LUKSEA talks New Wave and starting out

Over the T2 break, aspiring entrepreneurs underwent UNSW Founder's New Wave Program aiming to encourage more female-led startups.

This consisted of a 2-week intensive course of pitching skills, site visits, mentoring and the establishment of their own company. This all culminates into a Pitch Night where all companies are able to showcase what they have learnt during the course and win prizes.

We had the opportunity to have a chat with Nicole, founder of LUKSEA. LUKSEA managed to win 1st place and now joins UNSW Founders as part of the Launch Program to further develop their product.

Q. How was the New Wave Program. What were some of the highlights you experienced?

N: It was a fantastic program, Nikita (New Wave Program Manager) organised such an amazing program for us. I just loved the whole atmosphere of the program, the team building exercises and workshops. I was part of a group of women on this journey for 2 weeks it really created this bond. 

The guest speakers were phenomenal, and together with the site visits to Spotify and Atlassian, it was amazing knowing how they were so open to share their stories. It felt real and meant a lot because they have been where we were.

Q. What was the most challenging thing you experienced during New Wave?

N: One of the workshops included a Voice presentation where I found that challenging. I felt that how I voice my ideas was something that definitely could be improved. Thankfully, the speaker was really insightful. Knowing how to actually say specific things and how to convey your message was turned out to be so valuable.

Q. How did you feel coming out after New Wave and winning?

N: I couldn’t sleep last night! I could not stop talking about throughout the whole night. It was so great, I’m still so overwhelmed, it meant so much to me and was amazing seeing the rest of girls in the room last night too! 

Q. So what's next for LUKSEA?

N: So we've just been accepted into "Launch" and hope to continue growing our business there. At this point we are hoping to get more funding through a kickstarter campaign. From there, we are in the process of prototyping and meetings with potential investors such as Surf Life Saving Australia. There's many exciting things to come!

List of winners from the night:

1st place - LUKSEA. Improving safety in water with wearable tracking devices with groups.

2nd place – Commoncents. A money tracker aimed to increase conscious and responsible spending.

3rd place – Recirca. Save money by trading 2nd hand clothes with other users in an online marketplace.

Be sure to follow UNSW Founders and LUKSEA to stay updated with product announcements and events!