After over a month of preparation and a three-minute presentation, two teams of Georgetown University entrepreneurs took home the grand prize in the annual Georgetown “Bark Tank” entrepreneurship competition.

Joylet, an online baby gear renter, and STAFM Technologies, an electric flux motor, both received a $30,000 prize after tying for first place in the annual business pitch competition. In addition to the two winners, Compost’d LLC, an in-home composting initiative, won the People’s Choice Award, taking home a $25,000 cash prize. The competition awarded a total of $150,000 in prizes to eight finalists.

The 2021 Bark Tank competition was an overall success, according to Jeffrey Reid, a Georgetown professor and founder of the Georgetown Entrepreneurship Initiative, which oversees Bark Tank.

“This year’s Bark Tank was an incredible success. The quality of startup presentations continues to go up year after year,” Reid wrote in an email to The Hoya. “Every one of the finalist teams received at least $5000 in prize money, along with intensive coaching, mentoring, and feedback. In that sense, every one of them is a winner, and every one of them has the opportunity to succeed as an entrepreneur.”

This year’s winners also represent diverse backgrounds in entrepreneurs, according to Reid.

“One thing that stands out is the diversity of our student entrepreneurs,” Reid wrote. “The majority of the prize money went to women or women-led teams, and we had several people of color and members of the LBGTQ+ community. This all goes to show that entrepreneurs come from all different backgrounds.”

The competition, which was held in person Nov. 4 as well as live-streamed, consisted of all eight finalists giving three-minute presentations, followed by a five-minute question-and-answer section with the judges, who include local business owners. Following the presentations, a group of judges deliberated and awarded cash prizes based on various criteria.

The first-place prize will allow Joylet to expand its operations, according to Joylet co-founder Alli Cavasino (GRD ’22).

“This is a real game changer for Joylet,” Cavasino wrote in an email to The Hoya. “It has already helped so much for getting the word out about our Company. With the prize money, we will be able to expand our pilot to serve more customers and test and refine our service over the coming months.”

The $30,000 cash prize will help STAFM Technologies become more competitive with other similar businesses, according to Rory Brogan (GRD ’22), founder of STAFM Technologies.

“Now the real work begins. We are using the money to build our first prototype and begin simulations to prove how disruptive this company is,” Brogan wrote in an email to The Hoya. “If all goes according to plan, we will be ready to begin a Seed round by the end of this academic year.”

The Bark Tank prize fund is sponsored by the Leonsis Family Entrepreneurship Prize, which was established by Ted Leonsis (CAS ’77), CEO of Monumental Sports & Entertainment. In addition to the two first-place prizes and the People’s Choice Award, cash prizes of various amounts totalling almost $90,000 were awarded to the five other finalists. 

The overall Bark Tank experience was incredibly valuable and meaningful to contestants, according to Gracey Owen (MSB ’22), founder of Compost’d LLC.

“Bark Tank will forever be a moment I’ll hold near and dear to my heart as it was my opportunity to really show myself what I can do,” Owen wrote in an email to The Hoya. “What started as a simple issue with my indoor compost bin quickly evolved into a blossoming business idea and with the winnings from Bark Tank so graciously provided by the Leonsis family that dream can become a reality.”

The $30,000 prize represents the culmination of a long and difficult process in launching a business venture, according to Brogan.

“I am humbled by the faith the Bark Tank judges put in us and immensely proud of what we accomplished,” Brogan wrote. “It was an incredible vote of confidence from a panel of some of the most successful entrepreneurs affiliated with Georgetown.”