Anita Burson and Lynn Tollet, the founding partners of SUN4 Emergency Preparedness, LLC., manufacture solar-powered emergency preparedness gear and sell to government agencies, organizations, corporations, and directly to the public. The company’s first product, the SUN4 Go Bag, features a patented solar panel that charges in any light— incandescent, fluorescent or sunlight— even during inclement weather. The genius of Go Bag is how the patented solar panel will charge while you’re wearing it, helping you maintain contact with family members and rescue workers— a feature unavailable with any other emergency kit. This survival-in-a-bag product also includes power chargers, a first aid kit, small tools, a rain poncho and thermal blanket.
The founders first came to the Women’s Venture Fund seeking help with structuring the enterprise and developing their business plan. WVF was pleased to add Anita and Lynn to their growing list of clients in the scientific, technical, engineering and medical (STEM) fields. WVF assisted the co-founders to complete their product design and business plan.
Anita and Lynn were eager to take advantage of an opportunity to present Sun4 to interested investors but needed coaching on how best to position their groundbreaking product. A WVF advisor helped them prepare their presentation and understand what data was most important from an investor’s perspective. Now that they are focused on securing institutional contracts, WVF has assisted them in addressing personnel issues, sales processes and operational practices.
“WVF helped us focus on the issues that were critical as we moved from planning to manufacturing abroad. They are an incredible resource for both information and support.”