One of the qualities that I admire most about entrepreneurs is their ability to see the potential and possibility in all types of situations. It is seldom about one big idea – there are usually several ideas, with the next inspired by the previous.
I see this quality in fourth year Drexel University Close School of Entrepreneurship student, Lindsey Smith. She doesn’t have just one idea – she has many! Woven through all is the belief in the value of a positive body image, healthy self-esteem, and balanced mental health.
Lindsey started her first venture, Fashion Buddy, in her first year at Drexel. Fashion Buddy is a mobile app that allows users to upload pictures of themselves wearing two outfit choices so that other users can vote for their favorite. A user can be at the mall, in a dressing room, or at home, choosing a job interview outfit, and they can request real-time feedback via the app. An important component of Fashion Buddy is that it does not allow comments. It gives only a choice between two positive statements, “Looks good” or “Looks great!”, eliminating the possibility of the negative body-shaming that prevails on other social media platforms.
Lindsey is no longer pursuing Fashion Buddy, but, from it, she discovered what it was about starting a business that really got her juices flowing: the life cycle of a new product. Its development, planning, verification, launch and marketing – its product management – that is what interests Lindsey the most.
With that in mind, Lindsey began work on her next venture – a mobile app called College Bird. College Bird is an on-demand platform that connects companies with college students and recent graduates who they can then hire to complete project-based tasks that they don’t have the bandwidth to tackle in-house. In the age of COVID-19, when many longer-term internships are no longer available, College Bird gives college students and recent grads real-world, resume-building experience, and an opportunity to earn money. Businesses can hire employees who have the most up-to-date skills, without the risk and expense that comes with a full-time hire. These Gig Economy jobs not only give students freedom and opportunity, but they place a value on flexibility, quality of life, and personal growth.
Which brings me to Lindsey’s other two, as she calls them, “side hustles”:
Lindsey‘s Palette and The Wildheart Collection. Both of these endeavors have, at their core, the belief that creativity and personal growth are vital to mental health. Lindsey’s Palette is a fine art venture that sells bright, one-of-a-kind, paintings that combine graphic imagery with feel good messages such as “Good Vibes” and the tongue-in-cheek, “Screw Perfet”. The Wildheart Collection produces limited edition products designed with the purpose of raising public awareness about mental health issues and posts feel-good messages and links to mental health resources on its instagram page.
Lindsey is an example of how incredible creativity and an inquisitive mind propels an entrepreneur from one idea to the next. Which of Lindsey’s ideas will stick? Who knows? But I can’t wait to see what comes next in the evolution of her entrepreneurial journey.
Lindsey will be the guest on the Summer Stay-cation Series of interviews with Drexel University entrepreneurs on Wednesday, June 24th at 12pm. RSVP here to receive the Zoom Meeting ID and password.
The Ladies who Launch 