Wisconsinites who take pleasure in spending their time on Lake Michigan are not any stranger to zebra mussels – an invasive creature that has not solely made its dwelling throughout the huge physique of water, but additionally congregates on boats and different surfaces.
Military veteran Tyler Rezachek is one in all these Wisconsinites. His frustration with continuously having to scrub the mussels off his boat led him to determine an issue with a business-related resolution.
Rezachek started leaning into his entrepreneurial aspect following a five-year stint within the Military, from 2008 to 2013. He discovered the transition again into civilian life was lower than easy.
“I rapidly realized I used to be unemployable and wanted one thing to myself,” stated Rezachek.
Whereas attending an entrepreneurship bootcamp for veterans at Texas A&M College, he tapped into an concept that had lingered in his thoughts for years.
“That was probably the most pivotal moments in my life,” Rezachek stated. “It gave me the arrogance to begin fascinated about AntiMussel.”
Rezachek, who grew up fishing on Lake Michigan, formally launched AntiMussel final Might. The startup’s resolution to zebra mussels is to have the creatures vacuumed up by boats which can be set to patrol an automatic path. As soon as the mussels are collected, they’re transformed into calcium carbonate.
“We usually get calcium carbonate from rocks,” stated Rezachek. “The method proper now could be mining huge rocks, smashing them into a very advantageous powder, placing it right into a capsule type, and promoting it. The rocks they’re mining are limestone, that are several-million-years-old seashells. In my thoughts, you’ll be able to simply skip these million years, and we are able to pull them off the lake.”
The calcium carbonate product of out zebra mussels has a better purity price than the product produced from limestone. It’s the world’s solely supply of renewable calcium carbonate, based on northeast Wisconsin’s financial improvement company New North.
AntiMussel took dwelling second place and a $1,000 money prize at New North’s pitch competitors, which was held at TitletownTech in Inexperienced Bay final December. As well as, Rezachek has additionally obtained $16,900 in grant funding. Exterior of that funding, he has been bootstrapping. Rezachek is hoping to launch a pilot program in Plymouth this spring.
Location: Plymouth
Founder: Tyler Rezachek
Based: 2022
Service: Elimination of the invasive zebra mussel
Workers: 1
Purpose: Launch a pilot program this spring
Expertise: Beforehand based an industrial hemp brokerage
