Coming up with an idea for a business or creative project can feel exhilarating. Inspiration for a new idea can come from so many places and we’ve asked some great folks from the community to share their stories of how they came up with their ideas.

Mikayla Taylor

I started my online business in 2019 out of the need to make additional income while on medical leave. During this time, I turned to my lifelong love for writing and saw an opportunity to create a business where I could write for others. Read more>>

Andrew Wilson

I’ve tried hard my whole adult life to make my own money. While I work at a job that I love, I also enjoy the feeling of being an Entrepreneur, From mowing yards, to baking cookies, to making hats and now Hand Weaving the wonderful kitchen products I now make and sell, I finally feel like I am a real Entrepreneur. I spent several years learning work ethic and “listening to the voice” of customers, when I was mowing yards and weeding for people, I learned to work hard. Read more>>

Victor Ledbetter

I love candles. Prior to Covid, I had a closet full of candles and would burn them constantly burning them when home. I was a business consultant at the time, so I would literally burn them from Thursday night when I flew in until Sunday night. When Covid hit and we were on lockdown, I ran out of candles. So there was no random pick ups of candles while running around the city. My then fiancee had just moved in (for the lockdown) and we had taken a candle making class about a year prior. Read more>>

Jeff & Karen Prugh

Everything good begins with a strong passion for something. Ever since Karen was fourteen years-old, she has been passionate about coffee. And ever since Karen first introduced me (Jeff) to an amazing cappuccino over a dozen years ago, I have shared that same passion. Every time we travel, we search out the best shops. When we lived in New York back in 2014-15, we immersed ourselves in the coffee culture. Read more>>

Chanele Ramos

My friends actually came up with the idea for me to write an original story. We are all a part of a fandom for an actor, and they thought it would be a good idea for me to write my own story. I’ve written a few fanfiction stories, so they suggested this. Read more>>

Damon Duncan

When I was in my 20s I had this wild idea to be a professional Santa Claus when I was older. Fast-forward to when I was 40 that wild idea became a reality. My wife and I discussed this at length before jumping into this, we researched the right places to get a suit and where to get my hair bleached and dyed, you see I am a younger Santa, therefore, I need the help of modern chemistry and phenomenal stylist to become the white-headed Santa Claus. In my first year, my wife and I set a goal, simply to cover the costs we would incur for the hair and suit, roughly $2000. Read more>>

Wesley Smith

After racing for years and traveling with a bike every which way you could do. In 2008 I was laid off from pearl izumi corp office and that was the key time to take the leap into burning cash, to build the dream with a better way of taking the stress and extra work out to getting your most critical component to all the things you have trained for over the months in becoming your best Read more>>

Kerry Wurl

Reel Krazy Girl was created when I noticed women’s fishing apparel was slim to none. There were very few choices and not a lot of designs. There is a big market that is not being targeted, lots of women love to fish. So I started doing research, looking into getting trademarked, I got help from family on getting a website up and running and we worked on designs. It was a lot of work but I feel it’s all worth it. Read more>>

Marie Alessi

I did not per se “plan” to start the business I have now. I had my coaching practice for about 7 years, when my husband went on one of his regular business trips and never came home. He passed in the prime of his life, with no warning signs, from a brain aneurysm. Our boys were ten and eight. I was 20 when I lost my dad, so I knew what not to do. Read more>>

Maria Parra

This idea to elevate spaces began in the middle of the pandemic year, while everyone was at home literally looking to the ceiling and walls, I started offering remote advice on decoration and interior design, I launched a website and months later I formally registered Styly Home Design Studio as a full-service design firm based in Atlanta, Georgia, and available for projects nationwide. Read more>>

Matt Fulcher

The origins of Sunrise Multimedia trace back to my middle school days, a time when the seeds of curiosity were sown. In the sixth grade, I found myself enrolled in a TV Production class, where a camera became my gateway to a world of creativity. The routine took an unexpected turn when I was chosen for the morning announcements, delivering weather updates and school news. It was during these moments that a genuine fondness for production began to take root. Read more>>

Tina Hudson-Beamer

I have always had an appreciation of the vintage style. From as far as I can remember, I have always loved fashion and being different and unique in my style.. I would say my love of vintage happened without me even realizing I loved the vintage aesthetic or that there was even a true market for it out there. Even when I shopped the cookie cutter stores in the mall, I gravitated toward pieces that had the 50’s to 70’s look. Read more>>

Louis Rodriguez

My first successful business ever created was Oahu Boat Cruises, a party boat company that host parties for birthdays, weddings and special events. I first started creating business at 16, however Oahu Boat Cruises was one that took off really quickly. I was 20 years old working at a scuba shop. I reached out to the owner of the shop to rental the vessel for a college Halloween party that I was looking to host. Read more>>

Lydia Knight

Starting The She Center was really born out of my own necessity. On the surface, I had it all – I was a top health coach in the country, trained over 400 health professionals, had a family, education, you name it. But deep down, I was struggling with something quite personal. Despite being a health symbol for thousands, I was caught in this vicious cycle of binge eating. It was ironic, really – here I was, advising others on health, yet couldn’t get a grip on my own eating habits. Read more>>

Cheyenne Clements

The idea for CM Bakery started back in 2019. There was a local Pinots Pallet that was offering a cookie decorating class. I sent the Facebook invite to my best friend, she had just had her first child and needed to get out of the house. So, we had a girls night, attended the class and to both our surprise, decorating a sugar cookie came so natural to me. I took that class in November, it was Thanksgiving themed, and that following January I launched CM Bakery. I created a CM Bakery instagram account and facebook page. Read more>>

Taylor Peebles

Graduating into a pandemic and being unemployed left with plenty of time to come up with a business plan. I always knew I wanted to start a business but I hadn’t planned to start so soon. I had $1000 from graduation gifts and a vision! I knew I wanted my business to be around natural hair due to what I’ve gone through personally with my hair. Growing up, I always had long thick hair that brought attention to me everywhere I went; some good and some bad. Read more>>

Julie Griggs

I will start by saying that in no way, shape, or form was I (or my now co-founder) trying to start a business! We were just two single friends who hacked the system to solve our own problem, and then came to quickly realize the problem was affecting way more people than we thought. So here’s our founding story: Read more>>

Juan Chavez

In 2012, I was teaching a Peer Leadership class to high school students. During lunch I would allow my students and their friends to hangout in my room. During one of these lunch time gatherings, one of my students began getting into an argument with his girlfriend. It almost got physical and I had to ask him to leave the room to cool off. Read more>>

Beryl Anthony Brackett

Becoming an author was never part of the plan for my life. I didn’t wake up and think, “I want to be a writer.” It was something that happened. Read more>>

Jessica Sanchez

Hello Everyone, Read more>>

Lindsay Hite

I began my career as a wedding photographer shortly after studying photography in art school, No longer only about staged portraiture, new wedding photography trends encouraged photographers to use their creative vision to document the couple’s style, their relationship, and their special day in a way that aligned with the couple’s vision and wishes. I could be a creative AND a documentarian at the same time. The combination of fashion, creative storytelling, and documentary photography appealed to me. Read more>>

Mike Mann

The Roasted Record started as a passion project, blending two things I love together and starting a blog. That blog led to wholesale coffee roasting growth and ultimately a coffee shop and Vinyl record store. I have always been of the belief that if you are passionate about something and want to share that with the world, the world will generally welcome it. Read more>>

Rose Cushing

I was a publisher for many years of an equestrian magazine, Southeast Hoofbeats. After I wrote my book and began two podcasts for authors I was considering becoming a book publishing company. It was a natural progression. While considering this NC Poet Laureate 2015-2018 Shelby Stephenson asked me to publish his latest book of poetry. That made up my mind. Read more>>

Ivan Palomino

I have spent a substantial amount of time finding alternatives to the traditional corporate training – as it is inefficient: retaining knowledge doesn’t make people practice what they learn, in average only 15% of people would practice what they learn after 2 months. I worked with a bunch of psychologists to help me find a solution so that people at work are motivated to create new behaviors out of what they learn using technology and behavioral sciences. Read more>>

Elena Feit

I had the idea of The Ethiquette when I was in Shanghai actually during my last year of studying. I always did my professional experiences in fashion and I knew i wanted to launch my own project. During my time in Shanghai, I noticed the extreme pollution and became concerned about sustainability and circular economy. Read more>>

Audrey Brooks

I am convinced that my life’s calling has always revolved around assisting individuals in making transformative decisions to propel them forward. Even in my early adulthood, I naturally became the go-to person for resolving both professional and personal challenges. Transitioning into a management career, my ability to provide attentive and impartial support to my colleagues and employees played a crucial role in my success. Read more>>

Justine Clay

The story of how I came up with the idea for my coaching business falls into two main chapters (1) the initial idea to specialize in coaching creative entrepreneurs and freelancers (2) the idea to develop a sub-specialty in coaching creatives who also had ADHD. Read more>>

Meghan Rothschild

My business was born, frankly, out of repetitive sexual harassment in the workplace. I realized that if I wanted to succeed, I needed to take things into my own hands. I wanted women to feel empowered, to own their femininity and to find their voice through strategic Marketing and Public Relations. I started Chikmedia to do just that, and we’ve been in business for 10 years helping companies of all sizes develop strong and effective Marketing Strategies. Read more>>

Alexis Guyton

It all began with a realization of a significant gap in the market and a passion for addressing the unique challenges faced by individuals from black and brown communities in their professional journeys. As someone who has been part of these communities, I intimately understood the struggles and hurdles that individuals faced when seeking career guidance and navigating the job market. When I graduated college, there were very limited resources available to aid in the job search. I fell quickly into what some call “post-grad depression”. Read more>>

Corina Jacquin

I began this small business venture in my home 5 years ago shortly after I had my first daughter. The inspiration for launching a line of products that are nontoxic and made with organic material was my daughter, Delcie. I remember rubbing her with name brand lotions at night and reading the ingredients, and I was SHOCKED at what companies were allowed to put in products, especially for tiny babies! That is when I began researching and coming up with formulas that were safe AND actually worked! Read more>>

Kristine Go

MK Apothecary came about because my partner, Michael Aguirre and I wanted to create a space to curate, showcase and highlight contemporary artists who push the boundaries in their style. We didn’t want to have a gallery that shows one style of work, because as artists ourselves, our styles are very different. Michael is a classically trained fine artist and I have a background in textiles. Read more>>

Nanekia Ansari

Once upon a time, in the chaotic whirlwind of motherhood, I found myself the proud mom of three incredible children, ages 26, 19, and 11. No one handed me a manual as I left the hospital, and there were no detailed instructions or guidance on how to navigate the unpredictable journey of raising my kids. Despite having family examples, I yearned for a motherhood experience that was honest, real, relatable, exploratory, adventurous, and uniquely tailored to me. Read more>>

Mary Beth Larkin

Twenty years ago, with dreams as vast as the city skyline, I journeyed to New York City, fueled by a burning passion to carve my path in the world of fashion design. What immediately struck me was the city’s unique fashion paradox – the streets were a runway where chic office attire met the unexpected casualness of sneakers. An intriguing oxymoron in the fashion capital of the world. Read more>>