Honolulu Startup Weekend in review
Passion. When it really comes down to it — you only do what’s important. For over 90 people this past weekend, it was important to spend 54 hours in a room full of strangers with the goal to start Honolulu’s next business.
From porn cakes to vertical farming, Honolulu’s first Startup Weekend proved to be an interesting mish-mash of talents, industries and interests, looking to learn, grow and make a difference with their ideas.
Some came with friends. Others came alone, from here and from the mainland, to seek a new path in life, meet new mentors, make new contacts and network with people just like them.
Here’s a list of the companies, in order, who made it to Sunday’s pitch (from StartupWeekend.org):
- Ohana Mala – gives socially conscious consumers a simple and fast way to find fresh local produce
- Cardio Panda – an online community for local activity enthusiasts and a platform for health and wellness entrepreneurs
- Project Rhymasaur – online organic rhyming dictionary software
- Kudos (Honorable mention) – crowd-sourced platform that highlights the best things to eat and drink and find deals for them
- Sinful Edibles (3rd place) – local company providing erotic edible party favors and dessert arrangements for special occasions
- GreatHealthOptions.com (1st place) – website that helps facilitate health care choices
- Heart My City (2nd place) – online/mobile system to help make cities better places and enhance civic engagement.
- Organic Capital, Inc. – feeding the people and following your passion through local, ethical, vertical farming
Danielle Sherman and Dave Pascua worked hard to bring Startup Weekend to Honolulu, and the turnout was awesome. Here’s a gallery of photos from the weekend along with a video of the scenes and an interview with a member from the winning team, GreatHealthOptions.com:
Startup Weekend Honolulu
What I’ve witnessed this weekend is the stuff that keeps me going. Knowing that I live in a place full of passionate, talented and creative entrepreneurs who are willing to go out on a limb, take a risk and make Hawaii a better place to live. It was a beautiful thing.
Next Startup Weekend is slated for March 2012 and follow-up meetings are planned in an effort to keep the original group together. Look for more information on http://honolulu.startupweekend.org — hope to see you there!
