Unlocking Entrepreneurial Potential at Opportunity Fest 2024

On November 27, Simon Fraser University’s Surrey campus came to life with entrepreneurial ideas as over 200 SFU students and community members gathered for Opportunity Fest. 

Hosted by SFU’s Charles Chang Institute for Entrepreneurship, Opportunity Fest is the university’s largest annual showcase of student entrepreneurship projects where students, academic leaders, and industry professionals engage in interdisciplinary and intergenerational collaboration to nurture the seeds of change. 

Interdisciplinary students from Technology Entrepreneurship @SFU and two other Innovation & Entrepreneurship courses put learning into action, showcasing solutions and implementation plans - developed in class over the fall semester - to address real-world needs. At the evening event, student teams pitched their startup ideas to roving groups of guest mentors, receiving real-time feedback and insights to push the boundaries of their entrepreneurial mindsets. 

The challenges of today were reflected in the recurring themes addressed by students, as their ideas proposed solutions to enhance urban living, promote sustainable practices, improve workplaces, and advance personal and environmental safety. This year’s themes called attention to the need for resilience and underscored holistic approaches to improving quality of life in both personal and communal spaces.

A highlight of this year’s Opportunity Fest was the participation of undergraduate student founders from the Chang Institute’s Entrepreneurship Co-op program and early-stage startup Incubator. As special guests, these founders brought their products and entrepreneurial journey to the forefront, exemplifying the possibilities that emerge when innovative ideas are met with hands-on support and mentorship. Their impactful ventures range from food and beauty products to marine robotics.

The knowledge exchange between student participants and industry experts fosters an environment where ideas evolve and connections are formed, ones that have the potential to extend far beyond the event itself. Lance Chen, CEO & Founder of student team IDK Wealth, shared, “Through this event, we had the opportunity to connect with industry professionals in the fintech space who not only helped us refine our vision but also played a key role in building our advising team. Their valuable recommendations have significantly influenced the direction of our business, and we’re grateful for the chance to grow within such a supportive environment.”  

A full-circle moment for Opportunity Fest came with the return of five previous student participants as guest mentors. Among them, guest mentor Buk Nkosi, Founder of Holdr, recalls his own impactful experience as a past student participant, sharing that, “Opportunity Fest as a participant was very transformational; I actually met a lot of people that day I still keep in touch with. It really framed how I think about start-ups and building something, building a platform or scaling an idea, so it was definitely a very impactful experience.”  

Through collaboration and applied learning, Opportunity Fest attendees gain invaluable insights into the transformative potential of student-led innovation. The unique interdisciplinary and experiential learning opportunities offered by the Chang Institute and cultivated at Opportunity Fest, contributes to SFU’s recognition as Canada’s top Innovative university in 2024 by The World Universities for Real Impact (WURI).

The High Impact Innovator Award & Protection category winner: XOFORM

Recognized for its high impact potential and win in the Protection category, XOFORM – founded by a team of students from the Faculties of Science, Applied Sciences, and Business – won awards totaling $1000. XOFORM proposes to address a critical gap in safety-certified headgear for turban-wearing Sikh workers, presenting the first headgear solution designed to uphold cultural identity with workplace safety. By utilizing advanced materials like D30, Dyneema, and sheer-thickening fluid-coated Kevlar, XOFORM promises to deliver protection without compromise. 

Category Award Winners: 

The night was full of outstanding innovation and creativity across multiple categories, revealing the diverse and impactful ideas of entrepreneurial minded students. Each category winner was awarded $500 and conveyed a strong understanding of the problem they set out to solve, presenting business models that successfully addressed pressing challenges in today's systems. 

Protection: XOFORM (BUS 477)

Conscious Choices: Gear 2 Peer (BUS 477)

Enhanced Workflows: DataBotix (TechE / MSE 490) 

Urban Ecosystems: Green Grid Homes (BUS 238)

Good Living: IDK Wealth (BUS 477)

More Award Winners:

High Impact Innovator:  XOFORM (BUS 477) 

Entrepreneur’s Choice: Second Savour (Chang Institute eCo-op)

Join us in celebrating the spirit of entrepreneurship and stay inspired by following these teams. Visit the Chang Institute's website to learn more about Opportunity Fest and how you can participate in this annual event next year. 

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The Charles Chang Institute for Entrepreneurship is Simon Fraser University’s interdisciplinary home and academic hub for practicing entrepreneurship. Within the Beedie School of Business, the Chang Institute works with all faculties to create the conditions to foster the entrepreneurial mindset, bringing together the SFU community to engage and collaborate and work across an innovation continuum from K-12 through to early-stage incubation and beyond.

Funding for Opportunity Fest was provided in part by Simon Fraser University’s Beedie School of Business. SFU Beedie is a dynamic institution delivering research and education programs across three British Columbia campuses. Accredited by AACSB and EQUIS, SFU Beedie’s reputation for innovation, social responsibility, and global perspective is recognized worldwide.