Startup founders Benjamen Janey and Remy Meraz first connected through Plug In South LA’s 2019–2020 Lunch & Learn Accelerator Program. Although the two entrepreneurs each have different business focuses, they recently collaborated on a mental health initiative that plays to their strengths.
Remy founded the behavioral health platform Me Tyme Network to help employees think, feel, and work better. Ben’s background in the music business led him to start the tech-driven socially conscious apparel company Spooler. Both entrepreneurs were in the first cohort of the Accelerator Program, which wrapped up in July.
The program helped Remy raise capital, rethink user experience, establish a partner for UX and front-end development, and launch a pilot for 100,000 users. Ben reported seeing a 129% increase in online conversions due to marketing, updates to UX, and sales initiatives geared toward artists.
“Participating in the Accelerator Program has been valuable in so many ways, and one of those was the opportunity to collaborate with our fellow founders,” Remy said recently.
Plug In South LA supports Black and Latinx entrepreneurs from marginalized communities by not only connecting them with funding opportunities, but also with fellow founders who can help them grow and scale their businesses, said Lunch & Learn Accelerator Program manager Molly Crete. “We’re incredibly proud to see founders helping founders,” she said.
Spooler and Me Tyme came together around an important social cause, Remy and Ben said. In recognition of World Mental Health Awareness Day on October 10, the founders collaborated on a new T-shirt collection for the on-demand clothing store HDLV-USA.
Each shirt for men and women in the collection is emblazoned with statements that include “be kind to your mind,” “emotional intelligence matters,” and “mental health is wealth.”
“Our shirts were designed as conversation starters to help break down the stigma around mental health, especially in the Black and Brown community,” Remy said.
Ben agrees. “Events this year have changed the world as we know it, perhaps forever,” he added. “It is imperative that people, particularly from our communities, continue to collaborate and support each other whenever possible. If we do not, no one else will.”
You can support the founders and their collaboration by purchasing the T-shirts here. Use METYME to receive a 10% friends and family discount.