Start Up Successes

Cupid’s Cup Business Competition Winners

The companies below, all founded by alumni, received the grand prize in Cupid’s Cup: the Univeristy of Maryland Business Competition, sponsored by Kevin Plank ’96, founder and CEO of Under Armour.

Reed Street Productions (2012) operates 'Run for Your Lives', a zombie apocalypse-themed 5K race in which participants navigate an obstacle course and rugged terrain - all while being chased by "zombies".

MyFridgeRental.com (2011) is a dorm size refrigerator rental service, currently serving schools in Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and DC.

Social Growth Technologies (2010) has created Social Ingot, a platform to help social games and online worlds generate revenue through their virtual economies.

College Magazine (2009) is the ultimate and uncensored guide to college. Written entirely by students, they cover real issues that affect the campus community: class, parties, sex, internships, music and more.

Anaptyx (2008) provides WiFi Internet access to entire apartment communities and municipalities through energy-efficient technology

Goozex (2007) (short for "Goods Exchange") is a trading community for video games and movies providing the most advanced, feature-rich, and customer-acclaimed platform to trade products for other products.

North Star Games (2006) makes innovative board games including the award-winning Wits & Wagers, Say Anything and Cluzzle, available at Borders, Barnes & Noble and Target.

UMD Community Companies

Companies formed and operated by University of Maryland alumni, students, faculty or staff receiving a variety of assistance and support from the Dingman Center.

AlertUS Enterprise Emergency Alert System utilizes a proprietary wireless transmission platform to offer real-time, uninterrupted, secure communication with employees, tenants, and residents.

Arcxis Biotechnologies is a start-up biotechnology company that is developing state of the art portable biological diagnostic tools with the ability to rapidly analyze, detect, and characterize infectious disease agents in a multiplexed format.

Baby Fans is a one-stop online shop for officially licensed baby sports clothing, accessories and toys.

Biodiesel University is a mobile renewable energy education lab touring schools, universities, and public events providing hands-on demonstrations.

Clean City specializes in developing and implementing facility maintenance solutions for facility owners and managers committed to environmental sustainability and efficient life cycle management.

Crooked Monkey produces branded t-shirts for the 16-24 guy and girl and has amassed an A-list of retailers carrying its line—Urban Outfitters, Nordstrom, Kitson and Fred Segal—and has been worn by celebrities, including Ryan Seacrest and Miley Cyrus.

Dayna Designs, LLC is a leading jewelry design and production firm, specializing in custom logo jewelry made from sterling silver and all-natural materials.

Geocentric is a specialty software and services company dedicated to improving internet mapping and local search by enabling Destination Marketing Organizations.

Hook & Ladder an award winning beer marketing company best known for its mission of donating proceeds from each beer to local burn centers. The company produces three original brews: Hook & Ladder Golden Ale®, Hook & Ladder Backdraft Brown®and Hook & Ladder Flashpoint Pale Ale™.

Mom Made products are all-natural without any additives or preservatives, offering three product lines, Mom Made for Baby, Mom Made Meals and Mom Made Munchies, available at Whole Foods, Wegmans, Target and others.

SHOP DC is an up-scale, glamorous magazine which serves the 4 star hotel client, showcasing the high-end retail shops, spas and galleries and was sold to The Washington Post in 2006.

Serenity Now is a lifestyle management company offering concierge and personal assistant services with a wide range of benefits.

The Smith Store is a student-run enterprise at the Smith School of Business selling Smith-branded products online and in our retail store and custom bulk products to UMD organizations.

Sunscreen Mist was inspired by the potential to turn the lengthy, unpleasant, and often inadequate process of applying sunscreen into a quick, easy, and fun experience for all ages.

Regional & International Companies

Companies founded and operated by entrepreneurs in the US and internationally. These companies have received assistance through a variety of the Dingman Center’s programs.

CreditEase connects lenders with creditworthy borrowers through a P2P (peer-to-peer) platform and was a winner of the 2008 China Business Plan Competition.

Exponential Storage develops simple and affordable data storage systems for dependable, secure, “always on” access to large and growing volumes of mission critical data.

XTS is the leading provider of enterprise management analytics software for Citrix and other virtualization platforms