RCIE Spotlight Speaker Series: Nick Bayer & Melody Wozunk
The Rowan Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (RCIE), in partnership with the CEO Club and the Rowan Center for Professional Development, hosted the first Spotlight Speaker Series event of the semester on Wednesday, September 29th. The event featured Nick Bayer, Founder & CEO of Saxbys, and Melody Wozunk, Rowan Senior Management Major & Student Café Executive Officer (CEO) of Saxbys, and followed an exciting grand opening of the new student-run Saxbys coffee shop located in Business Hall.
Rowan students Michelle Martinez, the inaugural recipient of the RCB MBA Fellowship in Innovation and Impact, and Nicholas Nastasi, Management major with a minor in Management Information Systems, moderated the discussion with Bayer and Wozunk. The discussion centered around Bayer’s entrepreneurial journey and Wozunk’s experience as the new Saxbys Student CEO, addressing key topics such as leadership, social entrepreneurship, resiliency and innovative business strategies.
Bayer discussed Saxby’s pioneering Experiential Learning Program (ELP), a student-run cafe where students earn full academic credit and wages through a university cooperative education program. First introduced by Bayer in partnership with Drexel University in 2015, the program has expanded to over 12 locations with five more opening this fall. Bayer noted that the program fills a need for entrepreneurial learning and teaching. He sees this real-world experience being the future for learning, particularly in entrepreneurship. Bayer thought that Rowan would be a great fit for an ELP café because of the attractive brand, electric energy, and focus on entrepreneurship and innovation across campus.
Bayer discussed life before founding Saxbys. He spoke about growing up in Chicago and watching his hard-working parents go to their jobs each day. He said that this ultimately inspired him to become an entrepreneur and pursue work that he had passion for, not just a job that paid the bills. Above all, he wanted to leverage his business to impact others and champion education. Bayer always knew he wanted to become a social entrepreneur and said that he is at his best when challenged, but happiest when helping others. The ELP cafes allow Bayer to accomplish this by offering students an education and mentorship.
Wozunk has been working hard to open Saxby’s Rowan location as the first Student CEO. Initially, Wozunk planned to only apply for a summer internship at Saxbys but ultimately found the Student CEO opportunity. Her favorite part so far has been working with her team. Wozunk has enjoyed getting to know her student employees and investing in the work they are doing, noting, “It’s about them as much as myself.” Bayer added that is impressive to watch Melody at work. He believes that encouraging young leaders through the Experiential Learning Program emboldens the next generation of entrepreneurs.
According to Bayer, “Saxbys was years in the making.” Despite his inspiring success, he still does not feel like he has made it. “Entrepreneurship is a constant hustle”, he admitted, and added that life is all about resilience. Bayer encouraged listeners to get an education, find their passion, and set goals and noted the importance of making mistakes, overcoming them with a smile, and remaining challenged.
