demo day was a thing and I didn't know what it was going into HSC.
And the most valuable thing that I gained really was the ability to create a concise and impactful pitch. Um, and it takes, it takes a lot of work to really successfully pitch your company in such a short amount of time. You basically have to win people over and convince them that your business is a good business.
Um, that took so many months of research and just a matter of minutes, so it's definitely not easy. And that was a huge thing that I gained through the program. Um, but I definitely would recommend it to anybody thinking about it.
S: Yeah. I mean, it's so interesting that both of you were just entered without knowing it was kind of a competition and you guys ended up both being on top.
But I was also gonna say, yeah, just something similar where you guys, obviously, it seems like you did a lot of prototyping and research from the way that I watched your pitches but, did you guys have to work with anybody? I mean, I know Aniyah you said that you had like mentors and people from Generate, but I can't imagine how much work can go into launching your own venture like Rachel said. How long does that take it? Or what was the process of your prototype and just creating a business plan like that?
A: So I actually started my ideation back in February during my undergrad and we had to come up with a beauty product that no one had ever seen before. But the catch to the project was that the beauty industry is definitely based on differentiation and not innovation.
There's rarely anything that hasn't been seen before. So we had to come up with this product that hadn't been seen before, which was almost unheard of. I came up with this idea, but my professor didn't really love it for the project, so I let it go, and then I started doing the research on my own, on the side. I started collecting articles about accessibility and I'm looking into different influencers or YouTubers that had disabilities and just researching and staying in the space of understanding who this venture could serve and what it really is about. I had sketches, like a lot of sketches for a while. And so then I saw HSC and I was like, you know what, I'm going to put this idea through it, refine it. It took a lot of research. I was on Mintel, Statista, I was doing some customer surveys, interviews, trying to find out what really is the problem. My mentor, Elena, she helped me, my public speaking was not the best at the time. It was fine for maybe a class project. But to get your pitch down to three minutes after this, after months of research was not easy at all, and you had to cut out the ums, the so's, the likes so that you didn't waste a second, you know, just refining your pitch. She really helped me refine it and make the pitch so impactful so that I really got the story across. So it, I would say maybe eight months of research, it was going into this thing before it actually came to fruition at HSC. I was able to convey it in three minutes, which is not easy as Rachel said.
R: So I started working on Rooted living. Really I started working on it about a year ago, through We Build, which I had mentioned, but like Aniyah said, successful companies really start with passions and my passions for both health and sustainability go back all the way from like early high school when I really changed my diet and switched to eating a plant-based diet, which kind of led me to become really passionate about the environment. And so these were things that I already really cared about. And so when I was creating rooted living, those were always the core values. And then I had, since, since the past year I've done three soft launches where I've tested my product out in the market.
And I really did that, just like, through an Instagram launch where I just put the news out there, Instagram and so surprised to hear that I sold out within like an hour and really just like, get the word out there, hype it up as early as possible because through all of those soft launches, I was able to change the product, iterate it and you really need to do that to make sure it fits what consumers want.
And so I had lots of practice doing that and it also showed me that feasibly, I cannot be the one making the product when I launch it. I didn't realize just how much time and effort it creates to, or it takes to create so many packages of granola, which is the stack that I'm watching with. But I mean, for weeks and weeks, even just for one launch date, I was up until like three or four in the morning, baking, my apartment always smelled like granola.
I was packing things up writing little notes, and it's just like really, it's a tough thing to do all by yourself. But it was really important to do all of those things and now I know that I can't be the one that's actually creating it. But yeah, it's been about just over a year in the making, which I also think is really important that you take your time in creating a business.
I: I think looking from like an engineering sense, this all looks so overwhelming. And I too, like my public speaking can definitely use some work. So I know I wouldn't be in any capacity to be able to do anything like that now, but you guys obviously worked really, really hard and put in the hours and it obviously paid off.
So how did you guys stay so motivated and determined throughout this whole process? You know, especially with the pandemic happening.
A: So with the pandemic happening, I did have a little bit of, a scare. I was like, is anyone even wearing makeup anymore? Like, are people really doing this anymore? I don't know. And so, but I mean, the research is there that they're definitely wearing makeup.
I don't think people are going to stop wearing makeup, but I was like, is this even relevant? There's so many other things going on. There's a pandemic, I just didn't feel the confidence because of the circumstances. But I just stayed motivated because I felt if I give up now, what was the point of all the work that I had done and
I didn't want to give up because I've always wanted to start a brand and I felt there was no reason to not do it. And the fears come with starting a brand I think for anyone you don't know if it's going to be successful, you don't know. You can do all the research and then the trends change and so my motivation really came from me, not wanting to disappoint myself and give up on my dreams, but also not disappoint the people that had supported me so far, like my mom helping me with the prototype. My mom actually basically built the prototype. She was helping me with the materials and was like, this is how it should open and this is what we can do to put it here. She came up to Boston to help me. I can not thank her enough for that, so shout out to her. But I think like disappointing, those people really helped me stay motivated, cause I didn't want to have to let them down and I didn't wanna let myself down.
R: To be completely honest. As incredible as this whole process has been, entrepreneurship is far from easy, especially emotionally.
I'm sure Aniyah can attest to this, but we spend nights, weekends, really every spare moment working and thinking about this business and there are so many unexpected quote-unquote failures though. I don't actually think you ever fail in business because failure is just an essential part to learning and growing.
But so many huge decisions that I've had to make all by myself, like how to choose a compostable packaging manufacturer and how I'm going to find the money to invest $8,000 in that, it's tough. But I've been working on Rooted Living like I mentioned for almost a year now and as I said, I really don't want to rush this process, as hard as it is and I don't think anyone really should. Even the resilience of staying and working with something for so long is a testament to the success of the business and, you know, good companies aren't built in a day. It takes time and it takes self-growth. And I'm just really allowing this whole process of building a business to be also a process of building myself and growing my own knowledge and really making sure that as hard as it is, I'm taking my time and I'm doing things well.
S: Yeah, I think that, like you said, they're kind of like pros and cons of being an entrepreneur. And obviously like emotionally, you're just drained from doing this entire process for what, like pretty much a year now, or probably over a year. And that's kind of what we talked about. We talked about in the last episode about like successful entrepreneurs and how there are, there are good things and bad things, you know, you can be really successful and create a company and create a product that you're really proud of and you're happy with. But at the same time, there are detriments to that where you said emotionally, and also like it's so much work that you have to do. Whether it's research, whether it's drawing, prototyping, you know, so many things that go into it, that people just don't think about.
R: Totally and also entrepreneurship isn't something that you really ever do by yourself. As long as you have a community of people, always inspiring you and encouraging you, and empowering you, then you never really feel alone.
I: Yeah, that's actually a great transition into what our next question is, but it's honestly such a cool experience to me. We'll see that you guys went through this challenge and kind of came out on top. And obviously, and I'm sure you did, but I hope you guys had an awesome, you know, really strong support system behind you, whether that's friends, family, you know, professors and people to able to try things on, but also resources and just like, you know, connections that you've made and different organizations you work with. Are there like specific people? I know Aniyah mentioned her mom, but are their specific resources, research clubs, organizations, or just people in your life that you really found are really supportive and were a big reason why you came out successful on the other end.
R: I attribute everything to WISE, which is the women's interdisciplinary society of entrepreneurship. For anybody who knows me, I talk about wise all the time, but it's because it's the reason that I took my first step into entrepreneurship, especially being a psychology major, it's really the community that makes me feel the most supported and empowered and recognized for everything that I do.
And the people that are involved in WISE are very special kinds of people. And they've not only helped me like within business, but they've helped make me who I am today. They've shown me what type of mentor leader and woman I want to be. And the other orgs that have helped me get to where I am today are Scout, who did my full brand and packaging design as well as photo and video work.
And I'm actually still working with some of the people who were on my team last semester. And I also worked with IDEA, I'm now go stage a venture in IDEA, and they've really helped for the more rigorous mentorship and pushing me to learn and grow.
A: So for me, aside from my mom, it was definitely my peers, both in the MBA program and from undergrad, I graduated with my bachelor's in cosmetics and fragrance marketing, so my peers were super excited when I told them I would be starting a duty venture and I'm coming to pitch it and Seeing them in the room during the tabling and while I was pitching was just so amazing for me.
And that's really why I had so much confidence during my pitch, I'm seeing my family there. As far as clubs and organizations, I cannot think every time someone asks me, like, how did you learn about business? I'm like, well, yeah, I'm a business major, but if you want a crash course, go through e club.
It's one of the most amazing and reliable clubs. And also generate. And my team has been great so far, Izzy has been a great project lead in helping me get this off the ground. And I cannot thank them enough for that.
I: Yeah, it's been really awesome to take you on as a client.
I know when we were doing client interviews and I joined in on a call and like heard everything about it, I was super excited about your company. So we got to pick the clients that we wanted, so I had a basically I was like, I want this project so I had to fight the other three PLs for it which ended up being great. We all love her projects, but I am super excited, but you know, one of the things that the pandemic is, I wish that there was, you know, the communication was a little bit different. In terms of being able to see you guys presenting in the Husky Startup Challenge but also like right now, work with Aniyah with Generate, to be able to meet with her in person and have her meet the team in person and also have opportunities where she can come into the maker-space and see our engineers and, you know, start to work on prototypes. Through this whole thing, did you guys ever think, you'd get, as far as you did in Husky startup challenge, even like in your venture like you can have an idea, but sometimes you may not think how far it could go or people have these wild dreams about their companies, but sometimes they, you know, turn out like exponentially more successful or, you know, the complete opposite of that?
A: I didn't know what to expect, to be honest. Especially like with HSC specifically, I wasn't sure when I did the audition, I was nervous. I was sweating and then I got the email: it's like, okay, you got in and then I was like, okay, so I might not win, but at least I get to tell everyone my ideas, and I could probably move forward.
And then I got second place and I was like, Okay. Now, this is like, this is real. Like, I remember I was sweating. I had a cup of water in my hand when they were announcing it. My hand was like shaking and I couldn't even set the glass down properly. I was so nervous. I didn't set expectations for myself so I can, I guess I can say I exceeded what I might've thought I would have done.
But it's definitely gone past what I thought, like getting into IDEA, working with g=Generate things like that. I didn't really even think of when I first entered HSC and now that they're happening, it's just so amazing for me.
R: For me, did I ever think I would get this far?
Honestly, yes, but I attribute a lot of that to learning how to understand my own power and make things happen. And that's something that I really felt like I understood, and was taught a lot last year through the wise community. And I really just like had a vision, I wanted to start this eco-friendly snack company like I didn't see anyone else doing it and I have all these amazing resources around me and I had that big goal of doing it. And every day I'm getting a little bit closer to that. So I think it's really important to understand, like how powerful you are individually. Because I think when people don't realize and have limiting beliefs about how much they can do on an individual level, then they never do it. but we're all completely capable of taking those steps to achieving our dreams.
I: Yeah. That's definitely something that I think everyone kind of deals with on a daily basis, whether that's starting a venture, even just like personally, going through your own battles, but kind of a little bit based off that kind of, or like the conversation we just had, but looking into the future.
So what are your guys' future plans look like for your ventures? What challenges are you excited to take on, obstacles? Maybe you see, you know, coming up in your future plans, post-pandemic, you know, when all this, hopefully, clears up, anything. What are you excited about for the future of your guys' ventures?
A: Personally I'm excited to well post-pandemic specifically, I'm very excited to get back on the ground with like consumers and being able to be face to face with them and testing those products. And I'm really, really excited to work with suppliers to get those products into the packaging and really just create that full round experience.
I think that I've always had a dream of innovating the beauty space and making it more diverse, more inclusive, and I'm doing it in a way that I am so proud of. I can't wait for the future. I can't wait for what it brings me, but I'm also so open to anything that I don't expect. And I think that's a part of being, that's a part of being an entrepreneur.
You have to be open to the challenge, you have to be open to the things that come and you didn't even think they would be there. And you're like, okay, that can work. Or we have to put it in or we have to make it, you have to get over this. And I think those things are so important. So keeping an open mind and looking forward to the future is really just a part of being an entrepreneur I think.
R: For me, after I got the $2,500 from HSC, I used that actually to hire three designers that were on my scout team. One is working on Rooted living's website, which will be up very shortly. And one helped me develop my crowdfunding campaign, which I just launched a few days ago, actually. And so they helped me create designs for like t-shirts, tote bags, stickers, and like all of the campaigns.
And also, I hired a designer to work on the snack pack design, which is something that I'll be launching soon. But in the kind of near future, I'm really just preparing for launch, which will be this spring, and just getting everything in place for that. It's kind of a stressful period because you know, I'm trying to hold this date to myself and trying to handle all different pieces of this puzzle and making sure they all aligned to the exact same time and making sure that I have enough funding for that and all of that. But I think that when I do launch officially and things are available and everything comes together and I can really even just hold my product,
I'll be able to kind of take a sigh of relief and just know that all of this hard work, you know, paid off. Yeah.
S: That's kind of, that's so interesting for both of you because you started this whole thing alone almost, I mean with a little bit of help, but now you kind of have teams behind you and you have a group of people that you can start to really like launch and build out your company.
And I guess for both of you, like after going through this entire process of the startup challenge and like the research, just coming up with a business plan. Do you guys have any advice for people that are looking to enter into the next Husky startup challenge? Maybe any advice that you wish somebody would have told you before you entered or became like an entrepreneur, like starting your company?
R: I think you should just enter. I mean, you really have nothing to lose and only so much to gain from the whole process. And then if you do make it to the second half of the semester where you are paired up with mentors, utilize that mentor. I don't think honestly, I don't think I would have won if it wasn't for the guidance of Neil who was my mentor.
So use your mentor.
A: That's definitely great advice and I can't agree more, I think just taking the leap and applying and going through the process, you have nothing to lose. You can only gain and refine your idea, define it, make it better. And then the mentors are so knowledgeable of what you should do and what can make you a winner.
And so I cannot think Elena enough for helping me refine that pitch and getting my public speaking up to par to make sure that it was top tier for demo day.
S: I just wanted to say like, kind of, I guess since both of you have become so successful with your companies and with the Husky startup challenge, it kind of goes to show that like anybody can enter like you guys were saying, whether you're a psychology major or you're a marketing and entrepreneur major, you can kind of be anybody and still be successful.
I: Yeah, I think that really goes to show that if you think you have a good idea that honestly helps the people in your community or communities outside of where you are. I think that's enough reason to go ahead and jump into these opportunities, but I think we covered a lot of ground today, which is super exciting.
And I'm honestly really excited about both your companies. Both to have learned more and to continue to talk about Rooted Living, but also to be working with Aniyah and Push Beauty. and just to be able to spread that awareness for whether it's plastic, food packaging, or, you know, inclusivity and beauty products, and you both honestly, should be really proud of what you've accomplished.
I'm honestly like super in shock and just really, really amazed at the work you guys do. And coming from an engineering sense, not really diving into that world, but working, you know, in auxiliary with it, it's just really cool to see the other side of entrepreneurship and how it pairs well with engineering.
I just think it's one of the coolest things and is the reason why I continue to work for the Sherman center and continue to want to bring on awesome people like you guys on our podcast and our newsletter and do features of you guys on our websites and to work, you know, in that sense, I just think, a lot of stuff that gets produced is just really awesome stuff.
So it's cool to be able to take time to talk to you guys.
A: Thank you for having me.
R: Yeah this was so much fun.
S: And I learned from both of you, from speaking with both of you, I learned a lot about not only entrepreneurship and like the Husky startup challenge, but just what it means to be an entrepreneur, how much work that has to do with it, how much, you know, you get out of it, whether it's positive or negative, but yeah, again, like Izzy said, congrats on the Husky startup challenge, and I feel like that was kind of just like the first step of your company's growth. You guys are working towards really big things and Before we close out this episode, is there anything you guys want to like, you know, plug.
A: Yeah, sure. Just check out aniyahsmith.com and take the survey help me grow that customer research pool and check out the A-List Zine, new edition launching next week
R: I just launched our company Instagram, which is just rooted living, so go give that a follow. We're also launching our website, which is rootedliving.org in about a month, and just stay tuned and get ready to snack with an impact.
I: Yeah, we will definitely be plugging your guys' links both in our slacks and when we post our podcasts and everything to Spotify and Apple podcasts, I believe that's what we're on. We will definitely have all those links. So it's really exciting to be able to put that out to people so they can actually be able to see like the stuff that you were talking about now.
And I think that'll be really awesome cause there's a ton of people in our community that just really love to dive into that kind of stuff. But, yeah, thank you both for coming onto the ShermCast today, and we wish you both the best of luck and obviously like your continued work throughout, you know, all the resources that Northeastern provides, whether that's like, you know, I'd be co-lab offers like legal stuff, I know WISE is this like a huge part of the entrepreneurship world right now. Scout doing a lot of graphic design Generate for prototyping. I think it's awesome that you guys are taking advantage of these resources and it's really cool to be able to talk about how you guys are taking advantage of these resources right here on our campus, but thank you all our listeners for listening today to today's Sherm cast episode.
Make sure to check us out on Instagram and on our Sherman center website, as that's where we link our podcasts, and to make sure to read our newsletter because our newsletter also alongside a lot of features like this, we have a ton of other faculty administration and people in our greater Boston community that are in this same kind of sense of starting new ventures.
And also just, you know, there's a lot of topics that we cover. But check back in two weeks for our next episode and we'll see you all next time on the show cast. One last thing before I end this episode, I just wanted to let everyone know that the Sherman center co-op has officially launched for this co-op cycle, which is really exciting.
So if you are working on a venture or prototype and you want to basically work on your venture and prototype or business as your co-op. That is quite literally an option. And it's an option through the Sherman center co-op so make sure to go on and neu works and look up Sherman center for engineering entrepreneurship, the co-op is there and apply, and we're excited to see you guys' applications. All right, thanks and hope to see you guys on the next episode of the Shermcast.