Envision Greater Fond du Lac’s Ignite Small Business & Startup Support hosted Envision THIS! High School Pitch event on May 7, 2024, at Horace Mann High School in North Fond du Lac. A total of nine teams competed and represented high school students from Campbellsport, North Fond du Lac, and Laconia.

The top three teams were awarded investment dollars to continue their projects.

First place went to Evelyn Zarate, Lucy Schumacher, and Kimberly Diaz of North Fond du Lac for their product “Puretect”. Purtect provides families with a safe and effective solution to help them enjoy quality time with their family and friends with no distractions of insects and no worry of harmful chemicals. Their insect repellent is a natural multi-purpose solution that can be sprayed on surfaces, clothing, blankets, and even directly onto the skin. Formulated without harmful chemicals, their repellent effectively repels mosquitoes, bees, spiders, and ticks ensuring a pest-free outdoor experience for families. This project was awarded $2,000.

Second place went to Joshua Onwunili of Campbellsport for his product “FoldAway Hanger”. His business is a foldable hanger company. The hanger is designed to fold in the middle on a hinge to reduce the amount of space it takes up. This way, closets can be up to 45% shallower. The problem solved is the increasing demand for household items that complement the smaller house and apartment style now trending in the United States. Furniture and household items are adjusting to this change, so why should closets be the exception? More than eight billion plastic hangers are thrown into landfills every year. This is a massive problem for the environment that can be solved in a simple way. The FoldAway Hanger is designed to be almost indestructible with its stainless-steel design. This prevents the frustrating breakage of the average hanger and reduces the damage to the environment. This project was awarded $1,000.

Third place went to Jayce Ackerman, Owen Miller, Baren Dowland, and Christopher Zarate of North Fond du Lac for their project “PocketPits”. PocketPits is a tiny natural on-the-go deodorant that goes wherever you are; consumers can say goodbye to big bulky deodorants and say hello to freshness and convenience with PocketPits. This project was awarded $500.

This event was supported and sponsored by US Bank.