Civil engineering master's student Natalie Monzer's startup company, Chic, has made it to the finals of the TEC Venture Prize competition.
(Edmonton) Engineers certainly have the confidence to solve problems. Many Faculty of Engineering students are applying their problem-solving skills to entrepreneurial endeavours and this week, two of them are bringing their businesses to the annual TEC VenturePrize April 21. Mechanical engineering student Jordan Ritchie and business student Brian Zisin are entering their rental transaction company, Rentzrey. Civil engineering master's student Natalie Monzer believes she has a solution for a common problem in the beauty service industry. She has taken her business idea all the way to the Venture Prize finals, a competition in which entrepreneurs from all across the province pitch business plans and the winner takes a prize that can be used to grow the idea.
We met with Natalie and asked her about the startup, and the role of engineering.Q: Tell us about yourself
A: I came to Canada eight months ago from Lebanon to do a Master in Civil Engineering, more specifically in construction management. I chose this field because I see myself as a project manager and I like that aspect of operations.
Q: What motivated you to start a business?
A: During my first weeks in Canada I was having difficulties finding a good hair salon. I was here and didn't have friends or family and I had to Google everything. I could only see the rating of the places but there was no way of knowing about the quality of the stylists. Also, I couldn't see the prices or schedules online so I had to call many places to ask about prices and book appointments. One day, after many hours browsing the Internet, I found a good place where I tried the different stylists. But this salon closed down and that meant I had to go through the entire process again. I was so frustrated and I told my husband, Firas, about it. At that time we realized that there had to be a better way to do this.
Q: What is the product?
A: It's Chic, a mobile and web application that connects beauty service providers with clients in their houses. It facilitates online booking, payments by credit card, and review of ratings for the beauty service providers.
Q: What problem does the app solve?A: We are a two-sided business that benefit clients and the beauty service providers. The beauty service providers benefit from the extra margin and the client from comfort and convenience.
Q: How does it work?
A: If someone has a party, they can go on the Chic app, find the beauty service provider, and then make an appointment online. Someone could request a haircut, makeup, nails styling, hair removal, or even a massage.
In the long term, our goal is to also provide a whole variety of services in different industries.Q: What are some challenges that you have faced?
A: The time commitment that has gone into this project, balancing school, the house, and the startup. This also applies to my business partners, my husband, Firas, and his friend, Altaf. They have full-time jobs and still invest time and effort into this project. We have been working very hard for the last four months. We haven't had weekends. To do a startup you have to be very committed and you only realize once you start.I always have to be doing a thousand things, but it is going to be worth it because it's a problem that needs to be solved.
We've been doing a lot of research, but the biggest challenge has been funding. We need money to further develop the app and do marketing.
Q: What do potential customers think?
A: We have been testing the product through ads and the responses have been very positive. People on both sides have been very supportive. Clients have been contacting us already to learn about the service and schedule appointments.
On the beauty service side, a woman working with us used to make $12 per hour when she worked at a beauty salon, now she started making $50 per hour.
Q: What have you learned in engineering that has been critical?
A: Engineering isn't what you learn in school, it's about how you can solve problems. That's what I've learned in engineering. No matter what comes on your way, there is a way to overcome it. This is very important for startups because you're going to have a thousand problems, and engineering taught me that several iterations might be necessary before you can reach a satisfactory result.
Engineering is a lifestyle, it taught me how to be disciplined and organized. These are things that are not on the books.
Also, engineering gives you the confidence to solve a problem yourself instead of waiting for someone to come up with the solution.
Q: Who has supported you with this idea?
A: Noreen Hoskins, Director of Ehub has been a great support. She challenged us with our idea and put us in contact with many like-minded individuals. Besides that she provided many opportunities that would have been inaccessible otherwise. The Ehub community has been very helpful, especially because you learn about what other teams have done.
Q: Tell us about the competition and what comes after
A: The competition is on April 21. We get 15 minutes to pitch our business plan and show the judges how the model works. After all the pitches, the winners are announced.
If we win, we will be focusing on improving the app and building an audience.