LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – Students at the Rawls College of Business got a chance to pitch their projects to real potential customers at ‘The Marketplace’ on Wednesday.
“This is Bluebonnet Golf,” Jaxon Tilley said. “This is my business I started with my brother and my business partners. It is Texas-themed golf wear.”
“I made 100 buttons last night with the old-time button clamping machine,” Courtney Sweet said.
“Aetheria is a clothing brand that bridges the gap between the digital world and WEB3, NFTs, Crypto,” Nick Nolette said.
“Tableman, my mantra is everything should be sustainable, affordable and also a fun design for everyone,” Zach Darby said.
Some of these students have been thinking about starting a business for a long time.
“I grew up in San Antonio,” Tilley said, “and so my family and I used to go and take photos of the bluebonnets and that was something I just felt was in me.”
“We decided…do we want to keep building someone else’s dream, or build our own?” Hayden Williams said, promoting Aetheria.
For others, it’s more than just about a business, it’s about making a difference in the community. Sweet and Hunter sold their own buttons and boot ribbons, with 100% of the proceeds going to UMC Children’s Hospital.
“You just see the physical impact that you have when you raise this money and where it actually goes to,” Sweet said, “and you see all of the new equipment and everything and it’s lifesaving equipment that they would not have access to without this.”
‘The Marketplace’ is serving as a way for students to get their name out there and push towards success here in the hub city. These students say they’re grateful for Texas Tech for giving them this platform and can’t wait for what’s to come.
“Texas Tech as a campus has truly been a great environment as well as providing a great experience for me,” Darby said, “and I wouldn’t have been able to do marketing, product design and all of this work without the education I’ve received.”
“We’ve been getting good traffic coming by,” Hunter said. Love talking to everybody and also raising awareness for our organization and the hospital as well. It’s been great.”
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