ORONO, Maine — Emma Wilson and Zeomatrix, an Orono-based startup, believe they found a product 40 million cat owners and their 90 million cats have been waiting for: a biodegradable, odor-capturing cat litter bag.
Wilson’s Zeo Litter Bags was just one of the pitches presented at the Big Gig on Tuesday night at the new University Credit Union building in Orono. Also pitching that evening was Ed Brazee of Boomer Tech Adventures. The third pitcher, Elizabeth Chabe of High Touch Group, was out sick, leaving the contest for the Big Gig’s $250 prize a close two-person race.
The Big Gig, which is entering its third year, gives local entrepreneurs an opportunity to present a big idea they have to local “bigwigs,” receive feedback and a chance to win a cash prize to support efforts to move their innovation to markets.
“The idea is to help and support entrepreneurs to refine and perfect their ideas,” said Paul Riechmann, secretary of the Orono Economic Development Corporation and a Big Gig organizer.
The fun-loving, competitive format aims to contrast with the more traditional business pitch stereotype of a stuffy boardroom filled with humorless executives in expensive suits.
Judging Tuesday’s pitch-off were Brian Rahill of Rainstorm, an Orono-based website development firm, Stephanie Welcomer of the University of Maine Business School and Kris Burton of the UMaine Department of Industrial Cooperation.
The Zeo Bag, which uses a “secret sauce” containing volcanic minerals known as zeolites, began as a project to make covers for landfills to reduce and limit odors before it became a solution for pet owners dealing with the unpleasant odors of litter boxes and an alternative to plastic bags that will sit in a landfill for 1,000 years, Wilson explained.
“Our product is saving the world one smelly cat at a time,” she said, eliciting laughter from the audience.
The environmental message was well-received by the bigwigs.
Rahill described Wilson’s presentation as the “‘Frank Sinatra pitch’: If I can make it here, I can make it anywhere,” referring to the Zeo Bag’s origin as a landfill cover.
Welcomer also praised the pitch that Zeo Bag is “trying to save the world.”
After an audience vote, Wilson and Zeomatrix was announced the winner of the prize money, a small step toward the $10,000 needed to get the Zeo Bags off the ground. Since Sept. 17, Zeomatrix has been raising funds for the bags at the crowdsourcing website Kickstarter.com. So far, $545 has been raised. Wilson will be presenting the Zeo Bag at the Cross Center’s TechWalk on Oct. 2 and the Bangor Humane Society’s Paws on Parade on Oct. 4.
While Brazee and Boomer Tech Adventures are not trying to save the world, he hopes to “help boomers connect and create through technology.”
Boomer Tech Adventures, another Orono-based startup, offers multi-day retreats that aim to both increase digital literacy among baby boomers and provide an opportunity for older adults “from away” to experience the Maine outdoors. Boomer Tech Adventures will be holding its first retreat starting Sunday, Sept. 28, at the UMaine campus.
“Most baby boomers are fairly technology-savvy,” said Brazee, a professor emeritus of the UMaine college of education and human development, adding that many boomers used computers and other technology at their jobs. What Boomer Tech Adventures wants to do is “bring technology into their personal lives.”
Photography is the area of highest interest, according to Brazee. “They want to take good photos, share and save them,” he said.
Baby boomers are also interested in learning more about using programs like Skype to stay in touch with far-flung family. “They like to know what people are doing,” Brazee said.
But Brazee’s appeal Tuesday was to alleviate the 20-somethings of the responsibility of being the family “tech guru,” a sentiment that resounded with many in the audience, including some of the bigwigs.
Besides the chance to win a cash prize, the Big Gig is also a learning experience for the pitchers.
Wilson, who is the business manager of Zeomatrix and a recent UMaine graduate, said it was exciting to be doing what she went to school for and having the product validated. The Big Gig, she said, has taught her “how important networking is for starting a small business” and “the need to do events in person [because] it all can’t be done on social media.”
For Brazee, the Big Gig has pushed him to “hone the pitch and elevator speech.”
For more information about Boomer Tech Adventures, visit boomertechadventures.com.
To contribute to Zeomatrix’s Kickstarter campaign, visit kickstarter.com/projects/1149591224/zeo-litter-bag.