Hatch, the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) entrepreneurship program, is gearing up for its second year in business.
The program helps students with start-ups get funding and enter the market, according to CUSA president Fahd Alhattab.
Michelle Vong, the co-director of Hatch and a business owner, said the program offers support for students’ work to grow.
“It is CUSA’s incubator program for student entrepreneurs . . . Hatch connects you with mentorship, office space, event access, and seed funding for building or joining a start-up,” Vong said.
This year, 14 start-ups were pitched to four judges. Five businesses and five start-up ideas were chosen to participate in this year’s program, Vong said.
This year the program is focusing on the Lead to Win program, a contest held by Carleton’s Sprott School of Business. Lead to Win funds Hatch along with CUSA. The goal of the Hatch program is to eventually create businesses that are ready for Lead to Win, according to Alhattab.
Hatch collaborates with professors to help student entrepreneurs who want to start a venture, offering help and advice to further develop ideas they may have, Alhattab added.
Students with approved start-ups (called co-horts) can visit Hatch for help, guidance, and workshops to help them launch their businesses.
To receive funding for a start-up, students can pitch their idea to judges at Pitch Night.
Cole Miller, a cognitive science and entrepreneur student at Carleton who attended Pitch Night, said the spirit of the night is what Hatch is all about.
“Pitch Night is infectious. If you were pitching, you left wanting to work harder, be better,” Miller said.
“Entrepreneurs run businesses. They do things and take risk. ‘Wantrepreneurs’ want to start business but don’t have an idea or aren’t at the execution stage yet,” Miller added.
Alhattab said CUSA funds Hatch to help students develop entrepreneurial businesses that will help them be successful during and after university.
“We all play a part in the entire system of taking ideas and turning them into a sellable international business,” Alhattab said. “[Hatch] is the discovery stage. That’s where we want to be for students.”
