The entrepreneurial spirit was on full display at Belmont’s Entrepreneurship Village hosted by the Thomas E. Cone Sr. Center for Entrepreneurship. The event featured all student vendors this semester.
“The Entrepreneurship Village is an exciting opportunity for our student entrepreneurs to showcase their businesses. It truly encompasses the mission of the Cone Center for Entrepreneurship,” said Maddie Bolser, Cone Center program coordinator. “Our students spend their time inside and outside the classroom working on their ventures, and this event is a premiere opportunity to put their hard work on display while connecting with hundreds of Belmont students and members of the community.”
In addition to the exposure and revenue Entrepreneurship Village provides, students can receive feedback from their customers, making the event a valuable learning opportunity as well.
It was senior Jess Finny’s — a business systems analytics & management double major — second time participating in Entrepreneurship Village. Chechi’s Chai is a small business run by Finny’s family that focuses on bringing the taste of real Indian chai and building community around cross-cultural stories.
“Seeing people come to our booth and share that they've been hearing about our product or share that they've been following along on the journey is always a pleasant surprise and is highly motivating to keep working hard,” Finny said.
Entrepreneurship Village is only one of several resources Finny has leveraged as a student entrepreneur at Belmont. Chechi’s Chai had its first pop-up on campus at the student-run business, Where the Well Things Are. Since then, business has been booming for Chechi’s Chai, with professors, peers and other entrepreneurs showing interest in the business and wanting to support or collaborate.
“I have competed in three competitions through the entrepreneurship program where I pitched Chechi's Chai and won funds to help grow the business,” she said. “The Entrepreneurship program has been the biggest blessing of my college career. I never dreamed that I would've started a business in my time at Belmont, but the entrepreneurship professors and events challenged me to tap into a newfound passion and Chechi's Chai wouldn't be here without them.”
Other Student Vendors
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Columbia Creations, Paloma Tavares
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Hippie Chix Thrifts, Ainsley Barousse
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Underground Vintage, Payton Culp
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Normak Supply, Kam’Ron Young
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Sweat Pea Sweets, Kathryn- Grace Stacio
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Where the Well Things Are, Kirsten Rogers
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House Of, Annaliese Rogner
