Tampa – The University of Tampa John P. Lowth Entrepreneurship Center in the Sykes College of Business celebrated a record-breaking success at the 2023 New Venture Expo held on Friday, April 14. Attracting over 200 attendees from various industries, the event showcased 53 student-run companies, marking the highest number of participants since the expo’s inception in 2017.
The New Venture Expo aims to educate students and the community about opportunities within the Lowth Center and enhance students’ ability to achieve their professional goals.
Graduate and undergraduate entrepreneurship students, as well as participants from the Spartan Incubator and Accelerator programs, presented business concepts developed throughout the 2022-2023 academic year. Winners were selected by a panel of 27 judges with $10,000 in cash prizes awarded courtesy of the Butz Family Foundation, which sponsored the event. Prizes were awarded in two categories: entrepreneurship students and Accelerator/Incubator participants.
In the Spartan Incubator category, Akshay Bhuva M.S. ’22, the CEO of Kitchenery, claimed first place. Bhuva said the support and enthusiasm for innovation at UT is “truly remarkable.” Kitchenery launched the Phase-2 Public Offering in partnership with Wefunder at the expo.
Callahan Reynolds ’23, of iPaint, emerged as the winner in the “UT Student Companies” category of the Spartan Accelerator. Reflecting on the experience, Reynolds said that “all of the students that I talked to and was up against are all brilliant, hardworking individuals, and it shows in their pitches.”
Located in The University of Tampa’s Sykes College of Business, the John P. Lowth Entrepreneurship Center fosters an entrepreneurial mindset and supports the complete life cycle of a business from idea to exit. The center offers various programs, including the Spartan Incubator and Accelerator, to help students develop their business concepts and achieve success.
The University of Tampa is a private, comprehensive university located on 110 acres on the riverfront in downtown Tampa. Known for academic excellence, personal attention and real-world experience in its undergraduate and graduate programs, the University has about 200 programs of study and serves approximately 11,000 students from all 50 states and most of the world’s countries.