BALTIMORE — Charles Engler is a sophomore at Loyola University, and back in February, he, along with 9 other student ventures, were selected for this first-of-its-kind award.
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Engler created a product that uses non-invasive red light therapy for skincare.
“I would say the inspiration really came from my sister. She spent so much money on skin care products and beauty products, and a lot of the time they weren’t working," says Charles Engler.
“His passion for his product and for the good it can do for the people he is trying serve made him stand out," says Jon Weinstein.
Jon Weinstein, Engler’s teacher and mentor, says he is proud that his student won the award, an innovation award named after 26-year-old tech CEO Pava Lapare, who was killed in 2023.
“It was powerful and particularly meaningful for us here for a couple of reasons. One, Pava LaPare was on our advisory board for the Simon Center, so for one of our students, one of our student entrepreneurs, to receive an award with her name was especially meaningful," says Weinstein.
“I'm wearing a sweatshirt of Pava LaPere, who the awards were named after. She started Ecomap in her dorm room at Johns Hopkins so great ideas can come from anywhere, but the opportunity to build those into viable businesses hasn’t always been there," says Kory Bailey.
Kory Bailey, CEO of Upsurge Baltimore, says this competition was important because it gives young entrepreneurs the tools they need to take their businesses to the next level.
“These types of competitions validate that product, validate that founder, validate the team that's building it, and really gives them the opportunity to get to that place where you have got it right, you got the market down, you have got your product to a place where it does have an opportunity to grow and scale, and then you can build the team and the infrastructure to be able to do that," says Bailey.
And Charles Engler says expansion is the goal; he says he wants his product to be global, but he says it's important for him to have its foundation in Baltimore.
“Starting in Baltimore, there is a lot of local talent; there is a lot of great people that just need opportunities to work, you know what I mean? So for me, as I start growing using this money, I want to tap into some of this talent," he says.
He has already started expanding and says the sky is the limit.
“Yah huge list of new products coming out as well, and just get the Luminova brand a household name; that's what I want to do," says Engler.
The other 8 awardees were from Towson University, Community College of Baltimore County, Johns Hopkins University, and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
