In our view, far too many ideas die at the imagination stage. It’s not because people are lazy, we think the primary reason is because many people don’t know where or how to start. So, we connected with some sharp and generous entrepreneurs who’ve agreed to share their stories of how they went from idea to execution.

Terrance Donte

Growing up I was always entrepreneurial, whether cutting grass in the neighborhood or shoveling snow. I like having my own money and being independent. I cant say I had any particular goals like “when I grow up” I want to be this? My creativity I would say is what saved my life as soon I began to tap into to that energy and express myself through dancing and rapping. I took Security Shop in High School and part of the security class was photography so we had a darkroom and had access to cameras, so that is were I got introduced to the process of photography. Read more>>

Ehjzohn Evans

One time I went from idea to execution, Was my stardom to becoming a designer. I had a friend in high school that dressed really nice and had a really nice designer clothes, Every day I would go to that friends house and literally see outfits laid out for the week. One outfit for Monday all the way prepared to Sunday. Growing up my family and I couldn’t afford designer clothing. I knew I could dress and put an outfit together, but after seeing that and the coordination of designer clothing everyday. I thought to myself as for designer We couldn’t afford it, so maybe we can become it. Read more>>

CeCe Raven.

My idea of starting a swimwear line stemmed from my love for swimwear. I purchase them at least 7 months out of the year. I’ve always believed that when you do what you love, you never have to work a day in your life. I began by completing all of business filings, reserving a name & creating a business plan. Once that was complete, it was time to find a distributor/manufacturer which wasn’t easy but with much research, time and close attention to detail I found the perfect manufacturer. Read more>>

Hanna Nuss

I started everything I am doing now simply talking into the audio recorder on my phone at the time. I figured if I could consistently do that then I might be able to start a podcast. So I showed up for three months recording daily and researching nightly. At that point I didn’t know how to “do a podcast” but I wasn’t wasting time researching while not also in practice. I knew I wanted to write that never flowed as easily as words. So after three months of recording audio that I would never use, I finally learned how to “do” a podcast. From there I was documenting my journey from being lost in life to what I hoped would be a purpose. Read more>>

Reginald Clack Jr

Q: How did I actually start? A: I actually started by accident back when Instagram was slowing becoming the app we love to utilize today. The idea originally started as me taking pictures of my friends, on campus for social media, marketing for their business & graduation invitations. It quickly turned into gigs for businesses on campus, later growing into contractual work for The University of Alabama. Once my buzz grew across stateline, I refocused my attention to event photography while fostering connections with promoters, marketing firms, etc. Read more>>

Lafayette Barnes.

I believe any business should be a solution to a problem. In Washington, D.C., there is a lack of independent Black-owned media that caters to Millennials and younger. The Washington Informer Bridge is a safe space for Black writers and changemakers to express themselves. We primarily discuss the accomplishments of young people of color. Our motto is “Control the Narrative, Save the City”. Read more>>

Katy Malak

Starting a salon and spa from the ground up was a long-term goal of mine, but I had never pictured it happening so soon at this point in my life. After having some challenges with a job in Ohio, my mom suggested that I move 2 hours back home to Indiana and start my own salon and spa. At the time, I didn’t think the idea was even feasible, but after further conversations and consideration of all the factors, I came to the conclusion that it was more than possible. Read more>>

Crystal Render

As I sit deathly ill watching a food network show I immediately thought “I can do that” that’s when my plan went into action! I originally Started Magnificent Morsels a restaurant but quickly realized that I wasn’t really prepared for that, unknowingly that demise over time turned into a beautiful success story today…… Read more>>

Joselyn Duwana

The birth of Dollhaus came from a dream that I found the confidence to bring to real life. Before I saw myself as a business owner, I had a dream of helping people change their skin and find confidence within themselves, because that was once my story. When you have a dream that you want to make a reality, it can be challenging to figure out where to start first because of all the ideas running through your head, but like many I first went to google and started researching everything I needed to know to start a business. Read more>>

Michael Frustini.

Pepper Jam is something that I always enjoyed eating. I had friends who would make their own and as the good foodie that I am, I would let them know what I liked and what I didn’t like about what they made. They didn’t always appreciate my critique and one of my friends challenged me to try and make my own Pepper Jam. So that’s exactly what I did. Read more>>

Sierra Craig

The Main Squeeze was born while I was working my full time job and at the time was running a previous business. I would take pressed juices to work and my co-workers would always inquire about trying them or placing orders with me, and just like that, I started The Main Squeeze. I’ve always loved cooking, making smoothies and juices had become my latest obsession. But when I started taking orders I had no recipes or done any research to put the recipes together. Read more>>

Helida Dodd.

It took three years of daydreaming! After 12 years of swearing off perfume, a trip to Fortnum in Mason in London left me wondering if I could actually fall in love with perfume again. Except more than buying a bottle, that pesky voice kept whispering to me… “could I actually make my own and finally have a fragrance I’ll love from start to finish? Read more>>

Tyler Simon

If I had to choose a concrete starting point I would say it was when I asked Isaac (bestfriend/co-founder) to join in on this mission and file the LLC with me as a partnership in 2020. At this time we had piled up a good amount of designs (that we never used) together that we could use in the future, along with a bunch of big-eyed ideas. When we filed that LLC we didn’t have 100% of our mission down. We knew what we wanted to do, but how do we do it? How big can we do it? What is our mission statement? Read more>>

Josiah Jackson

I actually had a unique education experience being homeschooled. My focus was 100% on education and I did not join a team or have some of the resources available to kids now. I was in college at the age of 14 so, the basketball players became some of my closest friends and mentors. One of my mentors; Quinton Wood took me under his wing. He was one of the star players and from him I learned the mechanics of the game. Read more>>

Kristin Barnes

sweet bean was a side hustle when we launched in 2013. I had learned how to make filled chocolates from another small-batch chocolatier, and often made chocolates for fun, holidays or as gifts. I was growing bored in my corporate 9-5, and needed a creative outlet when I started experimenting with painting chocolates. Friends and family started showing interest in purchasing my creations, and this sparked the idea to turn my hobby into a business. I asked my Facebook friends if they would purchase my chocolates for Valentine’s Day and take a survey giving me feedback on starting a business and the overwhelming response was “Do it!”. Read more>>

Alicia Boehne Kelsie Smith

We each owned our own boutique; one made room in her existing salon, the other in her home. We decided to join forces and go in together. Our initial idea was to have clothing for children as well as clothing and accessories for women. We wanted to make our passion for fashion a reality in our small hometown. Our dream was to have a building in the downtown district; we searched for months. While we searched we continued to run the boutique out of Salon Thairapy, Alicia’s salon, and our cars! We popped up at multiple vendor events before finally landing our brick and mortar. In November of 2021 we moved KloTHēeR out of the salon and on to Broadway. Read more>>

Lindsey Garcia

I have been an esthetician for 15 years, and also have rosacea and sensitive skin. Even in my industry where I had access to any product, treatment, or educational class on skincare, I still couldn’t find a line that worked to calm my skin, while also giving me the anti-aging benefits I desired. My husband is an MD, has a degree in microbiology, and experience working in labs formulating skincare. When I complained about my issue, he said he could make me something. I was very skeptical, but he pulled it off. Within days of using the products I was already feeling a difference in my skin. Read more>>

Kroy Richardson

Meet Kroy a now 9yr old Autistic Entrepreneur that had such a love for Gourmet Popkorn during the climax of Covid-19 that he created his own… ” KroyKorn Gourmet Popkorn. Kroy  who was diagnosed with Autism in 2019 struggled like most children at  the start of Covid-19 he quickly began to miss  his  regular activities including  Lunch Bunch with his friends at school and Movie Nite with Family . His  life was “changing” with virtual everything he needed an outlet, Kroy missed his Routine. Read more>>

Judy Moody

I was the assistant director at the Pickens County Animal Shelter in 2013 and realized quickly we needed extra funds to take the shelter from a high kill to a low kill. My husband is a CPA and set up Partners of Pickens Pets (POPP) to help achieve our goal. We immediately started fundraising and donations became tax deductible. We set up an account / partnership with our local vet Dr Chester here in Jasper. Ga. Through this partnership it allowed us in assisting the community with low cost spay and neuters and other veterinary care. Read more>>

Brie Burgett

My first duty station in the Marine Corps provided me the opportunity to live in Okinawa, Japan. For the three years that I lived in Japan I took every opportunity to travel throughout Asia exploring as many new places, cultures, and experiences as possible, from taking a red sail junk cruise around Halong Bay in Vietnam to climbing the ancient pagodas scattered across Bagan in Burma. I joined Instagram and started sharing my adventures on the platform and as I posted more unique destinations and shared my solo travels, I received more and more questions from other travelers about the specifics of my trips. Read more>>

Stephanie White

I have loved cooking and baking for as long as I can remember. I grew up in a family passionate about food, where something new was always being created in the kitchen. While my early career focused on teaching young children, and working in emergency animal medicine, I couldn’t shake the dream of owning my own bakery someday. Read more>>

Sarah Yarbrough

At a young age, I loved pictures – looking at them and taking them. I spent so much time looking back in photo albums as a child, and grew to love capturing as many moments possible through my teenage to adult years. When I met my Husband, Jay, in 2016, he saw that photography lit a spark inside of me, and within a year and a half bought me my very first DSLR camera. If I am being honest, it intimidated me, but Jay lovingly encouraged me to go after this passion of mine. Read more>>

GERARDO RAMOS VIVAS

The process of going from the idea to the execution was one of the scariest things in my journey. It all started in December of 2020, one random Saturday night while having dinner with my family in Cincinnati. We all started talking about the family’s old coffee plantation. My connection to coffee goes back to 1986 when my dad and my grandfather bought a coffee plantation near Lake Yojoa, in Western Honduras. I remember going to the farm on the weekends to help pick coffee during harvest. Read more>>

Lue Finisher Thao

I was working a 9-5 job after high school and I knew I always wanted to dance, but I didn’t know what to do with dance. I struggled with being unhappy with where I was in life. An opportunity arose when Mary Anne Quiroz contacted me in 2017 about the idea of starting my own dance studio inside the Indigenous Roots Cultural Arts Center. I worked for Mary Anne Quiroz at Battle Creek Middle School for an after school program back in 2011/2012 and we had prior discussions about opening a cultural center. Read more>>

Mealea Newbill

I have always dreamed of being an entrepreneur. For financial freedom but mainly for flexibility to be able to be more involved in my children day to day life. I was working at a financial institution and had been promoted three times in a very short period span. I was doing well financially and climbing the ladder of success rapidly but I was working nonstop! Doing lots of overtime and projects. I stepped out first on faith with my online boutique in 2013, I began by researching for vendors and although there were many companies selling vendor lists, Read more>>

Anya Fleming

I always knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur. In 2019, things were getting rough on my 9-5 job and COVID-19 was starting to spread expeditiously! As a single mom in a city with little to no help, there were many challenges. I was forced to come up with an immediate plan. I started doing research to see what area of business I would excel best in when I came across candles. I’ve always had a creative eye and a love for candles. I began to make them as a hobby to escape my everyday life. Read more>>

Anthony Nealy

After my wife and I got married. I surprised my wife with our first home garden. We them learned how to germinate seeds from a Local Farmer In St Joseph Mo. Then we offered our Neighbor who was a senior citizen if she would like a garden in her yard and she did. So plowed and tilled up her yard and planted her garden. Then we started a garden at a local Church as a gift. Read more>>

Lea hope Bonzer

I have been passionate about photography for over twenty years. Photography leads me to create art, not just a snap I see with my eye. I love creating a piece that will inspire and motivate occupants in residential, commercial, and hospitality surroundings. Through networking, I came across Lorain DuCharme, she become a great friend as well as a business partner. Read more>>