From smart selfie stickers to specialized labels, this startup founder finds his passion for business.
UCI alumnus Eric Casavant wanted to deepen his knowledge of chemical and material physics to pursue a career in engineering. Driven by a passion for science and engineering for much of his life, Casavant unexpectedly found himself gravitating toward entrepreneurship during his time at UCI and founded a successful company that he runs today. The result of his emerging interest and passion has been multiple startup pivots and hands-on business education.
“I kind of always had an interest in entrepreneurship, but didn’t know where to start at all,” said Casavant. “What got me started was I tried to start a business. It was called Snappie Sticker, and, to learn how to build a company, I went to the ANTrepreneur Center and started attending their weekly talks. They would have entrepreneurs come in and share their story, and that made me realize my preconceived notions about starting and running a business were 100 percent wrong.”
Forging new mentorships with staff at the ANTrepreneur Center and engaging in conversations on a weekly basis, Casavant found a community to discuss his ideas and help him learn through iteration. Traction eventually began to build for his company, and he decided to complete his graduate education with a master’s degree and pursue the business full time.
To help manufacture the Snappie Stickers, a near-field communication (NFC) enabled sticker providing an enhanced photo experience with interactive elements for selfies, Casavant approached fine graphics printing expert and seasoned entrepreneur Ralph Roessler. The pair enjoyed working together so much that they spun off Flexstr8, Inc., a company that combines innovative radio-frequency identification (RFID) print solutions and RFID labels designed for the highest print performance.
When the Cove @ UCI and UCI Applied Innovation were established in 2014, mentors and staff from the ANTrepreneur Center encouraged Casavant to explore the resources provided by the new startup incubator and innovation hub. Following acceptance into the incubator, Casavant met mentors from the Experts-in-Residence program and also found a new community of like-minded entrepreneurs making their way and learning the same lessons simultaneously. He would eventually graduate from the incubator and secure tenant space within the Cove, accessing invaluable resources.
“I got to be surrounded by other people building companies from different backgrounds, experience and ages,” said Casavant. “I saw alumni who were starting their first company after a long and successful career and also recent grads trying to make it too. The Cove brought everyone together and made a space for everyone to talk to each other and share ideas. This was valuable and important because when you’re an entrepreneur, you have all these grandiose ideas, and they can be wrong. So, having peers who are going through the same things…and have the expertise…can make a big difference.”
Casavant has pivoted between several business ideas and products over the years, learning new lessons with each venture. A success story tempered through trial, research and testing, Casavant and his team now run a successful and profitable startup.
Last year, the company hit a milestone by making over $300,000 in revenue. According to Casavant, they are on track to double profits this year. Flexstr8 serves countless companies spanning industry leaders in retail, aerospace and more. Casavant and his team have navigated a long road to get to this point, and they are grateful for the support they have received from the Cove throughout their startup journey.
“So we make labels,” said Casavant. “However, we have specialized equipment that fulfills a needed niche, and I couldn’t retrace the exact story about how we got here to do what we’re doing now. The fact is, we ping-ponged around, iterating and trying new things until we found some customers who needed what we created. That’s what a business is built on, not having the shiniest and newest app or popular technology. It’s more so if there is a market and customers who want to buy it.”
Graduating from the Cove and relocating to San Diego, Flexstr8 is poised to continue their growth trajectory with an experienced team ready to take on the challenges ahead.
“Through the Cove, we learned how to be lean and not be afraid to fail,” said Casavant. “We launched 10 products out the door in under two years, and that was very important to our success.”
To learn more about FlexStr8, visit www.flexstr8.us.