Year 10 Commerce Start Up Lab Shark Tank Showcase
On Tuesday, 15 September 2026, the Domremy Theatre was filled with energy as our Year 10 Commerce students took the stage for the highly anticipated Start Up Lab Shark Tank event. Our top ten budding entrepreneurs pitched high-impact solutions to real-world problems, backing their business ideas with professional presentation decks and targeted customer personas. The level of innovation, persuasive speaking, and strategic thinking on display was truly exceptional.
Special recognition goes to our prize winners for their outstanding achievements:
- 1st Place: Penelope
- 2nd Place: Sienna
- 3rd Place: Charlotte
- People’s Choice Award: Natalie
An event of this scale would not be possible without the incredible support of our school community. We extend our deepest gratitude to our ‘industry sharks’ for volunteering their time and providing real-time, expert feedback to our students:
- Jacqui Attard – Managing Director, Institute of Business Coaching
- Shahe Momdjian – Director, Young Wisdom
- Katerina Khalil – Scrum Master, Bank of QLD
- Heather Cox – Delivery Director, Affinity Advertising Agency
Thank you also to the dedicated Commerce teaching staff for guiding, mentoring, and encouraging the students throughout the entire Start Up Lab process. Finally, a big thank you to all the parents and family members who supported the students behind the scenes and attended to cheer on our future founders.
“I found this task to be engaging and provided me with opportunities to express my creativity and apply my Commerce skills. The industry sharks asked us nuanced questions, causing us to think deeply about our business idea and challenged us to respond with cohesive answers that allowed us to apply the knowledge learnt during this task to a real world scenario. Overall, this was a highly valuable experience that combined knowledge and creativity in a practical sense.”
Charlotte – Year 10 Commerce student
“Through this Shark Tank pitch, I learned how to transform a real-world problem into an achievable startup strategy. Responding to live, unexpected questions forced me to think fast and speak with real confidence under pressure. Also, mapping out the business idea from scratch taught me that launching a startup is a multistage journey requiring deep market research, continuous refining, and careful roadmapping to turn a concept into a viable business.”
Natalie – Year 10 Commerce student
“Participating in the Shark Tank event helped me develop a valuable understanding of innovation and the process of creating and presenting a business idea. Throughout this experience, I learnt the importance of market research, customer feedback, and creating a solution that addresses a real world problem. The industry sharks delivered crucial feedback and questions to strengthen our idea and refine our pitch. Macquarie Uni further supported us by providing resources and opportunities essential to develop skills in entrepreneurship.”
Olivia – Year 10 Commerce student
“The students knew their customer, stuck to their brief and handled the panel’s questions with confidence. These are the skills that build businesses, and these students already have them. Congratulations!”
Jacqui Attard- Institute of Business Coaching
Mrs Lisa Ganderton, Leader of Inquiry and Enterprise
