Twenty-one SUNY Oneonta and Hartwick College students faced off in a start-up pitch competition that was as much about passion as it was about business acumen.
Held in SUNY Oneonta’s Morris Conference Center on May 6 and judged by a panel of local business leaders, the inaugural Oneonta-Hartwick Student Start-up Challenge and Pitch Competition marked the first business pitch competition jointly executed by the two institutions. The event drew inspiration from similar competitions that SUNY Oneonta students have participated in both on and off campus, including a global fashion merchandising competition known as ESRAP and a Business Idea Pitch Competition held by SUNY Oneonta’s Entrepreneurship Club. The competition drew budding entrepreneurs from a diverse range of disciplines, including Business Administration, Fashion and Textiles, Biochemistry, Mathematics, Communication Studies and Music Industry.
Ideas were presented by both solo entrepreneurs and teams of three to four, bringing 21 students together to present 14 different business pitches. Students from both Hartwick and SUNY Oneonta worked on their pitches with faculty through independent course studies, the Entrepreneurship Club and Adam Chaloeicheep, who was the inaugural entrepreneur-in-residence for both institutions.
“Entrepreneurship, in my experience, is a powerful bridge: as you grapple with what to build—riding the emotional highs and lows, pivoting and searching for proof that an idea deserves to exist—the road can feel lonely,” said Chaloeicheep. “Sharing that journey with peers fuels motivation and mutual support. A joint competition would tighten the bond between our campuses while showing the rest of the state that bright, innovative minds are thriving here. Watching teams from both schools pitch—side by side and head-to-head—captures exactly the collaborative spirit we want to cultivate.”
Entrepreneur-in-Residence: Adam Chaloeicheep
Chaloeicheep began his residency first at Hartwick College in June 2024, bringing with him more than 15 years of experience as an entrepreneur and expert in brand development, marketing and innovation. He began his residency at SUNY Oneonta during the 2025 spring semester and was instrumental in making the Oneonta-Hartwick Student Start-up Challenge and Pitch Competition a joint venture.
As entrepreneur-in-residence, Chaloeicheep spent several hours every week helping students from both schools fine-tune their presentations in hopes of winning the grand prize. While students received one-on-one attention from him, their fellow competitors were also present as observers. This process allowed students to not only receive tips directly from Chaloeicheep, but gave them the opportunity to think critically about their own presentations based on the feedback received by their peers.
“These students thrive in an environment of learning and curiosity, and being around that energy keeps me young,” said Chaloeicheep. “In the past few weeks I watched them lean on one another as sounding boards: a team would arrive stuck on a business-model snag, and classmates would jump in with questions and fixes. That peer-to-peer problem-solving was the goal from day one—giving them a framework to tackle their own challenges without relying on me.”
Preparation, Parameters, Punctuality
In addition to Chaloeicheep, SUNY Oneonta Associate Professor of Fashion and Textiles Sarah Portway, Assistant Professor of Information Systems Alsius David and Associate Professor of Finance Kai Chen mentored several groups.
To prepare for the competition, each team created a 16-slide deck that detailed several start-up business topics, including target market, projected profit margins, cost of operations, comparisons to other products in their market, sample products and more. During their final day of preparation, students practiced their pitches, ironing out the final details. At the competition that evening, each student was given 20 minutes for set up, presentation and a short question and answer session with the judges.
The panel of judges consisted of five Oneonta-area business leaders: third-generation Brooks’ House of BBQ owner Ryan Brooks, Stoneonta owner Tyler Walsh, Springbrook Community Innovation Director Hank Lobb, Five Star Subaru President and CEO Ben Guenther and Vêsucré Founder and CEO Sarah Hartmann. Split between two rooms, the judges listened to seven pitches for two hours, deliberated on which pitches they felt were the strongest, then returned for one final round of Q&As before announcing the three winning ideas.
“Watching judges from the area’s top businesses—and seeing their reactions—was inspiring. After the event, the president of Five Star Subaru pulled me aside and said, “This is exactly what this town needs,” and asked how we could bring even more students to the event next year,” said Chaloeicheep. “That’s a strong signal. We don’t talk about it enough, but this town/community needs a fresh surge of energy and innovation. I hope this competition is the first step toward launching new ventures whose impact ripples back into town, because innovation is the cure for stagnation.”
Competition Winners, and a 5-Star Prize
Judges selected the winners by determining the top Hartwick College pitch, the top SUNY Oneonta pitch and an overall top pitch.
Hartwick’s winning entrepreneur was Runyararo Chaora, a gold-medal winner from the 2024 Oneonta-Hartwick iGEM team, who pitched an online higher-education service idea called “Mentor Link.” In her pitch, Chaora detailed a program that would connect college and university students to a mentor in their field, allowing them to get real-world insight that would complement their education. Potential mentors would sign up to be part of the program, and students would be able to scan their potential mentor’s profile and swipe left or right in the application if they thought the mentor would be a good match for their education.
SUNY Oneonta’s winning entrepreneur was Layla Driscoll-Webster, who pitched a sustainability business plan called “Brave Blossom.” During her pitch, Driscoll-Webster described her design plan to support women who have battled breast cancer and undergone reconstruction surgery, along with those who faced similar medical challenges requiring reconstruction. Her business aims to provide a compassionate approach to bra shopping through a brick-and-mortar store location, offering a range of products and services tailored to enhance post-surgery recovery, promote self-confidence and foster a sense of community.
The Oneonta-Hartwick Student Start-up Challenge and Pitch Competition 5-Star Award winner was SUNY Oneonta student Alexia Michitti, who received a $2,000 award from Five Star Subaru for her adaptive clothing pitch called “EM13RACE.” EM13RACE is a first-of-its-kind adaptive clothing company whose purpose is “to design and develop clothing for people who are part of the limb-different community.”
“I was born without my right hand and struggled with a sleeve that was too long my entire life,” said Michitti. “These clothes make accessing prosthetic limbs easier and eliminate the need to put a prosthetic on before getting dressed. Although there are other types of adaptive clothing out there, they are more focused on replacing zippers and buttons with Velcro and magnets. The clothing from EM13RACE is designed so no changes need to be made after they are purchased and ready to wear.”
“I could not be more proud of Alexia and Layla! These exemplary women demonstrated passion, focus and motivation as they created and practiced their business pitches throughout their independent studies,” said Dr. Portway, who mentored both students through their pitches. “Their business plans are rooted in deeply personal stories, and they both followed their instincts to create more joy and ease in the world for people who often receive little attention from the apparel industry. For Alexia, I know the prize money will allow her to place her next order of EM13RACE stock and continue growing her business. I am grateful to Five Star Subaru for supporting our students’ future.”
The Oneonta-Hartwick Student Start-up Challenge and Pitch Competition was supported by the SUNY Oneonta Foundation through the SUNY Oneonta Entrepreneurship Fund and the Al & Michelle Rubin Entrepreneurial Fund, The Hartwick Fund and the SUNY Oneonta Alumni Association. Special thanks to Five Star Subaru for its generous support.