Case Study: Collegiate X

How Grow Big Ventures Helped a Fast-Growing NIL Startup Accelerate Market Traction

Background

Collegiate X is a cutting-edge NIL (Name, Image & Likeness) marketplace founded by Anjay Sakuru, connecting college athletes with brands and sponsorship opportunities. Shortly after launching their first product version, the Collegiate X team realized they needed a strong go-to-market strategy to compete in a fast-moving and highly regulated space.

The Challenge

While Collegiate X had an innovative product and a passionate founding team, they lacked a refined sales and marketing engine to scale quickly. Entering a complex NIL market required a blend of creative positioning, tactical outreach, and strategic storytelling to attract both athletes and sponsors.

The Grow Big Ventures Approach

Through an introduction via mutual alma mater Zane, Collegiate X partnered with Grow Big Ventures (GBV) to refine their strategy and accelerate adoption.
From the very first call, GBV impressed the Collegiate X team with data-driven insights and immediately actionable growth strategies tailored for the NIL ecosystem.

Grow Big Ventures delivered:

• Go-to-Market Strategy — crafted a clear narrative and channel approach for reaching athletes and brand partners.
• Sales Enablement — provided frameworks and outreach systems to help the internal team book meetings and close partnerships faster.
• Positioning & Messaging — clarified the brand story for investors, partners, and end users to stand out in a competitive field.

The Results

• Streamlined onboarding and engagement process—from first outreach to actionable implementation within days.
• Clear roadmap for accelerating platform growth across key segments.
• Renewed investor and partner confidence through stronger positioning.

Client Testimonial

“From our very first conversation, our team was blown away by the ideas and strategies Zane and the Grow Big Ventures team brought to the table for a new and rapidly evolving NIL market. The experience was incredibly valuable and seamless—from reaching out, to scheduling, to receiving actionable insights that can significantly accelerate activity and growth on the Collegiate X platform. Whether you’re entering a new market or scaling in an established one, I highly recommend the Grow Big Ventures team for their strategic guidance and unmatched marketing and sales expertise. Their ideas are truly priceless.”
— Anjay Sakuru, Founder & CTO of Collegiate X