Impact

'LaunchBox Ladies: From Passion to Profit' January conversation announced

CENTER VALLEY, Pa. — Lehigh Valley LaunchBox (LVLB) continues its educational event series focusing on the unique challenges and victories of female entrepreneurs called "LaunchBox Ladies: From Passion to Profit" with a January program.

Using multiple formats including conversational interviews, videos and events, LaunchBox Ladies will share the stories of women at all stages of their businesses and careers. A series of conversations are scheduled through summer 2018 and are free to students and the public on a limited first-come, first-served basis.

All events take place at the Penn State Lehigh Valley campus from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and include lunch.

The next conversation will take place on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018, featuring Khine Alkhal, founder and owner of Khineder Creations, international speaker and philanthropist. Born and raised in Burma, Alkhal received her doctorate in human security from the University of Tokyo, and came to the U.S. in 2013.

While traveling the world as a humanitarian worker, Alkhal was exposed to devastating human, drug and sex trafficking and wanted to empower the struggling women that she met. In 2016, she opened Khineder Creations in Emmaus, which features chemical-free bath and beauty products made from traditional Burmese recipes and locally sourced organic produce. A portion of all her proceeds provide struggling mothers and survivors of abuse with an income that offers independence. She appears as a speaker and panelist at international conferences and symposiums on sustainable solutions for irregular migration and reintegration of migrant workers' families in developing countries.

Khine Alkhal, founder and owner of Khineder Creations, international speaker and philanthropist will be the featured speaker at the January LaunchBox Ladies event. Credit: Khine AlkhalAll Rights Reserved.

She will be interviewed by Nichola Gutgold, professor of communication arts and sciences at Penn State Lehigh Valley and an internationally recognized scholar on the rhetoric of women in non-traditional fields. Her research has been featured in The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, NPR, U.S. News and World Report, the Los Angeles Times, and multiple international press outlets. 

This event is sponsored in part by the Penn State Lehigh Valley Student Business Society.

Upcoming LaunchBox Ladies events include:

Wednesday, Feb. 14
Speaker – Paige Lilly, founder, Fresh View Fitness
Interviewer – Liz Keptner, director, Penn State Lehigh Valley Multimedia Innovation Center

Wednesday, March 14
Speakers – Gabrielle and Brittney Flank, founders, Frosting Company
Interviewer – Catherine Bailey, Rea.Deeming Beauty, Inc.

According to the National Association of Women Business Owners, females represent 36 percent of businesses in the U.S. and will generate more than half of the 10 million new small business jobs by 2018, yet face loan approval rates 20 percent lower than their male counterparts and have decreased access to elected officials.

With a mission of community-facing support for entrepreneurs invested in the economic growth of the Lehigh Valley, LVLB and Invent Penn State develop programming that supports the start-up process. LVLB also acts as a business accelerator by awarding micro-grants biannually.

To register for the event, visit the LaunchBox Ladies registration website.

For more information, visit the Lehigh Valley LaunchBox website, email LVLaunchBox@psu.edu or email Valerie Peters at vpeters@psu.edu.

Information regarding the Invent Penn State initiative is available online.

Last Updated December 18, 2017

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