10 startups strut their stuff at Portland ‘Demo Day'

Screen shot Colette Johnson, right, co-founder and CEO of PS Collective, with Valentina Meza, who is modeling an outfit curated by the online women’s fashion startup. The women were part of Demo Day, held by Roux Institute on Dec. 15.

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By Renee Cordes

Roux Techstars Accelerator 2022 class:

ByDesign
CICLA
Cypress Health
hey freya
HotDrop
Pointz
ReVert Technologies
The PS Collective
Torque
Virtual Sapiens

More Information

Ten early-stage startups that aim to disrupt industries from women's fashion to music took the stage Thursday in Portland after 13 weeks in the Roux Institute Techstars Accelerator program.

The program is a collaboration between Northeastern University's Roux Institute in Portland and Techstars, a Boulder, Colo.-based operator of business-mentorship programs around the world.

Last week's “Demo Day” capstone event was held at Portland's waterfront Ocean Gateway, where, in January 2020, Northeastern unveiled plans to create the Roux to transform the region into an innovation hub.

On Thursday, Gov. Janet Mills said the Roux is doing that not just for Portland but for all of Maine.

Noting that some members of last last year's Roux Techstars group chose to relocate to the Pine Tree State afterwards, Mills encouraged others to do the same.

"Each of these startups has shown that they have a bright future," she said in her welcoming remarks. "I believe that future should be here."

Chris Wolfel, Northeastern's associate vice president of entrepreneurship and venture creation and a recent Mainebiz 40 under 40 honoree, said the Roux is not trying to build big Maine companies, but rather "world-changing companies that happen to be based in Maine."

He summed up the 2022 Demo Day event as "an incredible showing of the excitement and momentum of the Maine startup ecosystem."

Fashion, music and more

The first founder to take the stage was Colette Johnson, the Brooklyn, N.Y.-based co-founder and CEO of the PS Collective, which promises a better-fitting wardrobe for women in just a few clicks.

After taking a quiz to assess their style, size and needs, users get a stylist-curated "personal closet" with hand-picked items from sustainable designers they can order and later share images of with the PS Collective community and on Instagram. Johnson described the market opportunity as massive.

"In 2022, when you send people to the moon, have self-driving cars and realistic avatars and digital realities, why is it so hard to find clothes that fit and make us feel good?" Johnson asked. She was joined on stage by Valentina Meza, who modeled an outfit curated by the PS Collective.

Other founders touted innovations including HotDrop, an app that aims to connect undiscovered music artists with superfans; Virtual Sapiens to coach people through video meetings; and Pointz, a mapping app that crowdsources safer bike and scooter routes.

Each presentation was short and punchy, blending personal stories with business pitches to potential users and investors.

Lars Perkins, a former Google executive who leads the Roux Techstars accelerator program, previously told Mainebiz that Demo Days are teasers rather than fundraisers, "getting people interested to start a process rather than investors coming in and saying, 'I loved your pitch, let me write you a check.'”

Torey Penrod-Cambra, co-founder and chief marketing officer at Portland industrial software startup HighByte, attended the Demo Day event in person.

"Techstars offered up passionate, charismatic leaders with well-prepared pitches ranging from consumer entertainment to manufacturing innovation," she told Mainebiz afterwards. "A great day for Maine!" The in-person event attracted 231 attendees, while 249 people tuned in remotely.

The Demo Day audience buzz continued on social media, with Katie Shorey of Startup Maine commenting on LinkedIn that "exciting times are ahead," and Steven Tenney of Great Diamond Partners observing that the businesses and Demo Day presentations were all impressive.

More information

Find out more about the 10 companies in the 2022 Roux Techstars Accelerator here.

Photo / Katia Dermott

Roux Institute Techstars Accelerator "Demo Day" participants pose for a group photo with Lars Perkins, managing director of the Roux Techstars Accelerator, and Chris Wolfel, Northeastern University's associate vice president of entrepreneurship and venture creation.