Starting a business is hard because it’s a fight with yourself, an internal battle – gaining the courage to get started, etc. Scaling a business is different – the challenges you face are mostly external to yourself. Each challenge has a million mini-challenges. We wanted to create a space for conversations and stories around growth and scaling. Below, you’ll find stories and insights from successful entrepreneurs across a variety of industries and markets.

Laurel Ryan

When I first started out making jewelry it was only supposed to be for friends and family. After some encouragement from my family I decided to start an Instagram to see if I could turn it into a business. This meant making a website and taking tons of product photos. Every day I would spend an hour and go through and like photos based off hashtags if whoever posted looked like they were in my target market. Read more>>

Eric Braun

Starting a business is easy. Building a business is hard. Read more>>

Kerry Berman

I’m extremely excited to say I’m doing that right now! It was a giant leap to purchase my new Tixel machine which is a brand new, revolutionary treatment. It is the most up to date technology in skincare. Read more>>

Erika Jones

Scaling up our business was a gradual process that involved a combination of different strategies and tactics. One of the most important steps we took was to establish strong partnerships and collaborations within the tax preparation industry. This allowed us to reach a wider audience of potential customers and to increase awareness of our services and programs. Read more>>

Maggie Carmack

In 2018, following a late night epiphany fueled by post partum delirium as I held my infant daughter, I realized that it was time to take my long time hobby of photography and turn it into a business. I wanted to be proud of my work and to successfully break into the cutthroat world of wedding photography. I admired the work of the photographers I followed on social media, and I wanted to be considered “one of them.” Read more>>

Nya Jones

When I first started my business I was still living at my parents house. I remember I started with 500 journals. That may not seem like a lot, but when it’s boxes stacked in your parents garage it feels like a lot more. In the beginning it was just me and I definitely wore many hats. I was packaging orders, responding to emails, running ad campaigns, creating content, managing taxes, and much more. Read more>>

Shachi Sanghavi

When I bought the Challenge Island franchise and introduced it into the Houston-Katy area, I thought it would be an instant craze. But it was not that easy, it was a very difficult journey. Schools and other organizations did not want to try out something new and specially with minimal nation wide marketing they did not know what our program was all about. Read more>>

Snigdha Sangisetti

Low Ultraviolet is a safe and fashionable UPF 50+ lifestyle brand on a mission to educate and protect the public from skin cancer. We offer sun-protective apparel to help individuals, specifically women, be protected from the sun, and continue to live their lives on their terms. We launched our first product in October 2020 and since then, we’ve curated a catalog of over 25 products. Read more>>

Jorge Contreras

I went from poverty, having to sell drugs at 7 years old, losing my father, and being abandoned by my mother, to being financially independent and creating a million-dollar business as a real estate investor and coach. Read more>>

Elizabeth Blakemore

When I started Forefront Arts it was just me. I taught all of the theatre classes, directed all the shows, answered all the emails, did all the behind-the-scenes planning, etc. In the first few years I added some part-time contractors teaching some of the classes or helping with the technical theatre aspects for the shows but for the most part I was still overseeing everything. Read more>>

Rashane Elston

First And Foremost I Want To Thank GOD And My Family & Friends For Supporting Me Also My Customers They Are The Reason My Business Is Such A Success Today. I started my business back in 2012-2013 which was the first year I actually started making custom items. At that time I was Was Graduating High School I really had no idea what I knew how to do or even what’s I planned on doing with my life. Read more>>