#MIN118 Recap -- A Full House at Workbar Burlington

Already a Bustling Scene in Workbar

Mass Innovation Nights kicked off their tenth (tenth!) year with a jam-packed event at the newly opened Workbar Burlington. The lineup of products was definitely eclectic this time -- lots of new and exciting stuff in more categories than you can imagine. 

Getting Crowded

The four presenters chosen by online voting ahead of the event were:

• Del Sur Empanadas
• Aveyo Spoonable Avocado
• Candorful
• CaneWraps

I made it a priority to check out their tables first and then get to as many of the other products as possible. The product showcase was spread out among three rooms so folks got to see the different types of Workbar spaces as well as the products.

Pat Hubell (L) Telling Maureen Mansfield(R) About How Candorful Helps Vets

Candorful connects veterans and military spouses who are making the transition to civilian life with career coaches for live practice job interviews. After a series of practice interviews, candidates are well-prepared for handling an interview. Helping our service men and women nail the job interview is a great service!

Candorful Presentation

CaneWraps

CaneWraps by Sweetmobility are colorful neoprene sleeves that wrap around a cane to make using one a more positive and stylish experience. The sleeves come in a variety of colors for style and personal expression as well as reflective patterns to increase the cane user's visibility while walking at night. The coolest feature is a protected spot inside the wrap for personal contact information so you can be reunited with your cane if you accidentally leave it behind or something.  The designers are a husband and wife team -- one is an industrial designer and the other an occupational therapist. They have a real vision of getting rid of the stigma of aging and loss of mobility. I was impressed.

CaneWraps Presentation

Aveyo Flavors

Aveyo launched Spoonable Avocado. Avocado is a superfood that's been having its 15 minutes of fame for awhile now, but it's kind of hard to think of it as a quick snack. There's the timing -- it's got to be perfectly ripe -- and there's the preparation.  Aveyo handles those things for you. It's a creamy avocado snack  in a cup -- a spoonable snack like yogurt.  It comes in three flavors: Vanilla Bean, Super Cocoa and Strawberry. I tried the vanilla bean and the cocoa. Look for them in stores soon.

Aveyo Presentation

This wasn't a food themed event, but food was definitely getting attention. My next stop after tasting the avocado spread had to be tasting the empanadas.

Empanadas Were Going Fast!

Del Sur  makes all natural Argentine-style empanadas at their small factory in Lowell. I remember Sebastian and his empanadas from the EforAll 2018 Winter Accelerator.  It was great to see the progress and to taste the wonderful empanadas. I especially like the spinach ones. It was also great to see Joey Banh from EforAll there to support Del Sur.  Del Sur sells these delicious empanadas at farmers' markets and offers catering service. Trust me, you need these empanadas at your next event.

Del Sur Presentation

The A Cloud of My Own table was attracting quite a crowd. With all the smart devices in our homes nowadays, we all need to pay attention to security. A Cloud of My Own stops hackers from monitoring and controlling those "Internet of Things" and "Smart Home" devices inside your home. I was not surprised that they won first place in the audience choice voting.

A Cloud of My Own

Lawn Serv provides a DIY lawn care subscription box customized for your lawn's particular needs.You provide a soil sample to start off and Lawn Serv selects a mix of lawn care supplies based on the soil analysis. Lawn Serv's monthly box provides just what you need for each season. Their table was really busy.

Lawn Serv

Athleisure limited edition leggings and tops from IG MODA by Irina Gorbman, Inc. feature designs based on what they call meditative art. The art is indeed beautiful to look at and I can see how wearing such beautiful designs could enhance your workout or just make your day more beautiful.

Athleisure Wearable Art

Recipi is a free small business web marketing tool that helps small businesses compete in today's digital marketplace. Using Recipi instead of having to hire a high-priced marketing consultant simplifies connecting your website, social media, and analytics etc. on one dashboard so you can maximize your web presence.

Recipi

Alas, I did not manage to visit either Smarketing Institute, sales and marketing consulting, or NanaGram, photo printing and mailing service.

Standing Room Only for the Presentations

Jam-Packed Workbar

The winners in the audience choice voting were Del Sur, Aveyo, Lawn Serv, and A Cloud of My Own. All of them made a big impression.

The Winners

The experts holding down the Experts Corner were Workbar, East Boston Savings Bank (conveniently located right across the parking lot), and public speaking coach Linda Ugelow. All gave excellent brief expert presentations. Linda Ugelow's presentation really engaged with the audience, so this month's Expert Looking Expert photo is Linda making her presentation.

Expert Looking Expert