Our Programming
Students pursuing retail and e-commerce ventures can utilize Retail Lab to understand and experience a live retail environment through customer and market research, product testing, and interactions with alumni in the retail industry.
Founder Forum
Retail Lab features a rotating showcase of alumni brands. These alums connect with students through live workshops and a special founder speaker series.
Mentoring
Retail Lab hosts an annual cohort of promising student-led ventures. Students receive mentorship and guidance from Entrepreneurs-in-Residence and industry experts.
Special Events
Retail Lab hosts pop-ups, student product demos and other special events.
Open Hours
Tuesdays, 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Fridays, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
Fridays, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
Featured Companies
A look at the alumni and student companies in residence.
Retail Lab Founder Series: Fernando Rojo, CEO of Patos
Fernando Rojo, C’19, CEO of PATOS has been featured in Forbes, Inc. Magazine, Business Insider, Huffington Post, Refinery29, Buzzfeed, NBC News, CNBC, and more. Patos provided work for over a dozen local artisans in Peru's impoverished cities to handcraft sneakers for PATOS.
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Video Companion
Meet Our Entrepreneur in Residence
Justin is the Co-Founder of AAVRANI, the Ayurvedic beauty brand inspired by ancient Indian rituals. AAVRANI is available in the US online, at Anthropologie, and in boutique retailers across the country. Featured in the New York Times, Allure, Vogue, and more, the brand currently offers skincare and will be launching haircare and body care.
Before starting AAVRANI, Justin was an early-stage consumer investor where he partnered with entrepreneurs to help scale their businesses. He invested in beauty, food, and beverage including a skincare brand acquired by Unilever for $500M in 2019. Prior to consumer investing, Justin was a private equity investor at TA Associates in Boston. Justin started his career in the Mergers and Acquisitions group at Credit Suisse in New York City.
Justin now serves as an Entrepreneur in Residence at Venture Lab. The newly-established position is a long-term engagement with the center to provide workshops, office hours, and advising/mentoring to support early-stage student and alumni ventures in the Venture Initiation Program. Justin also serves as a Venture Advisor to students at Yale University.
Justin received an MBA with honors from Wharton and earned a B.S. in Finance and Management from the Stern School of Business at New York University.
Before starting AAVRANI, Justin was an early-stage consumer investor where he partnered with entrepreneurs to help scale their businesses. He invested in beauty, food, and beverage including a skincare brand acquired by Unilever for $500M in 2019. Prior to consumer investing, Justin was a private equity investor at TA Associates in Boston. Justin started his career in the Mergers and Acquisitions group at Credit Suisse in New York City.
Justin now serves as an Entrepreneur in Residence at Venture Lab. The newly-established position is a long-term engagement with the center to provide workshops, office hours, and advising/mentoring to support early-stage student and alumni ventures in the Venture Initiation Program. Justin also serves as a Venture Advisor to students at Yale University.
Justin received an MBA with honors from Wharton and earned a B.S. in Finance and Management from the Stern School of Business at New York University.
Passion is often not enough, you need the tools. The Venture Lab propels entrepreneurial passion to make an impact through its collective toolkit of programs, resources and people. It bridges dreams and execution”.
Zofia Wosinska WG’14, Co-Founder, Estaine
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