Praxis

/prakses/ noun

A focus on applying theory through real-world practice through hands-on projects and fieldwork.

Praxis Course 2026

In the 2026 iteration of this course, the Japan Praxis course: Fashion Ventures in Japan trained students to discover and evaluate venture opportunities across cultural and market contexts, using Japan's fashion and design ecosystem as a working case study, chosen because it resists easy assumptions and demands real cultural fluency.

In the first half of the semester, students learned discovery methods, qualitative research, and field inquiry, observing industries as systems shaped by culture, craft, and history rather than jumping to solutions. A Spring Break fieldwork trip to Japan allowed for them test those observations firsthand.

SUMMER 2024 ● US

United States

11

Students worked with medical-wear startup Penna Wear to pivot from wholesale to direct-to-consumer and secure first revenues.

While we've reached more than 100 founders through our coaching and mentorship, we also see a community of enthusiastic and curious students at the University of Utah who want to embody entrepreneurial processes, but might not be at the stage of starting their own ventures.

In alignment with the strategic vision of the David Eccles School of Business and our own learnings and priorities, Doman Innovation Studio has worked to create hands-on, real-world learning opportunities for students.

In the second half of the course, led by Ainsley Lloyd students translated that discovery into opportunity analysis, modeling market size, industry dynamics, investment scenarios, and pairing cultural insight with financial rigor.

The result is a full cycle of venture formation: noticing, understanding, translating, and modeling the core skills behind venture creation, investing, and strategy work.

Brock Vandenberge

Praxis 2024

"I had never been part of a class where our work had real-world implications. To know that a new company helmed by an experienced team actually valued our work was incredibly gratifying.

After completing the course, I am confident that I can work within a company on problems that would have previously intimidated me Not to mention I walk away with experience that I can add to my resume and portfolio.”

“The biggest takeaway that I learned is the importance to open your mind to different pathways of life. As a design major, some of the business aspects of this course felt new and different to me.

However the business aspect was really valuable to explore areas of the world that I didn’t understand at first. Because of this course, more possibilities have opened up for my future that I didn’t even necessarily know I could go down.”