An Entrepreneurship Spotlight on Brett Mastrangelo '26: Adjustiblox

Brett Mastrangelo, an incoming 3L at Villanova Charles Widger School of Law (“CWSL”), was recently awarded 1st Place at the Villanova Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship’s 15th Annual Pitch Day Competition and received a $10,000 prize to invest in his company, Adjustiblox. In this spotlight, Brett discusses how he came up with the idea for Adjustiblox, how he balances law school with being an entrepreneur, and how CWSL and the John F. Scarpa Center for Entrepreneurship and Law (“Scarpa Center”) have helped him in his entrepreneurial journey.

*Brett’s answers are paraphrased for purposes of clarity and conciseness.

Q: Explain the background of your invention. What is Adjustiblox? When did you come up with this idea and what has the process been for you up until now?

A: I came up with the idea in late 2021 when I was a college student at West Chester University. I have always done yoga and still do now, and as a college student I noticed a problem in the market with yoga blocks — the block heights were insufficient because, when you try to increase the height, you lose stability. I searched online for a better solution to traditional yoga blocks and found nothing, so I decided to reach out to a product engineer online to create a 3D print of my idea for a better yoga block. My idea took off from there; I reached out to 52Launch, a product development company in Boston, in early 2024, and the company has helped me bring my idea to the market ever since. 52Launch helps me with branding, manufacturing, website design, and essentially everything else I need to launch Adjustiblox.

Q: How have you been able to balance law school with your entrepreneurial pursuits?

A: There really is no framework for how to balance entrepreneurship with law school, but it has not been that difficult because of all the help that I get from 52Launch with manufacturing and other logistics. My primary responsibility is to answer emails, approve models and other decisions, and to be attentive to any information and communications I receive. I am also working on expanding the company’s social media presence, which has taken up most of my time week to week as I work toward launching the company.

In a way, law school and entrepreneurship naturally complement each other, but doing both has required me to learn to multitask very quickly. For example, I focus on class during class, then in between classes I check my phone and schedule meetings for Adjustiblox. I find that balancing the two is similar to balancing academics with extracurriculars at the law school. In other words, being an entrepreneur is like an extracurricular activity that I put time and money into and that will follow me after law school. It seems scary to balance both, but it is not so different from being a student attorney in a clinic or having a leadership role in other student organizations.

Q: What CWSL and Scarpa Center experiences and resources have you taken part in that have helped with your entrepreneurial journey?

A: Getting involved with the Entrepreneurship Law Society my 1L year was a great way to network with guest speakers, some of whom are entrepreneurs and some of whom are attorneys, and to start building professional relationships. After becoming a Scarpa Fellow my 2L year, I had access to even more connections through the Scarpa Center by leading and organizing events and coordinating with guest speakers. The Scarpa Center’s Entrepreneurs in Residence (“EIRs”) have been particularly helpful in my entrepreneurial endeavors. My 1L Fall, Jane Win helped me learn how to write a business plan and taught me the importance of consistently updating my plan. During 1L Spring, Terrence Lowe helped me understand the importance of filing a provisional patent and conducting a patent search on my product before I began working with 52Launch and knowing my idea could be protected. During 2L Fall, Johnny Sneh met with me consistently throughout the semester to help me talk through my entrepreneurial journey and think about next steps. During 2L Spring, Peter Toolan helped me prepare my financial model for Pitch Day and discussed his experience with manufacturing overseas. Every EIR was very open to meeting with students, and they were all willing to share the successes and lessons learned in their own experiences.

During 2L Fall, I took Professor McDonald’s class “Law and Strategy for Entrepreneurs & Attorneys,” which focused on the entrepreneurial process starting from having an idea all the way to considering options for selling. It was useful to learn about the many legal considerations that arise, from contracts to employment to entity choice, and how they tie together. Having a guest speaker each week also provided more opportunities to connect with entrepreneurs and attorneys who are knowledgeable about starting a company.

Additionally, as a student attorney in CWSL’s Clinic for Law & Entrepreneurship, I learned about operating agreements and other governing documents for small businesses, which has helped me to create my own documents for Adjustiblox. This experience taught me how to structure, read, and identify what is important in these types of documents for my company. I was also a client of CWSL’s Intellectual Property Clinic, which helped me think through how to protect my invention and idea.

Finally, the university-wide 15th Annual Pitch Day Competition run by the Villanova Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (“IIE”) was an incredible opportunity to showcase Adjustiblox. In January, I submitted a business model canvas and pitch video. The IIE chose me as a semi-finalist in the competition based on this submission, and I was able to pitch Adjustiblox live in front of judges on Pitch Day. I was paired with a team coach who helped me walk through my pitch, and I was able to connect with the judges and other attendees who have already helped me navigate my next steps. My experiences writing and conducting oral arguments in my legal writing classes, as well as participating in the Theodore L. Reimel Moot Court Competition, prepared me well to advocate for my company and my idea on Pitch Day.

Q: What are your next steps for Adjustiblox?

A: I will be receiving an updated prototype from China soon. If I approve of this next prototype, I will place my initial production order and begin selling those units to the public.

Q: Do you have advice for anybody who wants to be an entrepreneur?

A: You do not need any type of background or experience to be an entrepreneur or start a company. I didn’t have any entrepreneurial background prior to starting Adjustiblox. The biggest obstacle people face is that they don’t know where to start. The best advice I can give is to just start and to not be afraid of pursuing a new venture while doing other things. Finally, being a law student and starting a business goes together more than people think, and your legal education would be very helpful in starting a business!