Going from idea to execution isn’t easy. Part of the difficulty is that often there is no playbook to follow and while we can’t offer a playbook either, we wanted to create a space where aspiring entrepreneurs could read the stories of how some very smart, very thoughtful entrepreneurs form the community got started.
Valeria Hopf
“I didn’t wake up one day and decide to start a travel advisory business — it grew naturally out of the work I’d been doing for years. My background in event marketing and music television taught me how to create experiences, manage complex logistics, and deliver high-touch service under pressure. Read More>>
Jonathan Hernandez
The idea for Veteran CEO Magazine (VCEO) came from my personal military career transition. While in Graduate School at TCU, I was fortunate to be part of a supportive community dedicated to helping their student-veteran and family population navigate not just student life but also post-graduation into successful civilian careers. Read More>>
Leyla Mir
I started as a nail artist myself. I didn’t have any big perspective or long term plan back then. Honestly, I was even shy to talk about my beginnings because my original goal was to become a doctor. But nails unexpectedly started bringing me really decent income, and as my craft improved, I became high demand. Read More>>
Brittany Decaires
Royal Tea was born during one of the lowest points in my life, when herbal tea became part of my self-healing. I didn’t start with the intention of creating a business—tea was simply how I calmed my nervous system, soothed my gut, and reconnected with myself. Those late-night blends sparked my love for herbalism and showed me how powerful intentional healing really is. Read More>>
Natalie Ramos
After a bout of domestic violence left me with nothing, I went back to what I still had—my hands, my faith, and my ability to cook—and in a tiny 4×4 kitchen I started rebuilding my life one meal at a time; it wasn’t a big launch or some perfect business plan, it was survival turning into purpose, me waking up and deciding that if I could feed someone well, I could create a way forward, so I took the idea seriously even when my circumstances looked small, cooking for whoever would order, Read More>>
Abigail Didier
Solibeech started with a very simple frustration: despite owning a drawer full of pajamas, I didn’t have a single pair that hit all the boxes I cared about – buttery-soft, temperature-regulating, made from more sustainable fibers, and at a price point that felt accessible. Read More>>
Chris Galang
It all started with me turning 40. I hit that milestone and felt two big things at the same time: first, a desire to learn more about my Filipino heritage beyond speaking the language. And second, this itch for a new professional challenge. Read More>>
Natalia Hodgson
The Lines by Natalia began the way many meaningful businesses do, as the intersection of experience, unmet need, and timing. For more than a decade, I had been leading and scaling multi million dollar apparel businesses in the mass market space. I worked closely with buyers, creators, and founders, and I saw the same pattern over and over again: incredible ideas, but very little structure. Read More>>
Angela Bosco
My sisters used to joke that I was the perpetual student in my 20s, and honestly, I still am. Here’s the big secret: I’m still learning how to do what I do. Every day presents a new opportunity to learn something. The foundation of how I learned to manage and build brands comes from asking questions, constantly. Read More>>
Jazzy Johnson
My book ‘Love After War’ didn’t start as a book idea — it started as a prophecy. A woman in jail (yep, in jail…you’ll have to read the book) told me I would write it, but I wasn’t ready. I ran from it for almost two years. Read More>>
Laraina James
My dad was coming out to visit. I was working at a restaurant in Nederland. The Sundance cafe. We wanted to make pickles for the bloody Mary’s served there. My dad and I set up a propane burner outside the restaurant with a canner and made my first batch of garlic dill pickles. That’s how I started my business. Read More>>
Hyla-Monét Penn
The idea didn’t come to me in one single moment. It started quietly, during the year I was a part of a national principals fellowship. We spent hours coaching, modeling, and role-playing the types of conversations leaders navigate every day. Read More>>
Amia Serrano
Styling is what first got me recording behind-the-scenes videos on set and with my personal styling clients. That naturally evolved into making reels of their looks I styled, which then turned into me creating my own creative reels and eventually reels for others too. Read More>>