WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Colleen Costello: Vyv

In 2012, Colleen Costello pitched her business plan for Vyv (previously Vital Vio) to NYBPC judges. To date, Colleen’s company has raised over $9.3M in venture capital.

Vyv makes antimicrobial lights for germ mitigation through safe, continuous LED products. They have pioneered a new approach to continuously clean surfaces practically everywhere - from overhead lights to inside consumer products and throughout the industrial process.

Vyv is a new class of clean light technology that harnesses antimicrobial power within the visible light spectrum. Vyv kills bacteria, fungi, yeast, mold and mildew. Unlike UV light, Vyv is safe for people to be exposed for any period of time and without any restrictions. Vyv lights are built to continuously reduce microbial growth to keep indoor environments and surfaces clean. Vyv’s proprietary antimicrobial light technology is cleaning surfaces everywhere from healthcare and athletic facilities, food & beverage and pharmaceutical manufacturing, travel and hospitality to products for the home, workplace, school, automotive, horticulture and beyond.

Colleen Costello, Vyv’s CEO and Founder has been named in Goldman Sachs 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs, Forbes Magazine 30 Under 30, 50 Emerging Global Entrepreneurs to Watch by Inc. Magazine, featured on CNBC, Bloomberg, ABC and holds a degree in Biomedical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, New York.

For the past four years, Colleen has also been a fellow at Unreasonable Group, a private global network and investment fund dedicated to supporting entrepreneurs positioned to impact the future. Unreasonable's mission is to provide resources and break down barriers for select companies leveraging profit to solve our time's seemingly intractable social and environmental challenges.

Colleen reflected in conversation with Bustle about the early days: “I think it's a little bit surreal to consider some of those early days when we were starting small house fires that are in our college dorm kitchen,” she says. “What we're really focused on is the continued growth and that forward-looking optimism and persistence that has contributed to getting us where we are today from that kitchen table.”

According to Crunchbase, Colleen’s raised over $9.3M for her company. Investors include New York State’s Empire State Development Fund, Citi Impact Fund, Moderne Ventures, Alerion Ventures, Tamiami Angel Funds, Tech Square Ventures, BELLE Capital and more.

More information at https://vyv.tech/