'ONE IN (MORE THAN) A THOUSAND,' ONTARIO ENTREPRENEUR TAKES TOP PLACE AT EPIC GLOBAL PITCH COMPETITION
RE-IMAGINED INHALER UPGRADE BEATS PITCHES FROM GERMANY, COLUMBIA, AND MEXICO
TORONTO, July 12, 2023 /CNW/ - As recently graduated Canadian medical resident David Hodgson starts his radiology residency, he's celebrating a major win for his re-imagined asthma device company Hollo Medical and for Canada. Hodgson, an Ontario native was recently named Global Champion in the 2023 Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA). He advanced to represent Canada after winning the 1st Place Peter H. Thomas Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence at EO Canada's GSEA National Competition.
He invented an advanced asthma inhaler for his ailing father
Inspired by his father's respiratory illness after a sudden severe pneumonia and how he struggled using conventional inhalers, Hodgson (also a mechanical engineer) re-imagined conventional inhalers to make them more user-friendly and able to fit into a pocket like a cell phone.
His company Hollo Medical created the "Bre-Z Chamber", a pocket-size inhaler device that enables portability and optimal drug delivery for sufferers of asthma.
His achievement in this highly competitive global contest earned him a prize of US $50,000. Previously, his medical venture earned him first prize at the Canadian finals of the 2023 Entrepreneurship World Cup and secured his victory in EO Canada's GSEA national competition, allowing him to move on to global rounds.
He beat out 1,100 international competitors and six final-stage finalists to win.
A unique aspect of EO's judging process in these awards is the weighting of scores: 70 percent of a judge's score is based on each entrepreneur's vision, grit, and values, ahead of their actual businesses, while 30 percent is based on the business concept and strength.
"David's story is a perfect example of the innovation, grit and determination that make Canadian entrepreneurs some of the most successful in the world," said Peter H. Thomas, EO Chairman Emeritus and Founder of the Thomas GSEA Foundation. "He created this incredible medical technology innovation initially as a way to help his father and now it's growing to potentially help millions of asthma sufferers around the world."
He only had minutes to deliver a perfect pitch.
"You get so used to telling your story over 10 minutes," said David Hodgson, GSEA 2023 Global Champion and Co-Founder of Hollo Medical. "The one aspect that I found hardest was deciding what details could be cut/what parts delivered the most impactful and immediate message for the audience. Fortunately, I didn't have to do this alone, and I had my team and mentors help me identify things that maybe I couldn't see myself. The advice I would give next year's finalists is to remember that the most compelling thing, much more so than your business, is your story."
Hodgson will use the award money to commercialize the Bre-Z Chamber.
"We are on the fringe of commercialization," added Hodgson. "This prize is a huge boost to achieve some of our regulatory milestones to bring the device to market, it's our main focus and we are really excited about it."
He somehow balanced inventing the Bre-Z Chamber with medical school.
"I'm fortunate to have a passionate and skilled team that has accelerated our vision for Hollo," added Hodgson. "Beyond that, I think when you are forced to make every minute count, you realize just how much time there is in a day. You also start to get a sense of what activities are critical and what can wait. Put these things together, and things that once seemed impossible start to materialize before your eyes!"
How the Thomas GSEA Foundation is supporting Canadian Student Entrepreneurs:
Peter Thomas, a legacy Canadian entrepreneur, Founding EO Member & Chairman Emeritus through the Thomas GSEA Foundation, has committed $1.5 Million to Canada's GSEA Program.
Each year, top finalists from EO Canada's GSEA National Competition also advance to represent Canada at the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards Global Finals.
The role of the Thomas GSEA Foundation is to fund and collaborate with Canada's GSEA Committee to create one of the best GSEA programs in the world. Their mission is to revolutionize what's possible for students across Canada who identify as entrepreneurs, creating pathways and opportunities for advanced learning, mentorship, and access to key resources to support their business endeavours and increase the likelihood of their successes.
GSEA is EO's premier global competition for students who own and operate a business while attending college or university, and 2023 marks the 17th year that EO has hosted the awards. To qualify, candidates nominate their businesses through an open application process and compete against their peers worldwide in a series of local and national competitions. For the 2022-2023 competition, nearly 1,100 applications were received from students across 94 local EO chapters in 39 countries. Just 59 students made it to Global Quarter Finals, and 18 advanced to the competition's semi-finals, which are featured in the four-part Start it Up series on YouTube. From those 18 young entrepreneurs, six moved on to become global finalists.
Contact:
Patrick McCaully
Pointman News Creation
[email protected]
SOURCE The Thomas GSEA Foundation
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