Using laundromats to share health care info and building energy-efficient modular homes
A company obsessed with laundromats, a medical supply business born from a mother’s love, and a builder of sustainable, modular homes were the top three winners in the Richard King Mellon Foundation’s inaugural social impact pitch competition in search of businesses dedicated to creating a better world.
“What all of them have in common is incredible leadership,” said Sam Reiman, director of the Pittsburgh region’s largest foundation. “The founders are committed to using their talent and expertise to change the world through their services or products.”
The competition, which was announced in July, judged applicants on their potential to meet one of the foundation’s four primary funding priorities: economic development, economic mobility, health and well-being, and conservation.
Those priorities are part of the foundation’s $1 billion strategic plan released last year to guide its funding activity over the next decade.
“There is a new generation of compassionate entrepreneurs who are using their talents to change the world,” Mr. Reiman said when announcing the pitch competition. “Too often they are unable to obtain the financial support they need to make their dreams a reality.”
The winners — Fabric Health, Gus Gear and Module — share a $1.05 million prize.
Overall, 108 companies submitted pitches, from which 27 finalists were selected.
While the foundation initially planned to limit its investments to three businesses, the board ended up approving an additional $2.35 million to invest in 13 additional companies.
“We started to evaluate the scoring and realized we had this wealth of incredible companies ready for investment,” Mr. Reiman said.
Most of those second-tier winners received $200,000, he said.
One essential quality that all of the winners had to possess was passionate leadership, he said.
“They all had a combination of talented founders committed to social good with a service or product that could develop into something and attract other investors,” he said.
Applicants did not have to be based in Pittsburgh to qualify, but generally they had to be focused on operating or expanding in this region. The exception was in the conservation category, which is a national program for the foundation.
The idea behind the firstplace finisher — Fabric Health — was finding a better way to reach lower-income, underserved families to help them with their health care needs.
Connecting with people at the laundromat — repurposing their idle time waiting around for their wash to get done — seemed like a great solution. After all, most people who frequent laundromats are there because they don’t have access to a washer or dryer.
“We’re obsessed with the two hours a week that millions of Americans spend waiting in laundromats, and we see that 100-plus hours a year as a valuable time to improve their health and well-being,” cofounder Allister Chang said Monday.
The business launched this fall — in partnership with Pennie, Pennsylvania’s financial assistance health insurance marketplace — in five massive laundromats in north and west Philadelphia.
Customers learn about health care options when they log on to the WiFi and through in-person visits from Fabric Health and Pennie staffers, who can help with enrollment, picking the right plan and answering general questions about health care coverage.
“One woman couldn’t afford her diabetes medication. We connected her with local resources so she could afford her medicine,” Fabric Health co-founder Courtney Bragg said.
Fabric Health also works with local health care providers to arrange on-site health care services such as mobile breast cancer screenings.
The company plans to use its $500,000 prize money to expand into laundromats in southwestern Pennsylvania.
“I don’t think it’s fully sunk in,” Ms. Bragg said of winning the competition. “It all feels like a bit of a whirlwind. We’re incredibly grateful.”
Second-place finisher, Gus Gear Inc., was founded in 2009 by CEO Sarah Palya after looking for a way to protect the central line of her son, who is on the autism spectrum, so he could move and play more freely.
The Pittsburgh company’s flagship product is the Central Line Vest, which protects the tubing from accidental pulls and breaks.
Other products include the G-Tube Wrap, Ostomy Pouch Cover, Line Covers and other accessories.
The company plans to use its $300,000 prize money to offer discounts to people experiencing financial hardship.
The third-place winner was Pittsburgh-based Module, a homebuilding startup that sells energy-efficient modular homes intended to last 100 years.
The company, headed by Brian Gaudio, built its first home in Friendship in 2019. Since then it has erected four mixed-income housing units in Garfield. Sales prices ranged from $183,794 to $396,000.
It also has six units under construction in East Liberty, Highland Park and Seattle, Wash.
The company intends to use its $250,000 in prize money to open an advanced manufacturing facility in the region and launch a workforce development program specific to the modular construction industry.
It has pledged to make a percentage of its homes available to households earning under 80% of the median income.
The Richard King Mellon Foundation is planning more pitch competitions, but it isn’t sure if it will be an annual event or be held less often.
“The test will be whether we are getting a high number of quality applicants,” Mr. Reiman said.
“Certainly the goal is to continue this based on the success we have had with it.”
For a list of the 16 winners, plus a brief description of their businesses, visit rkmf.org.