Mary Esposito ’21, Mila Patel ’21, and Sonia Shah ’22 took the top spot in the Young Founders Institute 2020 Fall Makethon, this past weekend, publicly launching Blōra Beauty (formerly Nexkap) and generating $50 in sales in just a few hours. YFI’s Makethon challenges young entrepreneurs to work with local CEOs to craft a brand, identify market challenges, develop innovative solutions, and build leadership skills.

The challenge for the trio was to brand their product and narrow their target customers effectively. “As we have learned through the Young Founders Institute, it is vital to begin actively engaging with customers even when the target product is not tangible,” said Patel. “The Makeathon allowed us to launch a lip gloss line to begin interacting with our audience.” In the space of less than a day, the team launched Blōra Beauty’s website, online store, social media presence, generating sales for their first product, lip gloss.

The team is now more focused and using their prize money to diversify their product line. Aside from lip gloss, Blōra Beauty is also developing a Conrad Challenge finalist tobacco seed oil derived skincare product that targets acne, including cleansers and moisturizers. “The Makeathon was an excellent opportunity for us three to fast-track our company’s current goals, exercise time management, and stimulate collaboration,” explained Shah. Nicki Medford, an Entrepreneur in Residence at the Young Founders Institute, adds that the team’s Blōra Beauty line “really resonated with the team of judges because it identified a market niche and created value specifically for the Teen consumer.”