Bus Stop Mamas, the tech platform Mary Kay Ziniewicz launched in 2019 to help employers connect with sidelined talent—moms who want to schedule work around their children—recently hit a major milestone: profitability.

In five years, Ziniewicz, a former marketing executive, has grown the network to 25,000 moms and 800 businesses ranging from small Minnesota companies to multinationals like Boston Scientific. But as any business owner knows, there’s little time to celebrate. Her next challenge is forming strategic partnerships with organizations that are now reaching out to Bus Stop Mamas for additional services, like help vetting job candidates.

“We don’t plan to offer these services as Bus Stop Mamas, but we believe there is potentially opportunity to partner with organizations that offer the expertise our network is asking for,” Ziniewicz said. That includes more support for moms with resume writing and interviewing tips. “We believe there is opportunity to grow faster, nationally, and globally with strategic partners”

The trick? How to form said partnerships.

Ziniewicz will pose that question to a panel of startup experts with experience scaling companies, at TCB’s inaugural StartMN Think Tank event on Nov. 13.

“Shark Tank brought investor pitching into our homes, but this is a chance to see what it’s like in person and meet some promising Minnesota founders and investors,” said TCB editor-in-chief Allison Kaplan. No, there won’t be any Mark Cuban-sized checks written at this event—at least not officially, Kaplan said, promising a different type of value. “We’re putting the focus on advice that is sure to benefit both our featured startups, and everyone in attendance.”

Bus Stop Mamas is one of four Minnesota startups that will present a business challenge and ask for real-time advice from a panel that includes:

•  Chad Hetherington, co-founder of Minneapolis commerce agency The Stable, which was acquired by Accenture, where he now serves as managing director.
• Beth Kieffer Leonard, partner in charge of accounting firm Eisner Amper’s Minnesota office. She’s an advisor to many startups, a MN Cup judge, and an avid supporter of the local entrepreneurial ecosystem.
• Houston White, a serial entrepreneur who has parlayed his creative ideas about design and placemaking into several ventures under the Houston White Enterprises umbrella, including Get Down Coffee Co, Fresh body line, a Target clothing collection, and real estate holdings in North Minneapolis.
• Ping Yeh, a serial medtech entrepreneur, advisor and business leader. He founded StemoniX to develop laboratory organs now used in pharmaceutical testing and led it through acquisition and integration with Vyant Bio. He is currently the CEO of Voxci Health, which has developed a breath test to detect lung cancer (and other diseases).

Ziniewicz will share the stage with three other startups that were selected in a public vote on tcbmag.com. They are:

Davenport SAF-T Systems. One in four older adults falls each year. Dr. Jay Davenport, a retired orthopedic surgeon, developed a vest that functions like a human airbag—inflating in less than .5 seconds when it senses its wearer is losing her balance, to absorb the impact of a fall and minimize injuries. The inventor’s son Ryan Davenport has raised $120,000 and bootstrapped another $50,000 to get the vest through testing and prototyping. Now he’s trying to figure out how to bring the vest to market, and convince insurance providers that it’s a welcome alternative to wheelchairs or electric scooters. “We’ve had countless conversations with people desperate for our solution,” Ryan Davenport says. “Are we facing inherent bias against physical products, or products that serve an aging population?”

Morari Medical. Since 2020, Jeff Bennett has been working on a drug-free,wearable skin patch designed to help enhance and improve sexual performance for men through neurostimulation technology. After a year and a half of testing, Bennett submitted his product, MOR, for FDA approval, which he expects to receive by the end of the year. Now he’s working on the best distribution strategies—will a product of this nature sell in a retail store, or is direct to consumer the better option?—and marketing “How can we effectively balance playful and serious messaging when discussing sensitive topics like sexual health, while also driving product adoption and engagement?”

Route to India’s Yoga Pops. Nalini Mehta began her career as a culinary instructor at the Natural Gourmet Institute for Food and Health. From working at the Whole Foods Culinary Center to leading ayurveda pop up dinners and culinary trips to India, all of her pursuits have centered on food and wellness. That includes her latest venture, Yoga Pops, a popped water lily seed snack that has been used as natural medicine in India for thousands of years. She started selling at farmers markets and has grown to 300 stores including select Target and Meijer locations and online platforms including Faire. But as anyone who has attempted to scale a packaged food brand knows, it’s the next leap to 1,000+ stores that can be an even bigger hurdle. “We’re feeling stretched in terms of our capacity to grow out of our current facility,” Mehta said. “We need expert advice on how to make this leap of growth.”

What will the experts suggest? Attend StartMN Think Tank, Nov. 13 at Glass House in Minneapolis to find out. In addition to the pitch program, take advantage of local startup resources: representatives from Launch Minnesota and Beta will be on hand to answer questions. And taste, smell, and shop several locally made brands including Brother Justus Whiskey Co., Leather Works Minnesota, Blue Heron Body Home’s all-natural soaps, candles, and gifts, locally made by a chemist and business coach, Made in Minn apparel, and Terrain Brazilian Botanicals. Minneapolis creative agency Latitude will showcase its latest project, customizable Gratitude x Latitude apparel that benefits local arts organizations. Come photo-ready: Profeshie will be on hand to offer professional headshots—free for all attendees.

Register for StartMN Think Tank here.