Bellingham community members and Western Washington University students meander around the event area where over 100 special projects are on display, weaving between tables and pausing in small clusters of conversation. The projects range from bike repair to ADHD-friendly checklist apps, and stretch the imagination of those who have come to see the entrepreneurs’ ideas. Some visitors stop at various tables to test the different products, while others lean in, asking questions and offering feedback.
The room carries a steady buzz – snippets of conversation, laughter and elevator-style pitches overlapping as students explain the purpose behind their projects.
Western’s Entrepreneurship and Innovation (E&I) program hosts quarterly showcases where students can display the projects they're working on. These showcases often give E&I students invaluable feedback on their projects and ideas for improvement, turning what might have started as a class assignment into something with potential beyond college.
Lizbeth Vargas, former E&I student fellow, explained that the E&I showcases were her favorite part of the program because she was able to share her venture, Maria’s Munchies, a Mexican cravings business. There, she received community input and suggestions for enhancement. Standing face-to-face with potential customers and seeing their reactions firsthand made the experience feel much more personal.
“Experience is everything,” Vargas said.
For Vargas, the showcase was about more than just presenting her idea. It was about watching people engage with it, seeing which flavors and concepts resonated with them and learning how to adapt in the moment.
Contrary to some assumptions, you don’t need to be majoring in a business program or be involved in Western’s business college to be an entrepreneur. Students from a wide range of majors bring different perspectives to the E&I program, which is reflected in the variety of ideas cultivated.
“Our classes are highly interdisciplinary,” Lara Merriam-Smith, interim director of the E&I program, said.
The E&I program minor has three core classes: E&I Foundations, where students begin brainstorming their entrepreneurial ideas; Intermediate E&I Experience, where students advance their projects; and Advanced E&I Experience, where student projects and businesses should be ready to launch.
“We have a number of students who have gone on to develop their own businesses,” Merriam-Smith said.
The E&I spring 2026 showcase will be hosted at the Chuckanut Bay Distillery on May 20 from noon to 4 p.m. There will be over 80 student entrepreneurs and 40 business ventures featured.
The showcase is free and will have a raffle for event-goers to participate in. The raffle, held in the last hour of the event, will include items from local and student-run businesses, further connecting the community with the budding entrepreneurs.
Those who attend are welcome to come and leave whenever they’d like, explained Alex Hines, E&I student fellow and creator of VibeCheckList. That casual flexibility allows people to explore at their own pace and spend more time on projects that catch their interest.
“I describe it to people as a science fair meets a business conference,” Hines said.
The result is a place where students aren’t just imagining possibilities, but actively sharing them with the community and people around them.
Ryann Smith (she/her) is a city life reporter for The Front. She is a junior pursuing a major in public relations journalism with a minor in anthropology. In her free time, she is usually found reading at Boulevard Park or trying new ice cream flavors at Mallard. You can reach her at ryannsmith.thefront@gmail.com.
