Matthew Joseph and Casey Curtis have received $5,000 through the Shoebox Fund, which is provided through the Luddy School of Informatics, Computing and Engineer’s Shoemaker Innovation Center and administered by IU Ventures.
Joseph, a Kelley School of Business senior entrepreneurship and corporation innovation major, was awarded $5,000 for his mental-health startup, Noveltor. It allows therapists to build stronger relationships with patients through a series of programs and activities.
“It has been our mission from Day One to positively contribute to the mental health crisis that our nation and our world are going through,” Joseph said. “The Shoebox Fund investment is more than just money. It invests in our potential to make a real difference in the lives and minds of people.”
Curtis, a Kelley School senior entrepreneurship and corporation innovation major, received $5,000 for her startup, Elevate, which involves a phone app that allows remote operation of elevators as well as monitors their performance for more efficient maintenance.
“We’ve been working on this for four years,” she said. “To have this validation that we are investment worthy, that it’s working, that it’s becoming a business and not just an idea, is exciting.”
A gift from Donna and John Shoemaker allowed for the launch of the Shoebox Fund in 2018. Funds are awarded by an investment committee comprised of Adam Russek-Sobol, Founder and CEO of CareBand; Chaz Shelton, founder of Merchant’s Garden; Ellie Symes, CEO of The Bee Corp.; and Kate Evinger, senior venture analyst at IU Ventures.
Travis Brown, senior executive assistant dean of innovation, entrepreneurship and commercialization, said this makes 10 investments the committee has awarded in the last two and a half years. He said teams keep getting stronger, and the group of pitches this semester set a new bar.
“These were the most well-rounded and thought-through concepts we’ve ever had,” he said. “These are students who have made use of the full spectrum of programs and resources we have at IU.”
Shoebox clients apply each semester and Brown selects three for the investment committee to review. The investment committee members determine how to invest $10,000 based on the presenting teams’ ability to clearly articulate their problem and solution, as well as the financials driving the viability of their business.
“It comes down to the entrepreneurs convincing us that they understand their market and have what it takes to implement their proposed solution,” Brown said. “Do they have the tenacity and resourcefulness to see their idea through? Do they have a clear understanding of how to use this investment?”
Brown said that was all true for Joseph and Curtis.
Joseph said he faced numerous challenges during his three years working on Noveltor.
“It is inherently hard being a student and an entrepreneur all at once. The path is so uncertain and can feel lonely. But the Shoebox community helped me find comfort. They are open and friendly. I feel connected to and understood by them.”
Joseph said the money will help him gather data and insight to better understand customer needs, refine his product offerings and reach a larger audience through targeted advertising and marketing.
For Elevate, Curtis contacted Tom Morrison, IU Vice President for Capital Planning and Facilities, to get approval to conduct elevator product tests at the university, including the Luddy School.
She said there are 294 elevators across the entire Bloomington campus. She hopes Elevate will eventually integrate into all of them, as well as expand to other universities and companies.
“I’ve started reaching out to facility teams at other schools,” she said.
Elevate couldn’t have happened, Curtis added, without technical co-founder Matteo Vidali, a masters student in intelligent systems engineering. He serves as the hardware and software integration specialist.
“This is all happening because of his brains,” Curtis said. “He made my idea come true.”
Developing the technology to analyze elevator vibration signatures is key, Vidali said.
“We’re trying to capture more novel data about elevators than any elevator software before us,” he said. “University elevator infrastructures are so old, there’s little to no information on them. We want to make sure the elevator is maintained before there’s a problem.”
Brown first met Curtis when she was in high school. He said she wanted to come to a college that had an incubation program.
“I’ve seen her whole journey – from an inkling of an idea that it would be cool to operate elevators by cellphone to a full-fledged startup which is now focused on running analytics and improving how elevators operate.
“Casey has demonstrated the courage to engage her market and gain the support of those she needs to bring her concept to fruition. Matthew and Casey exemplify the strength of the student entrepreneurs who comprise the Shoebox incubation program.”
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