When Engineering junior Stefan Zhelyazkov came up with the idea for his start-up, he “felt like an inventor. It felt better than falling in love. I was obsessed.”
Zhelyazkov, founder of start-ups Biblioteka and Lemonlime, spoke at a launch for the website PennLaunch on Monday along with 2011 Wharton graduate Matt Newberg, founder of Meepme, and College and Wharton sophomore Edward Lando, founder of Famocracy. PennLaunch is a social networking site that allows entrepreneurs to find fellow entrepreneurs and talent at Penn.
Students in the nearly-filled Huntsman Hall lecture room were treated to gyros from Greek Lady as they listened to the hour-long discussion on the features of PennLaunch and gained tips on creating their own start-ups. These tips ranged from the essential “make sure your team gels well” to the counter-intuitive “make sure you have a lot of problems from the start.”
Zhelyazkov got the audience laughing by declaring that you could cry in a corner, call your mom or join PennLaunch. Lando, who describes his start-up as an “online version of American Idol for all talents,” stressed the importance of having a trial period for a project, and ended his presentation with a recruitment bid. Despite having won the PennApps Labs competition, Newberg strongly advocated against building an application, saying, “It’s boring. Build a platform instead.” Despite the presenters having different approaches to entrepreneurship, all three urged everyone in the audience to launch their ideas before anyone else.
College freshman Dilip Rajan, who is interested in entrepreneurship, said he saw the posters for the event, and then checked out PennLaunch’s website. “I think its a really cool way to connect people with different skill sets,” he said. “It was also inspiring to hear from successful entrepreneurs in the Penn community. I got to talk to Edward Lando after the event, and this was really helpful.”
Wharton and Engineering sophomore David Wang said he found the event helpful. “I am currently working on a start-up and am scouting for team members,” he said. “I thought Newberg’s advice on not depending on only one team member was particularly interesting.”
Newberg saw a need on Penn’s campus for a stronger entrepreneurial community. “Penn doesn’t necessarily make entrepreneurship easy, but that’s the nature of entrepreneurship,” he said. “It’s not supposed to be easy. Also, I find that resources and clubs supporting Penn’s entrepreneurial community are not well marketed. That’s why events like these are so important. It really facilitates the whole networking process.”
The launch of PennLaunch kicks off Innovation Week, which is sponsored by Weiss Tech House. Later events this week include an introduction to the entrepreneurial competition PennVention on Tuesday and a talk from the Novotorium’s General Manager Michael Krupit on Wednesday.
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
DonatePlease note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.