Introduction
Participating in the Spark Tank event was a creativity based CAS experience where students worked in groups to develop and pitch an innovative business idea using marketing strategies learned in Business Management class. My group created the concept Melt Down: A Scoop for Every Emotion, a vegan and dairy free ice cream brand designed to provide a guilt free comfort dessert that is inclusive for people with milk allergies and those following plant based diets.
The process of developing this idea from brainstorming to refining the brand identity and preparing the pitch allowed me to reflect on my strengths, overcome challenges in idea development, and experience the importance of teamwork. Through this experience I was able to connect creativity with real world business thinking.
Learning Outcome 1
Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth
Participating in the Spark Tank event helped me recognize some of my personal strengths during the brainstorming stage. When our group first began discussing ideas, I naturally gravitated toward thinking about how a brand could emotionally connect with customers. I suggested that instead of creating just another ice cream brand, we could design one around the idea that people often eat comfort foods during emotional moments. This idea eventually contributed to the concept behind Melt Down: A Scoop for Every Emotion and the playful slogan that people could “eat their feelings” in a healthier way.
My interest in business and marketing helped me think about how the product could stand out in a competitive market. I also contributed ideas about making the ice cream vegan and dairy free, which aligned with growing consumer trends and made the product accessible to people with milk allergies.
At the same time the experience revealed areas where I could improve. During our early discussions I noticed that I was very focused on generating creative ideas but did not always evaluate whether they were practical from a business perspective. For example some of the flavor and branding ideas I suggested were interesting but did not clearly fit the target market we later defined. Through feedback from my teammates I learned to analyze ideas more critically by considering factors such as market demand and product positioning.
This experience helped me understand that creativity is most effective when it is balanced with strategic thinking.
Learning Outcome 2
Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process
One of the biggest challenges during the Spark Tank event was transforming a creative concept into a structured and convincing business idea. In the beginning our group had several unrelated ideas ranging from snack brands to lifestyle products and it was difficult to agree on one direction. During one discussion we spent a long time debating whether we should focus on creating a completely new food product or improving an existing one.
Eventually we decided to focus on ice cream, but the challenge then became how to make our idea unique. Many brands already sell ice cream so we had to think carefully about what would differentiate ours. This is when the idea of combining emotional branding with health conscious ingredients started to develop.
Another challenge was ensuring that the concept had a clear value proposition rather than being purely creative. When we introduced the idea that Melt Down would be vegan and plant based it strengthened the practicality of the idea because it addressed the needs of people with lactose intolerance, milk allergies, or those choosing plant based diets.
Through this process I developed skills in creative problem solving and idea refinement. I also learned that business concepts rarely emerge perfectly at the start and instead improve through discussion, feedback, and repeated revisions.
Learning Outcome 5
Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively
The Spark Tank event highlighted how important collaboration is when developing creative ideas. Each member of our group approached the project from a slightly different perspective. For example one teammate focused on product concepts and flavors, another contributed ideas for visual branding and presentation, while I was more involved in concept development and emotional branding.
There were moments when our ideas conflicted. At one point we debated whether the brand should focus more on health and nutrition or on the fun emotional aspect of comfort food. Instead of choosing one over the other we eventually combined both perspectives by creating a brand that offers indulgent flavors while still being plant based and health conscious.
This collaborative process helped me appreciate how different viewpoints can strengthen a project. Listening to others encouraged me to reconsider some of my own assumptions and helped us develop a more balanced concept.
Through this experience I realized that successful creative work often depends on shared brainstorming, constructive feedback, and collective decision making.
Conclusion
Overall participating in the Spark Tank event was a meaningful creativity experience that allowed me to combine business knowledge with creative thinking. The process helped me identify my strengths in idea generation and branding while also encouraging me to develop stronger analytical skills when evaluating ideas.
Most importantly the experience showed me that innovation develops through experimentation, collaboration, and continuous refinement. Working with my team to transform a simple concept into a structured business pitch helped me appreciate the value of teamwork and creative problem solving in entrepreneurial thinking.
