“One thing that people are scared of is their mom, their grandma, maybe their close family members showing up to a totally dirty house.”
That was the opening line of the winning business pitch presented by University of Wisconsin-River Falls students at the 11th Spark Tank! Innovation Challenge hosted at the university by the St. Croix Valley Business Innovation Center (SCVBIC) on Wednesday, Feb. 25.
Tanner Kaufman, a junior sociology and criminology major from Maple, joined his teammates Bradley Arndorfer, a junior sales major from Eau Claire, and Ethan Perkins, a junior management major from Chaska, Minn., in pitching an on-demand house-cleaning service called mopp Cleaning. The trio, all members of UWRF’s NCAA Division III champion football team, won $2,000 to help develop their business. They will also receive a one-year membership to the SCVBIC and will compete in the WiSys Big Idea State Competition in April.
Limited to six minutes to make their presentation, the mopp team began by describing the market research they did, surveying area residents to see if they would hire an on-demand, same-day cleaning service using an app similar to rideshare or food delivery. They also asked participants if they would appreciate a customizable service that would allow them to have either part or all of their house cleaned, whether they would be willing to provide the cleaning supplies and what would make them comfortable allowing a cleaner they didn’t know into their home. The team got positive feedback on the concept and learned that customers would want cleaners to undergo screening and background checks and be well trained. The importance of doing that kind of customer discovery before investing in a business is exactly what SCVBIC Director Sheri Marnell hopes students will learn from participating in the competition.
“Often, entrepreneurs start because they’re passionate about a product or a service and they forget to validate the desirability of that idea with their customers,” Marnell said. “So that’s something that we work through.”
Marnell began meeting with the participants in October to help them identify the business problems they wanted to solve and ideate solutions. She then partnered with the Small Business Development Center at UW-River Falls consultant Maren Valentine to lead a class on using the Lean Business Model Canvas to develop a concise one-page business plan. Marnell continued to meet with the students weekly for feedback and then to practice their presentations as the competition drew near.
A panel of judges made up of area business leaders ranging from a patent attorney to U.S. Bank executives to serial entrepreneurs, judged the presentations and spent time giving feedback and networking with the students. Mara Deboe is a patent attorney who has helped judge the competition for the last four years.
“I definitely enjoy it,” Deboe said. “I like speaking with the students in this casual networking environment, giving my advice.”
Deboe has even met with students post-competition to talk about how they might go about pursuing a patent for their product. The judges also asked students questions about their plans and suggested other ideas they might consider.
“The challenge pushed us to step outside our comfort zone and take the idea seriously,” said Perkins of the mopp Cleaning team. “We received feedback, asked questions and learned from networking opportunities that helped us turn a big, unrealistic idea into something more possible.”
The mopp team has already launched a website and begun serving clients. With the prize money, they plan to develop their app, launch a social media marketing campaign and expand their business across western Wisconsin.
Cash awards were presented to the top three finishers. Second place was awarded to Spencer Anderson, a senior finance and management major from Hugo, Minn. He received $1,000 to help develop a service educating financial advisors about investment insurance options. The $500 third place award went to Delani Dow, a junior elementary education major from Eugene, Ore., for a plan to develop educational materials for parents to prevent self-harm among youth.
Marnell estimates that around 25 percent of the students she has worked with have ended up actually launching their businesses.
Next up for the winning mopp Cleaning team is the WiSys Big Idea State Competition, which will be held April 17 at SCVBIC.
“This is the first year we’re hosting it in River Falls,” Marnell said. “I’m excited for that.”
To learn more about the UWRF Spark Tank! Innovation Challenge or the SCVBIC, email sheri.marnell@uwrf.edu
Written by UW-River Falls
Link to original story: https://www.uwrf.edu/newsroom/2026/02/students-pitch-original-business-ideas-spark-tank-innovation-challenge