Community-Built. Market-Ready. No Resume Needed – SXSW27 Proposal
SXSW Proposal: Community Built. Market-Ready. No Resume Needed
Description:
What if the next great consumer product came not from Silicon Valley, but from a first-time founder with no resume and big potential? This session breaks down a young-adult-led incubator that pays people from under-invested communities to become product co-founders, taking concepts from trend research through validation, prototyping, and launch in a fail-fast, stage-gate process. Our first product grossed $2 million in its first year; three more products are in pre-order. Hear the playbook from program leaders and an industry partner who sees this pipeline as the future of product talent.
Takeaways:
- A stage-gate playbook for turning market trends into launched consumer products with first-time, youth co-founders.
- How ad testing, customer interviews, and gate reviews de-risk products before investing in tooling and inventory.
- A revenue flywheel: Sales fund the next cohort and the high school program, while founders participate in the financial upside of what they create.
- founders earn upside ownership and income while product sales fund future cohorts as well as the partner high school program.
Speakers:
Lori Archibald
As VP, Chief of Staff and Engineering Process at SharkNinja, Lori drives the company’s global engineering organization, accelerating innovation, operational excellence, and cross-functional collaboration. She partners with engineering and product development to scale the company’s innovation engine and bring breakthrough consumer products to market. With roles spanning robotics, product development, and management, Lori understand how exceptional products come to life. Prior to SharkNinja, she held engineering roles at Hasbro, Converse and Reebok, building deep expertise in consumer product development and engineering. Lori is passionate about developing talent and fostering innovation, and supports SharkNinja’s initiatives to cultivate the next generation of product innovators.
Jeremy Martindale
Jeremy started at The Possible Zone (TPZ) Ventures as a Founding Associate, where he researched market trends, came up with demand-aligned concepts, and ultimately validated and brought a new consumer product to life as part of the Launch program. His product is Terrix, a modular terrarium designed for PC users and home gardening enthusiasts. Terrix recently received the audience choice first place award at Massachusetts Innovation Night at Boston’s Museum of Science. Jeremy, a TPZ alumnus, now works as an Educator with TPZ, where he helps the next generation of high school students build the skills they need for careers of the future.
Moderator:
Eliza Petrow
Eliza is the Chief Business Officer at The Possible Zone (TPZ), where she leads TPZ Ventures—a physical product incubator that trains youth from underinvested communities to develop and launch consumer products as co-founders. Her career began in nonprofit public health and education, with over a decade spent in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and China where she worked both as a donor and implementer. She later served as Investment Director at Zino Ventures and co-founded Chain Reaction, an angel group investing in early-stage blockchain startups. Eliza holds a B.A. from Wesleyan University and an MSc from the Harvard School of Public Health. She is an active member of Launchpad Venture Group and mentors with VenCapital, which supports women and minority investors entering venture finance.