Creating a culture of entrepreneurship: FABricate

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Emily Davenport: 0:01

Welcome to"Cultivating Curiosity," where we get down and dirty with the experts on all the ways science and agriculture touch our lives, from what we eat to how we live. I'm Emily Davenport.

Jordan Powers: 0:12

And I'm Jordan Powers. And we're from the University of Georgia's College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

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Jordan Powers: 0:21

In today's episode, we're going to talk to Chris Rhodes, director of industry partnerships and project based learning at the UGA's College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. And then later on in the episode, we're going to talk to a couple of students who have been through the FABricate process and can talk about their experience. But first welcome, Chris.

Chris Rhodes: 0:38

Thank you.

Jordan Powers: 0:39

Tell us a little bit about your role here at CAES and how you ended up being a part of FABricate.

Chris Rhodes: 0:44

Sure, yeah, I came to CAES about two years ago, from a background in the private sector in entrepreneurship and precision agriculture. I really have three goals at CAES. The first is to make UGA the go-to research partner for industry. The second is to build a culture of entrepreneurship in the College of Agriculture amongst the students and the faculty. And third is to make sure that our students are as prepared as possible to go out into the private sector. I got involved in FABricate because it was part of the experiential learning teams remit back then. And they felt like I had a background and entrepreneurship and it just made sense for me to take it over and run it and try to build it up.

Jordan Powers: 1:28

That's amazing. That background of entrepreneurship and agriculture, I think is something that gets left out of the conversation quite a bit. So it's really exciting to see a program dedicated to that here at UGA.

Chris Rhodes: 1:37

Absolutely.

Emily Davenport: 1:38

Can you tell us a little bit more about what FABricate is?

Chris Rhodes: 1:40

Sure! FABricate is an entrepreneurial pitch contest. So if you've ever seen the show Shark Tank, it's basically that. The kind of hook is, that it is built around either food ideas, farming ideas, or sustainability ideas. So if it's not one of those things, it's not eligible for FABricate. The great thing about it, or at least a great thing for the students is it's a$10,000 prize. So you go through a number of different levels and parts of the contest. And in the end, the winner gets $10,000. They can use that for their company, they can use it for other things. But that's what usually draws the students in is that kind of funding.

Jordan Powers: 2:19

Outside of that really amazing prize that the students are competing for, what other opportunities does FABricate provide for students?

Chris Rhodes: 2:26

Yeah, I mean, everybody starts with the prize, right? That's what gets people's attention. But really, I always say there's only one prize winner, but everybody's a winner in the program. The real great part of it is that these students get access to experts to help them build their business, there's me who's gone through it before, there are mentors who help them. There's seminars that teach them about what it means to start a business. The judges are usually very accomplished and very helpful. And ultimately, one of the great values for a startup company is the connections that they make through this, it's very visible, they do get in front of nine judges who have their own businesses. And so we have a bunch of student companies from the last few years who have become real companies and are working with bigger companies that they met through this process. The biggest thing that I guess I would say about the program, and the biggest takeaway, is the peers. So they meet other people who think like they do; there's 40,000 people on this campus, it's not always easy for students to find people who are interested in the same things that they are. This brings them together. And we've really seen a close connection between different members of the community once they've started to work on their projects. So they start out as competitors, of course; they're all trying to get that $10,000 prize. But what they find over the course of, you know, working together is that they learn from each other, they build this community, and they've become friends beyond the program. The other thing I'd say about, the other benefit of FABricate is beyond just being great for your business, if you want to continue that business. It's just a great experience overall for your career. It gives you experience looking at a business holistically, which you don't always get early in your career when you go out into the private sector. And as you're trying to find a job, it's a great conversation starter. It's a great thing to have on your resume that moves your resume to the top of the list because it's such an interesting, usually unusual thing to do. And that's what employers are looking for. So, those were all the benefits besides the $10,000.

Jordan Powers: 4:43

Absolutely. Having that little extra thing on the resume. I feel like especially these days is so important.

Chris Rhodes: 4:49

Absolutely.

Emily Davenport: 4:50

Definitely. Who is eligible to participate in FABricate?

Chris Rhodes: 4:53

Any student at UGA. So graduate, undergraduate, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences or not, we've had students from the vet school, we've had students from the business school. So really, just because it's run out of our college doesn't mean it's limited to the college, any student; your team can also have non-students on it, it needs to be, I believe it's at least two thirds of the team members need to be students. But you can have one or two team members who aren't students at UGA as well.

Jordan Powers: 5:24

And you touched on one of the things that I think is really exciting about FABricate is that it's run by the College of Agricultural Environmental Sciences. But it really is that cross-departmental, that cross-college environment, that students are getting to engage with people that may not be in their classes, when they're going through their program, and really getting to go across the college and make those connections on both on a personal and professional level, which is really exciting.

Chris Rhodes: 5:47

That's exactly right. It really does bring like-minded folks together from wherever they happen to be on campus. You know, a big university like this, there's not always that opportunity to connect with people from other schools. This is absolutely the place where people run into each other. It's really been great to see those connections forming and the kind of richness of the experience that comes from that.

Emily Davenport: 6:11

How did FABricate get started?

Chris Rhodes: 6:13

You know, I wasn't here when it started, I believe the way it got started was from one of the previous deans of the College of Agricultural Environmental Sciences got together with some business leaders from around Georgia who thought that there was an opportunity for our college to be a little more engaged with, kind of commercialization of ideas. And so, Keith Kelly was one of those key early business folks from Georgia who helped. He's still engaged, he's still a judge, super helpful working with some of our previous contestants who are now running their own businesses.

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Emily Davenport: 6:46

Keith Kelly graduated from UGA CAES with a degree in agricultural economics. Since then, he's applied his business and agricultural knowledge to help CAES and its students achieve the same success he believes the college equipped him to achieve. Kelly is a founding sponsor of FABricate, where he also serves as a judge, and is also partnering with CAES researchers in the Department of Animal and Dairy Science on a project focused on methane reduction and improving the efficiency of cattle production.

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Chris Rhodes: 7:17

So it was kind of the brainchild between the academic group here and the business community in Georgia.

Jordan Powers: 7:25

Continuing those connections, beyond UGA. So we've talked a lot about what FABricate can mean for the students who are participating. What does FABricate mean for the university?

Chris Rhodes: 7:37

Yeah. Well, I think you know, first of all, it's always important to remember that FABricate is part of this broader innovation community at the university, there's been a lot of investment, a lot of energy put towards the Innovation District at the University of Georgia, you see it at the business school, you see at the Delta Hub, each college has a connection into that as well. And that's kind of what my job is here. So we're contributing to that overall ecosystem of innovation at the University of Georgia. It gives students at the university insight into a couple of industries that are actually a little bit weird. You know, agriculture is a little bit of a different type of industry, food is a little bit of a different type of industry. And sustainability is such a growth industry. Right now you're seeing it kind of rear up in the areas where you might not have seen it before. So the fact that we're focused on those things, I think adds to the overall University of Georgia innovation community. The third piece is it gives the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences a focal point for thinking about entrepreneurship, and what that does, in turn, as it connects students and members of the CAES community into this kind of culture at UGA that they might not have had access to before, or even realized existed. So, when you're bringing in kind of a whole group of new people into a community like that, I think that adds to the overall so there's a value in having an entrepreneurial contest in a college versus just coming out of the business school.

Emily Davenport: 9:13

If you could describe FABricate in one word, what would it be?

Chris Rhodes: 9:16

This is the hardest possible question you could ask.

Emily Davenport: 9:19

Excellent.

Everyone: 9:20

[laughter]

Chris Rhodes: 9:21

I think the word I would use would be community. Everybody who starts out with FABricate is interested in the prize, you can see it in the room. When I say $10,000 prize you can see everybody's eyes get real big. The reason that everybody stays in the FABricate kind of universe is because of who they meet, and what they learn, and how engaged the community is around them as part of FABricate. As I think about how do I want to build this program out? It always comes back to "how do we build that community? How do we build that culture?" So that's if I have to use only one word, and that word's not awesome, I'm gonna use community.

Jordan Powers: 10:04

I feel like awesome is another good word to

Everyone: 10:04

[laughter] use; maybe not as hard hitting, doesn't quite get you in the feels the same way, but still accurate.[laughter]

Jordan Powers: 10:14

So Emily and I are a couple of deadline-driven, A-type one's here. So let's talk a little bit about timelines. I know that FABricate kind of runs on an annual cycle of deadlines. Talk to us a little bit about what those timelines look like for those students who might be interested in participating.

Chris Rhodes: 10:29

Really, the next deadline is in January. So we want people to sign up for the program, preferably by January 24, so that we can then connect them with mentors. The final deadline is in mid-February, if you don't want a mentor or you're struck by inspiration in mid-January, it's fine, you can join the program up until mid-February. And then it really runs hardcore between that mid-February to mid-March and the finals are at the end of March. I do recommend everybody sign up as soon as they can. If you have an idea, why not sign up? It's easy, it takes five minutes to kind of get on the radar, and what you get as soon as you sign up as access to some of the resources that become available. So we'll start finding you a mentor, you'll start to get invited to different types of events where you can learn more about entrepreneurship and the ag industry or the food industry. And so there's real value and signing up sooner rather than later. But in terms of deadlines, really nothing that you have to do before the end of the year.

Emily Davenport: 11:33

Can you tell us more about how the mentors get involved in the program?

Chris Rhodes: 11:37

When I came in and kind of took over FABricate, it felt like there was an opportunity to bring in business leaders who are interested in helping students out and helping them progress their businesses. And so as soon as a team signs up, I start to look through my Rolodex or the college's contact lists, and just start to reach out to people who might be able to offer some additional wisdom. What the students have is a lot of energy, creativity, smarts, hard work; what they don't always have is knowledge of the industry or knowledge of certain aspects of running a business. So we try to connect them up with folks who can really help them in that part of their planning and pitching and all the other stuff that go along with with starting a business.

Jordan Powers: 12:26

Is there anything else that we've missed that you want to share?

Chris Rhodes: 12:28

There's two things that I want to be sure that kind of people hear. The first is just sign up, you know, people get nervous about it, they don't want to embarrass themselves or they're worried it's going to be too much work or, you know, there's a lot of reasons that people use to convince themselves not to sign up. And I say just sign up, it doesn't matter where you are in the journey. There's an opportunity for you to learn about entrepreneurship, about yourself about organization, about creativity. So just sign up. The second thing I would just want to be sure everybody knows is that FABricate contestants are absolutely killing it out there. We've got real companies doing real things, national companies at this point who are distributing their their wares nationally. Really, you know, several companies that are making a real go of it. The other thing I would say is that we have even more contestants whose teams have gone on to win other contests. We've got teams who have done FABricate and then gone on and been very successful in other areas of the college and other parts of entrepreneurship. They've gone to the business school, they've gone to other universities, and done really well in those contests as well.

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Emily Davenport: 13:40

We'll add links to successful FABricate teams in the show notes for you.

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Chris Rhodes: 13:44

So like I said, it's a great community, people are being very successful in a number of different ways.

Jordan Powers: 13:49

I love that sentiment of just sign up, just do the thing. Later on in the episode, we're going to talk to a couple of students who did exactly that. They just signed up and have amazing stories of the process and of the program. But in the meantime, thanks, Chris, for joining us today. We really appreciate your time.

Chris Rhodes: 14:06

Thank you.

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Jordan Powers: 14:18

Welcome back listeners. We are here with poultry science student Chris Ayers and biological engineering student Jeffrey Whitmire, who won $10,000 for their idea, Chiktopia, an automated chicken tractor designed to move pasture-raised chickens easily and efficiently while preserving the land and saving labor costs. You all clearly did very well participating in FABricate. Tell us how you heard about FABricate?

Chris Ayers: 14:42

Yeah, so I first heard about FABricate when I was coming into the university as a transfer student from Georgia State. This actually came about through speaking with an outreach coordinator named Whitney Jones. And so I got to telling her about this sort of solar powered chicken tractor that I had. And that's when I think a bell went off in her head and she realized this idea would fit perfectly within the context of the FABricate competition. And prior to speaking with her, I really didn't think of, you know, starting Chiktopia as a company or anything like this.

Jeffery Whitmire: 15:10

Yeah, so I heard about FABricate because I needed a new roommate. So I posted on Facebook. And then Chris was actually the one that accepted, showed up to my house a day early, actually. And I was like, who is this guy coming up early? And then we sat there and talked for like, two hours. And everybody else I interviewed kind of just didn't vibe with very well. When we actually became roommates, he started telling me about the chicken tractors he had been making, tells me about a competition. I'm like, yeah, sure, I'll help you out with it. I'll join because he had saw that I was a bio engineering student and thought I could help him. So that's how I heard about it.

Jordan Powers: 15:47

Okay, so now I need to get this timeline straight. Because before we started recording, you all are seniors, you transferred here two years ago. And in that two year time period, you went from this idea that you thought maybe never would turn into anything to winning $10,000 from FABricate to start your company?

Chris Ayers: 16:03

Yes, that's right.

Jordan Powers: 16:05

That's the definition of a whirlwind.

Everyone: 16:07

[laughter]

Chris Ayers: 16:09

I'd like to also add the story of when I realized that Jeffery would be a perfect business partner, is one day, I was showing him this one part of the previous prototype that I had designed, which, in my opinion, is also the worst part of that prototype. And so I was asking Jeffery, you know, why am I encountering this problem, which was basically my wheels turning inward. And so he sat down and drew out the whole equation and explained to me what a moment was and what a moment arm was, and really made it to where I was fully able to understand that concept and as to why that failure was occurring. So after having that conversation with him, that's when I realized like, to myself, okay, Jeffery, is definitely somebody that I need to have with me on this endeavor, because he's able to understand these problems, not only can he understand them, but he can also explain them to other people in ways that make perfect sense. So you can solve that problem, you know, through the understanding.

Jordan Powers: 17:00

Absolutely. A lightbulb moment, a perfect pairing, it sounds like[laughter].

Emily Davenport: 17:04

That's amazing. Have you always wanted to be an entrepreneur?

Chris Ayers: 17:08

I have, yes. My father has ran multiple businesses, you know, throughout my life growing up, so he started with HVAC. And then in 2006, economic crash, that company went under. And so ever since then, he's been running his pressure washing company. So as a part of being one of his employees, and it being a family run business, you know, I've had to take on the role of helping him run that business, going and selling jobs, pressure washing houses. And so, you know, doing all that really instilled in me, the entrepreneurial spirit, and sort of that spirit of like independence, I would say, you know, to go out there and do things and sort of, I don't know, forge your own path, you know?

Jordan Powers: 17:48

Absolutely. How about you, Jeffrey?

Jeffery Whitmire: 17:50

Yeah, I would say that I've always wanted to, in some capacity, like I've always had a drive towards being independent on whatever I'm doing, had like inklings here and there about running my own thing. And when Chris came along, was showing me this and the farther we got with the more grew, it was really exciting. So really glad to be a part of it and that it's an opportunity to have.

Jordan Powers: 18:14

Truly starting something from the ground, or the wheels up, I suppose. Absolutely. Tell us a little bit more about Chiktopia. We got the basics of it at the intro here. But tell us a little bit more about the company and where it's at right now.

Unknown: 18:28

There's this farming style called pasture raised poultry. It's essentially like grass fed beef version of chickens. So you have chickens who have access to fresh grass every day. And in order to keep those chickens protected, you use a mobile housing unit called a chicken tractor. And conventionally, they're made out of just chicken wire and wood. And the farmer just drags them around by hand or with a truck or trailer, like a heavy piece of equipment. So Chiktopia is coming in with the mindset of how do you automate this style of farming, allow a farmer to have more access to time and still be able to grow this really good nutrient dense meat and eggs, this alternative food choice is definitely growing. So we want to come in and provide automation to that farmer practice.

Jordan Powers: 19:18

This is really working to, I would assume how the producers with automation, benefit their time, but also I know that there was a little bit of talk of it preserving land, and how does it help the environmental side?

Chris Ayers: 19:30

Yeah, so on the environmental side, you can take a mobile chicken tractor and compare it to something like a stationary house. And, you know, what you'll see with stationary chicken houses, even ones that allow for their birds to free range outside of the house during the day. What you see is around that house, essentially the soil gets ruined because it's oversaturated with nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorus. And these are things that come out of the chicken's body and then go out onto the soil and run off into waterways and things like this as they accumulate. And so with a mobile chicken tractor, what you can do is essentially spread that nitrogen and phosphorus equally throughout that pasture. And as a result, you can instead of leading to detrimental oversaturation with nutrients, you can actually lead to sort of a positive regeneration by adding those nutrients back into that soil. So this style of farming would be beneficial for pasture land in general. But it could also be extremely beneficial for a farmer who is using pasture raised chickens in conjunction with his crops, because then this farmer would be able to save lots of money from having to use synthetic fertilizers to go out there and spread on the fields. So during the dormant season, per se, you can have your chickens go through and essentially get that piece of land fertile and ready for that next growing season. So it's a cool effect that the chickens have on the pasture by building that soil by being there in sort of a low duration, but higher density.

Jordan Powers: 20:55

That's fascinating. This is why we love our job is we get to learn about all these amazing minds and the things you all are doing to better life for producers and our planet.

Emily Davenport: 21:05

Yeah, I actually have more questions about how the tractor works. I'm just imagining it on wheels. How are the chickens reaching the ground? And/or how does the farmer control where it goes and when it goes where?

Jeffery Whitmire: 21:16

To explain this, I need to tell you that there's two different styles of pasture raised poultry, there's egg production, and meat production. So with the meat production, you'll have a broiler coop, and that will have no floor and the chickens will have access to that pasture. And the sides of the coop are what contain them, and then move them along to constantly have access to grass. Now with egg layers, it's a mobile housing unit that they go in and out of, and then you use either like a stationary fence, a large fenced in area or a fence that you can move by hand and then you contain them that way. So you're right when you think that there are wheels, and it's just kind of moving along it. It's not that simple. But it kind of is like I guess you could say.

Emily Davenport: 22:01

How does the farmer drive it around?

Chris Ayers: 22:03

So the tractors actually move themselves from[laughter] the fifth prototype onward, every every single coop that we make here on out moves itself. Right now, we're not using a drive system, we're moreso using a pulling system that allows for the coop to then move itself under its own power on the pasture. So the farmer is not actually having to go out there and move it with any equipment or by hand, they can move at remote control or set it on a timer. And essentially, it'll move one coop length however often they they'd like to do it. So, you know, with the egg laying ccop, these birds aren't confined to that house all day, every day. So that means that they get to go out and free range in one of those two styles of fences, right. For the broilers, though they have access to that grass every single day. And so it's a requirement that that coop gets moved daily. And so one big aspect of our coops that we were implementing for both broilers and egg layers is the fact that it does move itself under its own power, meaning that the farmer is not having to go out there anymore to move that chicken tractor day in and day out. Another part that's noteworthy and worth adding is that as a broiler chicken grows older 4-weeks and beyond, that's about half of his lifecycle, it needs to be moved twice a day, especially if you have the stocking density 1.5 birds per square foot or less. So a higher stocking density means that you have to move them more often. So having a coop that moves itself basically offers a lot of advantages for the producer, in terms of time and labor savings.

Jordan Powers: 23:35

So you're saving a ton of labor if you're going from physically moving something twice a day to being able to remote control it and be working on other tasks. And I mean, as we know, most of our producers don't have one single sole thing they're focused on, it's about a million things at once. So that's amazing. Tell us a little bit about what drew you in to participate in FABricate and really what FABricate has done for your company.

Chris Ayers: 23:58

Personally, what really drew me in to FABricate was sitting down and talking with Chris Rhodes and learning more about the actual competition, learning about previous competitors and where their businesses are at. You know, so those two things in conjunction with one another is what convinced me that FABricate was a competition that I absolutely wanted to compete in.

Jordan Powers: 24:16

And what did FABricate do for your company?

Chris Ayers: 24:18

If I were to simplify it into one word, it helped our company grow. We grew in the aspect of getting our names out there through marketing, having articles written on us that we were then able to go use when we were talking to new people, they would understand that we are a credible source. So having articles written on us through UGA essentially helps give us credibility and credence when we're speaking to new individuals.

Jeffery Whitmire: 24:40

FABricate really helped us with the prize

Jordan Powers: 24:40

Absolutely. I know Chris, when he was in here money because we were able to take that and turn it into a new generation prototype for egg layers. And we wouldn't have earlier was of course mentioning that prize money is one of the been able to do that as quickly had not it been for FABricate. biggest incentives but then there's also all of those tangential benefits like getting your name out there and the mentorship, we've heard earlier today about the benefit of that mentorship component of FABricate. So it's really wonderful to see, kind of that multifaceted benefit that comes out of the program.

Emily Davenport: 25:14

When thinking about the mentorship side, can you guys talk a little bit about your mentor and how that relationship has evolved over your participation in FABricate?

Chris Ayers: 25:22

Definitely, the relationship we have with Chris now I'd say it's extremely cordial, I can text him if I ever needed to, I can reach out to him and give him a call. It started out as me coming to Chris's office and sort of just telling him about this idea. And Chris sort of saw the light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak, when I told him, we actually had a prototype that was functional. That was the moment when he sat back and said, along the lines of, this is what makes this much more real is the fact that you have something already built, that's working, that's proven itself. And so beyond that point, you know, our relationship's only grown and grown stronger, with more meetings, him helping us grow our network. And so he's gotten us in connection with lots of individuals who have helped us grow beyond FABricate and UGA.

Jeffery Whitmire: 26:07

After we did FABricate, we went out and did other programs at UGA. And we've met tons of people, and they all have, you know, their different ways of doing things. And Chris Rhodes has always been able to, like keep us on track. And we're always able to go back to him, tell him what has developed, and he'll guide us where to go from there.

Jordan Powers: 26:28

Incredible. Yeah, his passion for the program is very much apparent in everything that he does, which is wonderful. What surprised you all the most about your experience with FABricate, were there any either ah-ha moments or just surprising parts of the process?

Chris Ayers: 26:42

For me, the surprising part was how difficult it was to actually go out and pitch in front of these judges. So I had actually gone and won one prior pitch before we had gone through FABricate. After having gone through that experience, I thought that I was more confident stepping in front of judges. And thankfully FABricate actually has three different pitches that you have to go through. And so for me, getting that extra practicing, even though if you're not one of the judge's picks in the second competition, you will get cut. But essentially, having three different pitches go along through just one competition allows for all the contestants to get in front of judges, in my opinion, you know, enough times to build that confidence that it takes. And so I was surprised that the lack of confidence that I had going into that first FABricate contest. And so after that pitch, I had a moment of realization that there was a lot of work that I needed to do in order to get better and get more comfortable pitching in front of these judges, because that was a 90-second quick pitch. And it certainly was not my best performance.

Jordan Powers: 27:44

But it sounds like you've had the practice and the experience. And clearly things are going well. So it sounds like you're doing all right. But it is pretty amazing. Those 90-second pitches, I don't think anybody realizes how much pressure is on you. In that moment, you can go into it 100% prepared and still come out of going, huh, okay. How did that go? Really?

Emily Davenport: 28:04

Yeah.

Jeffery Whitmire: 28:05

What really surprised me was that there's so much opportunity for student-led startups and lots of people don't take advantage of it. And there are all these people like Chris Rhodes, and all the judges that Chris brings in, are really wanting to help, which is, I think, a really, really good thing. And I was completely blind to it before I met Chris and heard about FABricate, so.

Emily Davenport: 28:28

What would you tell other students about FABricate to encourage them to participate?

Chris Ayers: 28:32

Beyond the $10,000, this is a great life experience. So going through this competition gives you sort of the spotlight in front of these judges to know whether or not your idea is valid. Also, going through the FABricate experiences requires, for all the students that go through it, to do extensive amount of research and legwork in developing their idea. Or if they already have a business, developing that business even further so that it's more appealing in front of the judges. So what I would tell all students is to not be fearful, if you're worried about public speaking and pitching, don't be, practice makes perfect. Also, I would mention to a student that the value that they will get through going through this program won't be matched through just about anything else that they could do. There's just about nothing else that will test you and really refine your business down to a point to where it could actually become self sustaining. Like the FABricate competition.

Jeffery Whitmire: 29:28

Yeah, I would have to agree with everything Chris is saying and then maybe say, a lot of people that I've met might have ideas because as I've gone through this and told people what I'm doing now they will tell me oh, well, I kind of had this idea or that. And I would say that there's no other place like FABricate in the entrepreneurship system at UGA that you're going to be able to go and have the opportunity with the low level of judgment and such a high level of value provided to you like feedback. So if you're ever going to do that, I would say do it now while you're a student.

Jordan Powers: 30:04

And now is the time I know I'm like, I wish I had some opportunity like this, I went to a very small university. And this is just such an incredible thing to hear about, it makes me want to go back.

Chris Ayers: 30:14

I'd also like to add one more point about FABricate and the judges and Chris Rhodes and everybody else that is involved with FABricate. FABricate for entrepreneurs is one of the only times where every single person involved in the process is looking to help you every single coach, mentor, individual that we networked and had a meeting with, every single individual was out there to help us in any way that they could help us. And having my prior experience with my father's pressure washing businesses, I know this is not the case in real life. So, really take advantage of sort of the network that you have at your disposal being a student here.

Jordan Powers: 30:51

So we know you all are both seniors, you're, unfortunately for UGA, leaving in the near future. What's next for Chiktopia?

Chris Ayers: 30:58

Just like with FABricate, growth, being students sort of limits us in terms of scaling up because we have requirements for classes, exams. So for us, it's going to be growth in terms of manufacturing, distribution, making sales, really putting together a team of individuals that can make this a successful company.

Jeffery Whitmire: 31:19

Yeah, I would say our rough plan is raise money, start manufacturing and you know, sell and grow. Like, in the shortest way you can put it.

Jordan Powers: 31:29

I think that was a business plan in five words, and I am impressed.

Everyone: 31:33

[laughter]

Emily Davenport: 31:35

I love it. Okay, so if you could describe FABricate in one word, what would it be?

Chris Ayers: 31:41

Reshaping. Because, not only just with Chiktopia and ourselves, but lots of people go in to FABricate having only ideas. And by the time they make it through that top five or top 15, through the second or third competition, what they started with looks completely different coming out. Because a lot of us go in not having a lot of experience in the pitching world or in the entrepreneurship world. So having the guidance through the mentorship helps you really reshape your whole idea your whole company into something that has the potential to go out and sustain yourself.

Emily Davenport: 32:19

It's a good word.

Chris Ayers: 32:21

Thank you.

Jordan Powers: 32:23

No pressure, Jeffrey.

Everyone: 32:25

[laughter]

Jeffery Whitmire: 32:26

I guess I would say fulfilling, that would be my one word. I feel like that's kind of like a cliche, but it's like an emotional roller coaster with entrepreneurship because you're gonna have, like, 10 times where you're gonna think everything's not gonna work out. And then you'll have 10 times where you think you're about to take over the world and make the biggest business in the history of mankind. And you have to balance those out and, like, you really do feel the highs and the lows, but I would say you kind of grow into managing that. But that is a very, for me, personally fulfilling way to live.

Jordan Powers: 33:04

I love it. I don't think it's cliche at all. I love it.

Emily Davenport: 33:06

No, that's great.

Jordan Powers: 33:08

Well, we covered a lot of ground today. I just made an accidental chicken tractor pun we've covered the ground of the podcast.

Everyone: 33:16

[laughter]

Jordan Powers: 33:16

But is there anything else we've missed that you all want to share?

Chris Ayers: 33:19

So a piece of exciting news that's coming from Chiktopia moving forward, we've made our first sale and so our very first coop is set to be delivered on Rock House

Sound Effect: 33:30

[chime] Creamery's farm.

Emily Davenport: 33:32

Rock House Farm and Creamery is owned by Keith Kelly.

Sound Effect: 33:36

[chime]

Jordan Powers: 33:36

Congratulations!

Emily Davenport: 33:38

Ooo, yeah.

Chris Ayers: 33:38

Extremely excited to deliver that coop and to make content and to essentially show the world what it is that we've been up to.

Jordan Powers: 33:48

Congrats! That is, talk about a high of that roller coaster ride right there.

Jeffery Whitmire: 33:52

Absolutely. We kind of made our first sale through, like meeting someone in FABricate I mean, it's the primary benefactor of the competition, but like...

Jordan Powers: 34:01

But that's now a continued relationship...

Chris Ayers: 34:03

Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

Jordan Powers: 34:03

...that you all have of, he's not only a partner in this FABricate program, but now he's a client, as well.

Chris Ayers: 34:09

Absolutely.

Jordan Powers: 34:10

That's amazing.

Emily Davenport: 34:10

Yeah, without that initial connection, you wouldn't have that...

Jeffery Whitmire: 34:14

Right.

Emily Davenport: 34:14

...first sale, so...

Chris Ayers: 34:15

Exactly.

Emily Davenport: 34:16

Awesome. Cool. Yeah, thank you.

Chris Ayers: 34:20

Thank you both.

Sound Effect: 34:20

[chime]

Emily Davenport: 34:20

Check out our two bonus episodes featuring past FABricate participants for even more FABricate content.

Sound Effect: 34:26

[music]

Emily Davenport: 34:27

Thanks for listening to "Cultivating Curiosity," a podcast produced by the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. A special thanks to Mason McClintock for our music and sound effects. Find more episodes wherever you get your podcasts.