As women gain more power and influence in the business world, they increase the number of fresh ideas, novel innovations, and gender equality in the workplace, especially among young, collegiate women who are redefining ambition and creating successful business ventures even before graduation. At the University of Georgia, there are many programs and events for aspiring entrepreneurs such as the Entrepreneurship Program and the Georgia Kickstart Fund. The Georgia Kickstart Fund is a student-managed program that provides seed private funding to UGA students and faculty in support of launching new ventures. Moreover, it helps to promote innovation, unique ideas, and educational experiences to members of the fund. Housed by the Terry College of Business, the UGA Entrepreneurship Program is a collaborative organization to “develop the entrepreneurial spirit of all interested students at UGA.” Not only does this help students connect and learn how to start their own businesses, but it also helps them network at multiple events and empowers future leaders of innovation. Without a doubt, there have been some amazing success stories to come out of both of these programs. Hence, here is a list of UGA female entrepreneurs and their stories.
SWAKE
Owned and operated by Vanessa Sachs, Swake cosmetics was founded in 2022 and is a company devoted to creating sweat-proof products that can last “the 9 to 5 and beyond”. Sachs had the idea for Swake when her family moved to Naples, Florida and the hot weather caused her makeup to sweat profusely. Furthermore, Sachs had an ideal consumer in mind, “the lifelete”. Based on Swake’s definition on their website, the Lifelete is a person that is an “always-on achiever who feels the pressure to look good regardless of their environment”. It was from this type of consumer that Sachs decided to create Swake cosmetics. Whether you’re a college student or a workaholic, Swake has formulated its products to be long-lasting, humidity-proof, water-proof, and inclusive for all skin types. Swake not only devised sweat-proof makeup for everyday wear, but also created makeup that is healthier for the skin, creating products that are packed in collagen and other properties to reduce puffiness, redness, and sweat control. “Sweat, while messy and, at times, inconvenient, represents growth, grind, and pushing boundaries. You deserve products that support all that you do and SWAKE is delivering them.”
Thryft Ship
Founded by second-year Marketing and International Business major Valeria Banner, Thryft Ship emerged from the entrepreneur’s troubles balancing her school schedule and managing her thrifting account on Instagram. “It took me over 2 hours to package my sales at the end of every week and make all the shipping labels and so my story began. From there I joined a business Idea accelerator program and began conducting interviews with other thrifting accounts. It was there I discovered a lot of these girls experienced the same pain as me. And so, Thryft Ship was born.” Thryft Ship works with many small businesses with their shipping services and the account set-up is easy. Simply enter your name and email, and done! You have an account set up and Thryft Ship safely stores and encrypts all of your customer information, making the shipping process less challenging.
meld
Founded in Athens, Georgia, Meld is a matching internship service for small businesses and college students. Meld was founded by Sabrina Greco, a senior studying Entrepreneurship, French, and Psychology at the University of Georgia. Sabrina came up with the concept for Meld to help small businesses access the university’s student talent pool. Not only does this company help small business owners, but helps students obtain internships in their respective industries prior to or after graduation. What separates Meld from other recruiting sites, such as Indeed or LinkedIn, is that it implemented vetting procedures and matches candidates based on personality. “Our vetting procedures disrupt the tedious candidate search process and offer you vetted candidates selected to fit your company’s culture.”
ATL FUN BOOTH
Owned and operated by Tania Rios, ATL Fun Booth is a photo booth company based in Dallas, Georgia, but offers its services to other cities within the Peach State. ATL Fun Booth not only vends their photo booths for events but offers an unforgettable experience and captures memories for all ages. Before launching her business, Tania made sure to do research prior to the start-up, since the photo industry is very saturated. It was crucial for Tania to build her brand in the photo industry through her creativity and social media marketing. Also, what makes ATL Fun Booth different from other photo booth services is its flexibility and its design team that can create customized photo strips and logos.
All these women began at The University of Georgia — the birthplace of higher education. The University’s Terry College of Business has redefined ambition and innovation for the business world by empowering women to achieve their entrepreneurial goals. For those interested in the University of Georgia’s Entrepreneurship Program, the program offers multiple events for aspiring entrepreneurs and is open to all majors.