There is often more than one right answer, and this seems to be particularly true for the question of whether folks should lean on family and friends for support with the brands. Your circumstances, relationships and other factors can determine what’s right for you – but we wanted to get a conversation going on the topic as it’s something that comes up often in our chats with entrepreneurs and creatives in the community.

Joshua Perrier

I personally can count on one hand how many times ive asked a friend to support. I don’t believe in that because support is so free. The last time i reached out to a ” friend ” to share my post , they said ok then never did it . The reason they gave me was that i asked and they felt like i rushed them but then that same person 2 days later reposted a celebrity starting a new business. Read more>>

Nirali Patel, MBA

This is such an important question and I am so grateful to be able to answer this. I feel that in the first decade of the business, some media took parts of my journey and painted a version that sensationalized my story or was just blatantly incorrect and when you are new or a small business, the media won’t even print a retraction or correction. Read more>>

Jonell Pollard

In the creative world I feel like people are more hesitant to support because there is no guarantee for success and if someone doesn’t understand the vision behind what you are trying to do their lack of understanding will make them question what you are doing. These times are hard and if you don’t have anything to back up what you are trying to do it’s hard to really ask for support. Read more>>

Kala Jordan

I recently turned 40 years old and as I have neared this milestone in my life, there have been many valuable lessons that I have learned. One of the most valuable that I am still in the learning phase now is to ask for help. As a daddy’s girl, the only person that I have ever felt like I could ask for help with no judgement were my parents. Of course, with my daddy, I never had to ask, it’s like he just knew and he made it happen. Read more>>

Destiny Jamison

I Believe Asking My Friends Or Family To Support My Business Should Be A Valuable Part Of Your Support System & Practice How To Talk To Future Customers . Drawing The Line Between Business & Personal Is When They Start Asking For Discounted Prices Or Expecting Free Services Because They Know You . Read more>>

Sara Roberts

From Day 1, I have asked my family and friends for help and they have always been there. Since I am running the business 100% on my own, it’s imperative that I can rely on my friends for advice, help with logistics when I need it, feedback/input on fabric and designs, help with spreading the word, and support to show up and just be there. Read more>>

Kash Dior

A lot of people get upset and discouraged when they start a Business and don’t see much support from their family or friends. I completely understand it, I’ve experienced it a little bit myself when I first started 10 years ago. You would think the first people who would support you would be those closest to you but it’s not always that way. Also when I say support, I don’t necessarily mean by purchasing anything. Read more>>

Emily Poage

I love when my friends and family support my business. As a small business owner, I really make an effort to support my family and friends in their passions and endeavors. Any way I can show my support, whether monetary, emotional, or physical- I always try to make an effort to do so because I know how much work and pride goes into putting your work out there in hopes that it is successful. I never try to push my business onto friends or family. Read more>>

Quin Frazier

I think you should always be open to idea of working as a team especially with people you already know and that have a passion to do it with others. My Brother and I started this just as us two, and over the years we have had so much help from our parents, my brother’s wife, my girlfriend and many of our friends. Read more>>

Tanisha Davis

When I first started FEMI Magazine, like any new person to the start of a business, you first typically reach out to your family and close friends for support. What I have learned is that your family and friends should not be your only target audience. If you depend solely on them for support then your business could rightly fail. My experience with reaching out for family to support the brand has given me thin results. Read more>>

Lauren Gohn

As a photographer I love asking my friends and family to support my business. I truly believe that you will not be successful without the support of your village. So far I’ve been extremely lucky having my friends and family support me in the best way that they can. Sometimes it’s just sharing a social media post or referring me to their friends which is so much more helpful than people give it credit. Read more>>

Holly Hood

My friends and family were the first people to help support my photography business. When I was first starting out I needed to be able to practice doing photoshoots with a wide variety of people, such as: families, couples, seniors and corporate. I didn’t feel that I was at a place that I could charge anyone for my services so I reached out to my family and friends and asked if anyone would want some free pictures. Read more>>