While at UVA, Erin McDermott could often be found making jewelry for friends and selling her handmade pieces at local boutiques. What began as a creative outlet quickly became a calling. Now the founder of Erin McDermott Jewelry in Charlotte, NC, she recently designed a UVA-inspired necklace to celebrate her Reunions year. Erin reflects on […]
Anne Marie Morán is the founder of Ola Bola, a line of lightweight, water-resistant, and stylish bean bags. She was one of our 2024 12 Gifts of Hooville partners, and chatted with us about all things UVA and her journey to create Ola Bola.
Brandon Wooten, Brad Uhl, and Dan FitzHenry are the trio behind Grit Coffee, which started right near UVA in 2008. They’ve since expanded their food & beverage ventures to include Charlottesville-area favorites Broadcloth, The Wool Factory, Selvedge Brewing, The Workshop, and Snowing In Space. Brandon, Brad, and Dan partnered with us for our 12 Gifts of Hooville in 2024. Get to know a little bit more about them.
Susan Tynan was a panelist at the UVA Alumni Entrepreneurship Mini-Summit that took place in Arlington, Virginia, in 2024. We had a chance to catch up with her on all things UVA and her journey to build Framebridge, a custom framing service.
Clare Spooner is a visual artist living and working in New York City. Her abstract Rotunda painting was featured as one of our 2024 12 Gifts of Hooville partners. Clare shared some stories about her UVA days and her path to become a fulltime artist.
Grace Collins and Ellie Jamison are the founders of Play Henry, a custom high-end pickleball paddle company, and one of our 2024 12 Gifts of Hooville partners. We asked them about their UVA story and the journey to create Play Henry.
Reggie Aggarwal was the keynote speaker at the UVA Alumni Entrepreneurship Mini-Summit that took place in Arlington, Virginia, in 2024. We chatted with him the UVA experiences that prepared him to later build events software company Cvent, some lessons learned along his entrepreneurial journey, and more.
We were thrilled to partner with Laura Allen for the Alumni Association’s 12 Gifts of Hooville Holiday Gift Guide. We caught up with her to ask her about the story behind Allens Shortbread and all things UVA.