Archived content
For an ongoing chronicle of UW–Madison’s efforts in entrepreneurship, explore the links below. We’ve captured the events, activities and resources that serve as the foundation for entrepreneurial enterprise on campus.
Financial Projections – Burrill Competition Event
Thursday, January 31, 5 p.m.
Grainger Hall
Learn how to project financial statements for a start up. You will learn from a UW-Madison Professor and CPA, Phil Greenwood, about what types of financial statements and projections are expected in a business plan. He will also talk about methods for preparing credible statements, how they are reviewed, and how they can be used as a management tool. More information.
MIT Enterprise Forum
Thursday, January 24, 5 p.m.
Pyle Center
Cost: $12
The MIT Club of Wisconsin and Lathrop & Clark LLP invite you to a panel discussion on "Liquidity Events: How to Get Money Out of a Business." The event also includes a broadcast of MIT Enterprise programming on IPOs. Information, registration. E-mail: lorlyn@execpc.com.
Young Entrepreneurs Initiative Deadline
Friday, November 30
Considering a technology venture? Check out France’s Young Entrepreneurs Initiative. The YEI offers mentoring, funding and a networking program to study the feasibility of doing business in France. For more information about this program, visit the Young Entrepreneurs Initiative.
The Entrepreneurial Deli
Monday, November 12, 6 p.m.
Memorial Union
This “grab-and-go” event offers a variety of topics related to entrepreneurship, including finance, legal, marketing and more. Multiple presentations will occur simultaneously, and information will be shared cafeteria style—take in only what you want, and leave the rest.
View topics and presentations for this event!
Are You An Entrepreneur?
Tuesday, November 13, 6 p.m.
Neighborhood House, 29 S. Mills St.
Presented by the Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative, this free class explores the pros and cons of entrepreneurship, helping participants evaluate their skills and readiness for business ownership. To register or for more information, visit the Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative or call 257-5450.
Entrepreneurialism in the Humanities
Wednesday, November 14, 2:30 p.m.
6191 Helen C. White Join us for this roundtable discussion featuring UW faculty members Emily Auerbach, Jeremi Suri, and Jan Miernowski and Office of Multicultural Arts Initiative director Willie Ney.
Money, Marketing and Mentors Panel
Tuesday, October 2, 6 p.m.
Memorial Union
Join us for a roundtable discussion featuring UW–Madison-connected entrepreneurs, and discover how they leveraged the three Ms of entrepreneurship: money, marketing and mentors. Panelists include Matt Weygandt, CEO of the successful wine and coffee chain Barriques; John Besmer, Principal at Planet Propaganda, an international branding and design agency; Anthony Adams, founder of Credit Covers; and Elizabeth Kremer, owner of Lady Moxie.
100-hour Challenge winners announced!
Four winners have been named in the 100-hour Challenge.
View the winners and projects.Media coverage
- Video: Young Wisconsin Entrepreneurs, For the Record, WISC-TV
- Video: Building a Business, My Madison Report, WISC-TV
Wisconsin Entrepreneurial Boot Camp
July 29–August 3
Enrollment deadline: June 15
An introduction to entrepreneurship and the tools, skills and issues faced in technology entrepreneurship for physical/life science or engineering graduate students. For more information, visit 2007 Wisconsin Entrepreneurial Bootcamp.
Burrill Technology Business Plan Competition entries due March 23
For more information, visit the School of Business Web site.
Governor’s Business Plan Competition enters Final Business Plan phase.
For more information, visit the BPC Web site.
“Our Time, Our Renaissance” Talent Showcase
Friday, March 2, 7 p.m.
Mills Hall, Mosse Humanities Building
The Wisconsin Black Student Union hosts this talent showcase with budding artistic entrepreneurs who are trying to turn their passion into their profession. Notable acts include the UW Breakdancers; INtuition Productions; Hypnotik, Brandee Roberts, Miss Black and Gold; UW Gospel Choir and many more. For more information: ahinkle@wisc.edu.
UW–Madison Entrepreneurship Association
Thursday, March 1, 6 p.m.
Location TBA
Presenter Dave Anderson, chairman emeritus of Famous Dave’s of America, was recognized as Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year (in Minnesota and the Dakotas) by Ernst & Young, NASDAQ and USA Today. Famous Dave’s of America is recognized as a Hottest Restaurant Concept in America by Nation’s Restaurant News. Anderson has founded three publicly traded companies and created more than 18,000 jobs. For more information: http://www.uwea.com/
John J. Oros Executive Leadership Speaker Series
Thursday, March 1, 4–5:15 p.m.; reception to follow
Howard Auditorium, Fluno Center
Presenter Paul S. Shain is senior vice president of CDW Corporation and chief executive officer of Berbee Information Networks. At Berbee, he has helped to guide the growth and development of one of Madison’s most successful startups. Berbee is a leading provider of information technology services, including network infrastructure, unified communications, and hosting and managed services solutions. For more information: pleister@bus.wisc.edu
Wiscontrepreneurship Panel
Wednesday, Feb. 28, 5 p.m.
Memorial Union
Join us for a roundtable discussion featuring UW–Madison-based or UW–Madison-connected entrepreneurs. Panelists include:
Corey Capasso and Nathan Lustig, ExchangeHut
ExchangeHut is an online marketplace established in 2003 by a Wisconsin student searching for a cheaper alternative to the bookstore. In summer 2005, Corey Capasso and Nathan Lustig and purchased ExchangeHut and continue to operate it today.
Kris Dressler, TurboTap
Kris Dressler is a UW–Madison engineering alumnus and co-founder of TurboTap, a draft beer “Rapid Dispense Retrofit.” Using advanced fluid flow technology, TurboTap improves keg yield up to 30 percent, increases peak-time sales and reduces staffing. It is used in concession stands, wholesalers, bars and nightclubs around the country.
Ben Fiechtner and Troy Vosseller, SconnieNation
Ben Fiechtner and Troy Vosseller founded SconnieNation in their room at Kronshage Hall on campus in 2004, with the goal of spreading “Sconnie” pride across the country. Sconnie Nation is dedicated to providing apparel that will make wearers the center of attention.
Lauren Frank, Prep Cosmetics
Lauren Frank, an alumna of UW–Madison, has returned to her favorite city as executive director and co-founder of Prep Cosmetics. Carrying a wide variety of the hottest designer makeup lines, Prep Cosmetics is committed to providing a convenient, impulsive, hip and luxurious shopping experience for discerning makeup enthusiasts, as well as customers who are new to the glamour of designer cosmetics.
Matt Sloan and Aaron Yonda, Blame Society Productions
Matt Sloan and Aaron Yonda are best known for their video series Chad Vader, a viral Internet sensation that has received more than nine million downloads on YouTube, MySpace and other Web sites. They handle all aspects of their material — writing, directing, editing and acting — and have been co-creating films as Blame Society Productions since 2001.
INSITE Research Seminar
Tuesday, Feb. 27, 4–6 p.m.
Grainger Hall, Room 1170
Presenter Gordon Smith, UW–Madison professor of law, specializes in corporate and securities law, with a particular emphasis on entrepreneurial businesses and venture capital. He will discuss his work with entrepreneurs, which has important implications for understanding the role of contracting in influencing an entrepreneurial organization’s identity, as well as how the organization might use contracts to obtain important information in the startup phase. For more information: jsurdyk@bus.wisc.edu