Wheaton College Alumni Magazine Spring 2014 | Page 25

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Peter Sidebotham ‘07 (right),
co-founder of Studio IDM and
Software IDM

Steve Dziedzic ‘06 (below),
founder of Hoppit

H O P P I T, I N C .

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A math major and captain of Wheaton’s crew team his senior year,
Stephen Powell ’08 says, “The 4 a.m. wake-ups, constant sleeplessness,
and hard work of crew prepared me for the insanity of launching a
company.”
Stephen is the co-founder of GUSTIN, a maker of premium
menswear in San Francisco. While working at a technology start-up,
Stephen took an interest in his friend’s fashion brand.
“I loved the product, but hated the traditional business model,” he
says. In an attempt to create relationships directly with customers, and
to reduce the cost to the consumer, they decided to try a new model—
crowdsourcing—that lets the customer decide what gets produced.
Instead of selling to stores or boutiques, they sell their products
directly to the consumers, who place their orders knowing they will
be charged only if the item reaches a certain number of orders.
Since GUSTIN is an eCommerce company, they can quantify
every interaction. Perhaps it is this ability to respond to the needs of
customers that has helped the company become one of the fastestgrowing fashion companies.
Like most entrepreneurs, Stephen says the most difficult part came
in quitting his full-time work, though he did so in 2012 with support
from his wife, Stephanie Blogg Powell ’09.
Over fall break this year, Stephen met with a group of Wheaton
students who had lined up meetings with a number of corporate
Wheaton graduates in the area.
“I think it was interesting for them to meet someone who had taken
a different route,” he says.
His advice for these students? “Don’t wait. Launch something, and
see where it goes.”

5. Seek feedback and advice from experts in the industry.

PROJECT C.O.

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4. Think outside the box.

A third-generation entrepreneur, Liz Salcedo says her father, David Ormesher,
founder of Closerlook, Inc., a market-research firm in Chicago, has been
a great source of connections and advice in launching Everpurse. Before
starting the firm, Liz was a social worker, serving primarily women and
children. A sociology major at Wheaton, she sees “empowering women” as
the thread that ties her old career of social work with this new venture.
Dan got interested in starting his own business in high school. Prior to
Everpurse, he started Mobcart, an online collaborative-shopping site in
Silicon Valley. Born in Colombia, he says his exposure to “two worlds, two
languages, and two different ways of life” has made him more intentional
about putting the gifts he’s been given to good use.
“I want to know that my life reflects who I am as a Christ-follower,” Dan
says.
Both he and Liz feel strongly about building a company that reflects their
values and affects others positively. With an office in China, both take pride
in knowing that within a short period of time they’ve built a reputation
among suppliers, vendors, and employees as “the kind company.”
WHEATON

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