Western Michigan University students take first at Michigan Collegiate Startup Challenge
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.—Students from Western Michigan University made a strong impression on judges at this year’s Michigan Collegiate Startup Challenge, taking home first place overall and another top-five finish in the statewide student business competition held Feb. 27 at the Daniel and Pamella DeVos Center for Interprofessional Health on the campus of Grand Valley State University.
Competing against some of the best student entrepreneurs from colleges and universities across Michigan, WMU teams showcased innovative startup concepts and entrepreneurial skills that earned them recognition from judges and industry professionals.
First place for Card Axis
The startup Card Axis captured first place in the Grand Startup Challenge, the competition’s final round that features the top 10 teams selected from executive summary submissions statewide.
The team includes:
- Whitney Isabella Griffin, product design major with entrepreneurship and user experience/human-computer interaction minors.
- Pablo Charles, product design major.
- William Cherette, pre-industrial and entrepreneurial engineering.
Daniel Chahin Goico, pre-industrial and entrepreneurial engineering.
Left to right: Daniel Chahin Goico, faculty mentor Tamara J. Davis, Pablo Charles, Whitney Isabella Griffin and William Cherette after presenting.
Card Axis focuses on improving accuracy in the collectible card grading process. “Our goal is to make pre-grading smarter and more accessible so collectors can make better decisions before sending cards off for professional grading,” says Griffin.
Collectors often submit cards without knowing their likely condition, which can lead to disappointing results and wasted fees. Card Axis aims to solve this problem by providing accurate pre-grading for flat collectibles, helping collectors better estimate a card’s condition before submission.
“Collectors invest a lot of time and money into their cards, and we wanted to create a tool that brings more transparency and confidence to that process,” says Cherette.
The idea resonated strongly with judges, propelling the team to the top of the competition and earning them the event’s highest honor.
Lampure earns fourth place
Another WMU innovation also stood out during the competition.
Lampure, developed by product design student Jacob R. Meyer, placed fourth overall, demonstrating the creativity and design strength of WMU students.
Lampure combines functional design with home wellness by integrating air-purifying technology into a stylish lamp, addressing the common problem of bulky and unattractive air purifiers in living spaces. The concept impressed judges with its blend of aesthetics and functionality.
Months of preparation lead to success
The winning results were the culmination of months of work and collaboration, according to faculty mentor Tamara J. Davis.
The teams began developing their ideas last fall when the competition portal opened. From October through February, students refined their concepts, adjusted their pitch decks and practiced their presentations in preparation for the final round.
“They’re taking a concept and looking at it from all different facets and trying to communicate to an outside group of individuals the viability of the product,” Davis says. “They’re starting to see that other people can buy into their concepts and get behind them.”
Cross-campus collaboration
Many of the participating students previously took Davis’ “Exploring Entrepreneurship” course, where they learned how to build pitch decks and develop business ideas. The teams reflect collaboration across several WMU programs, including design, engineering and entrepreneurship.
The experience helps students understand how different disciplines contribute to launching a successful venture. Charles echoes this sentiment: “Competitions like this push you to think beyond the product and really understand the market you’re building for.”
“They can actually take an idea all the way through to fruition,” Davis says. “My hope is that these concepts move toward commercialization because they both have clear target markets.”
Beyond the competition
The excitement didn’t end with the awards ceremony. Following the presentations, one of the competition judges approached the students to offer additional support and shared his contact information in case they needed help moving their businesses forward.
For the WMU teams, the results represent more than a competition win—they highlight the potential for student ideas and demonstrate the University’s growing entrepreneurial ecosystem. Goico says, “It was incredibly rewarding to represent Western Michigan University and show that ideas developed in the classroom can grow into real ventures.”
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