Savanna Kaczynski is a fourth-year student majoring in finance, marketing, and entrepreneurship at the University of Iowa. Her venture, WedGen, an all-in-one wedding planning platform, recently received $1,000 for Best Consumer Product at the Fall 2025 Iowa JPEC Innovation Challenge and $1,000 for Best Tech/Student Lifestyle Product at the End of Semester Pitch Showcase. Through the support of Iowa JPEC’s Startup Incubator, Kaczynski has refined her ideas, received mentorship, and advanced her prototype as she works toward reshaping the modern wedding planning experience.

What is WedGen? 
WedGen is an integrated wedding planning platform with a central dashboard that connects everything from budget to vendor messaging in one seamless system. Its goal is to bring all the backend wedding planning processes together and tie them directly to the guest-facing website experience, so couples can manage every detail in one place. 
 
What gap in the consumer product space inspired WedGen? 
A lack of product offerings for intercultural couples. Before WedGen pivoted to take a broader market focus, I wanted to build tools to assist in blending cultural ceremonies together. Through customer discovery, I saw that many couples, regardless of background, were experiencing similar frustrations with the way wedding planning tools were operating. That insight inspired me to expand to a broader market while keeping inclusivity at the core of the platform. 
 
Who is the target audience for your product? 
Couples between the ages of 20-35 who want a streamlined and personalized process for their planning needs. These are couples who are often balancing work, school, or other responsibilities and need a planning tool that is efficient, intuitive, and tailored to their specific event. 
 
What inspired you to create WedGen? 
In my course, Advanced Entrepreneurial Finance, we were tasked with developing a business idea that solved a real problem we were facing. Although I am not engaged or married, many of my friends and family were going through the planning process. I saw the stress it put on them, heard their complaints, and visited guest websites that all looked the same. Having that outside perspective and talking with couples currently planning allowed me to bring a fresh point of view to a very traditional industry. 
 
What makes your idea unique compared to what currently exists? 
There are bigger, well-established players within the wedding planning industry that everyone knows. These platforms tend to have a strong presence in one area and then surround that with separate tools. My value proposition is to bring all those tools, budget planning, customized timelines, vendor communication, and the guest-facing experience into a single, seamless platform. No other product offers end-to-end planning with this level of integration and personalization. 
 
What stage is WedGen in right now? 
I am currently building a prototype to push out to users for early testing. My focus is on getting a basic but functional version of the platform into the hands of real couples so I can learn from their experience and refine the product. 

What did you learn about your startup or yourself throughout the process? 
I learned the art of prioritization. I am extremely involved on campus, and to see this vision come to life, I had to give it the time and dedication it deserved while keeping my involvement up. One of my JPEC coaches told me I needed to get my idea out of “school project mode” and start operating as a real founder. That mindset shift pushed me to think about how to allocate my time to be the most productive version of myself and complete the tasks that truly mattered, not just the ones I felt like doing. Balancing courses, my work, and building WedGen continues to teach me to focus on what will have the greatest impact on my professional development. 

How has Iowa JPEC supported your entrepreneurial journey so far? 
JPEC really believed in me. The mentors, coaches, and classmates have helped me work through product pivots and personal doubts. I’ve enjoyed the curious and collaborative community, which has helped me grow as an entrepreneur and feel supported while building something new.
 
What has been the biggest challenge? 
My biggest challenge has been deeply understanding my consumer group when I am not a part of it. I am not engaged or planning a wedding, so I don’t have firsthand experience with all the pressures that go into the process. That has required me to rely heavily on customer discovery, which in turn has helped me grow into a more user-centered founder. 

What are your next steps for developing the venture? 
I am currently working with another JPEC student to build a landing page and create a waitlist for the product. My next milestone is a basic, functional prototype that I can test with early users. From there, I’ll continue iterating based on feedback and refining the platform for a broader launch.

To learn more about the Undergraduate Startup Incubator, click HERE.