One of the challenges we’ve seen to true equality of opportunity is that schools and books often can’t (or choose not) offer access to one of the most equalizing resources – first hand stories of how successful entrepreneurs made their ideas a reality. If you grew up in a family or community that had many successful entrepreneurs you may have been lucky to hear many conversations and stories about starting and executing on an idea, but there are millions of people across the country who haven’t had the same advantage and so our hope here is to create a space where those stories can be told in a more public forum for the benefit of any and every aspiring entrepreneur.

Stacey & Shannon

We met in the residential real estate world. We were both looking for the right networking group. We tried local chambers, real estate groups and nothing was hitting for us. So logically….we decided to start our own! Turn Key Women was born August 2022 as a place where women in Real Estate could come together to collaborate and grow their businesses. As the months went on and we were hosting our events more and more women outside of Real Estate were showing up and loving what we were building. Read more>>

Henry Lipatov

I began my journey as a director while living in the capital of Ukraine – Kiev. At that time, I was involved in music and played in a band. We used to commission music videos from various professionals, but we were never satisfied with the results. That’s when I suggested, why not shoot our own music video. And we did it. Read more>>

Kevin Rucker

I remember it was December 2021 and my partner (Yari) and I were going through a rough year. She had lost her grandpa and I lost 2 of my brothers that year. Also, we both weren’t particularly thrilled with the whole corporate 9-5 lifestyle. We started to realize that life is too short to not be doing something we were passionate about, so I sat with her one night and just asked her what would she do if she could start her own business. Read more>>

DeShawn Turner

I have a YouTube channel that I have and I needed a camera for it while I wasn’t recording videos I said why not take photos with it I wasn’t doing a lot at first just pictures of trees my son my family members then I got booked to do a shoot outside and it came out great started doing more shoots for free to test myself out then I got booked for a baby shower and it was the best decision ever Read more>>

Autumn Federici

The Ninth House officially launched in 2017 but Jake Helgren and I started tossing around the idea in December of 2016. I was 9 months pregnant, that’s always a great time to start a business – right? We were working on our 2nd film together but you would’ve thought we were on 10! We were already a well-oiled machine still are. Read more>>

Kristophe Zephyrin

So the process for starting my business actually started way before I actually knew what I was going to do. I started taking pictures for events and modeling on my college campus. I was taking landscape photography, doing event planning, and filling other roles on campus and my creative side kind of was shown in all of those roles. as my college career was ending and I was getting close to graduating,I realized that the best case for me to continue with these creative outlets ;doing events, photography, design and more, was to establish some sort of business entity. Read more>>

Cheistina Renee

It always starts with an idea! I had my brows cosmetically tattooed in 2014; it was life-changing for me. I never thought about becoming a technician until a friend suggested it to me in 2017 after a while of doing their makeup and brows (shaping). I was always online looking at before and after photos. I just loved it! I chose my logo and business name – snatching up my social media tags before I even started! Read more>>

Julie Cloutier

I wanted to change my career from graphic design to coaching. I started by doing some visualization, seeing myself happy in a coaching session with a client. Read more>>

Claire Stepanek

This was one of the most fun parts of my journey! I had come up with the idea for ergo after years of leading price negotiations at Apple and seeing what worked and what didn’t. But to actually turn it into a product, I then flew out to San Francisco to meet up with our first hire, Jenna, who is our Director of Product. We spent two days using colored paper to map out the retailer flow and the shopper flow within our app. Read more>>

Victoria H

As the holidays approached, I wanted to dress up my dog Mya in something fancier than the cheap and transparent bandanas I could find. So I decided to make my own bandanas. However, I had no idea how to make them. After researching the best way and taking a few sewing lessons, I learned the basics of sewing, which was crucial in making the bandanas. I started making bandanas for all holidays and discovered that people were looking for affordable and quality bandanas. Read more>>

Brianna Via

I began small, selling out of my room with a $30 cubical rack from Walmart. As I grew more, I managed to convince my roommates to let me add shelf in our garage. I would invite friends to help me pack orders in the living room since our garage was too hot. Having the opportunity to wear multiple hats in the business and learn from every aspect I think was super important. Read more>>

Kelly Whitaker

My heart was pounding so hard in my chest that I was worried he would be able to hear it through the phone. I was seconds away from having an honest – yet – difficult conversation with my boss, and even though I knew it was the right thing to do, my nervous system was spiraling in a full body panic. I had practiced my speaking points over and over but my fear of freezing up, going blank, or the dread of an unexpected a negative reaction made me want to hide, ideally in a hole in the ground, never to be found again. The desire to avoid the conversation altogether was unbearably tempting – Why put myself through this? Things aren’t SO bad, are they? Read more>>

Silvija Dudor

Vintage Distilling started with a dream. Started by husband and wife team Erik & Silvija Dudor- third generation and first generation Lithuanian’s respectfully – their dream was to bring the traditional Lithuanian honey spirit “Krupnikas” to their home community of LA and the modern market. Krupnikas is a cultural staple in Lithuanian culture. Silvija recalls always having a bottle on the table during holidays and as celebratory drinks at weddings. Read more>>

Leanna Adams

I had the idea for our feature film, “Christmas with Jerks” on October 24, 2022. It popped into my head. And it was an idea I’ve been looking for for over a decade – a comedy feature idea small enough that I could get it shot with my Atlanta film community connections, but large enough in scope that I would want to actually see the film. Read more>>

Beca Thompson

I never thought that my best friends would be two goats, and what truly great best friends they were. I founded Tiny Hooves Sanctuary in 2015 with those two best friends, Peanut and Trixie, and their herd mates – goats Venus, Raiden, and Eclipse, and mini donkeys Pebbles, Cassie, Zaara, Zola, Tavie, and Kizzy. Tiny Hooves Sanctuary is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that is committed to providing forever sanctuary to abused, abandoned, and neglected farmed animals, while promoting positive change with compassionate education. We are a vegan and woman-led organization with the highest standard of care and huge hearts! Read more>>

Shannon Allen

We were in LA for the 2008 NBA Finals (Lakers/Celtics). This was the moment we had all prayed for, and the thing my husband Ray dreamed of and worked for his entire life- the NBA Championships. Everything seemed perfect- except for one thing- our 17 month old son, Walker was suddenly not himself. He was lethargic,  peeing thru his diaper, he taught himself how to say “Juice Mommy” between Monday & Friday because he was excessively thirsty and then, suddenly, he started vomiting. Read more>>

Hayden Haight

At first, the idea of working as a full-time freelance creative seemed like a pipe dream, but I had this feeling it could come to fruition with enough time. The people I was blessed to meet along the way were an indefinite help in that process. It’s always funny looking back and thinking about the struggle it was to initially gain confidence behind a camera, learn to give direction, and establish a look that fit my style. Read more>>

Bonnie Hintenach

“The sign is out and you are open for business” is what my aunt told me over the phone in February 2023. Read more>>

Shanette Lebron

Becoming a fashion designer has always been my dream. I remember being a little girl, obsessed with Bratz dolls and how stylish they were. I would look at my closet and envision what it could look like if I designed my own clothes the way I wanted to. In 2013, my grandmother bought me my very own sewing machine, a Brother CE1100PRW, and I couldn’t be happier. Read more>>

Lora Ladd

My business has two different starting points: Read more>>

Carrie Wata

The idea of Afro Mermaid came to me at a Mermaid store in Key West where I was picking up a bunch of cool little things when I all of a sudden realized that none of them looked like me. I made a comment to my husband about having an inclusive Mermaid brand that represented black swimmers. A few days passed and he kept telling me that it was a great idea and I should act on it. Read more>>

Durice Wallace

When God tells you to do something, you don’t question it, you don’t think about it, you just do it. Even if you have to do it afraid, your obedience to the Lord will push you through. Read more>>

Thomas Strand

I have been a commercial photographer for over 35 years and have weathered many disruptions to the status quo. I have always strived to stay up to date on new technologies and actually was one of the first photographers to have a website. I transitioned from film to digital and soon after incorporated video into my workflow. The latest technology to wiggle it’s way into the commercial photography realm is AI. Read more>>

Jacques Philippe

I believe ideas are the seeds that birth the all the creations around us. Ideas can often lead one to their purpose. I would say that is what led me on this path of visual arts, fashion, and writing novels. I always had a passion for art. Coming from the ghetto we are exposed to art daily such as graffiti, murals, and music. Read more>>

Jon Stoia

My wife Katheryn and I are from Michigan, we moved to California for work with Tesla. I am an engineer and Katheryn is a middle school teacher. We lived in California for 8 years then moved back to Michigan to start and be near family. One day while at home we looked for a self pour taproom around out of curiosity. Read more>>

Alyssa Lajoie

The way The Little Haven actually came into fruition all began quite a while ago. I got into Massage Therapy to eventually become an entrepreneur, but once I graduated Massage school, I realized that wasnt as easy as it sounded. So while I worked for many other establishments, I dreamt up what I would want my own business to look like. Read more>>

Kawika Miles Black

Every time I talk about having written a book, a vast majority of people say how they’d love to write a book but just don’t have the time, or they have this awesome idea, but writing is just not a strength of theirs. I truly believe that everyone has what it takes to create or build something of their own. Whether that be writing a book, or starting a small business, all of us have the capability of moving from employee to self-employed/business owner. The trick is not a matter of “if” they can, but “do they really want it?” Read more>>

Kenya Carpenter

I always harbored the desire to own my own business, but fear held me back. One day, fed up with negative thoughts, I took the plunge and opened my own hair salon to provide services on my terms. Having worked in various salons before, I recall a frustrating incident where the salon owner refused to use the air-conditioning on a scorching day, affecting clients’ experiences. Read more>>

Theresa Brooks

I started in my mom’s house. Making a corner in my room, for what I thought at the time was just something to do. I would regularly go to the local nail shop were I would leave still feeling dissatisfied. So I went to the local CVS and bought the KISS Acrylic Kit. I went home opened up the kit and dived right in. I looked at all the YouTube I could so that I could understand what I was working with. Read more>>

Rachel Rene

I started online reading through Youtube private videos for private readings. I thought to myself “Maybe I can actually do this thing.”, and put myself out there. I took a break while pregnant with my first son and my second time coming back was incredible. I was out on maternity leave for my full time job, my baby was cozy at home sleeping most of the time, and I was a bored new mom! Read more>>

Finda Kpakiwa

The idea actually came to me during a time of fasting. I was experiencing a lot of gratitude and I decided to fast to be thankful for what I had at the moment. The concept for creating a fragrance called Empowered was born. Read more>>

Antoine Mapp

I can not tell you the full story of West Powelton by starting where I started cause that was not the beginning. It began in 1991 with My Grandmother Elsie Wise known to everyone as Nana. She wanted to help the youth in the neighborhood by putting an end to all of the fights and trouble that they were getting in, so she asked them what they wanted. Read more>>

Mattia Casarotto

Certainly, I’d be happy to walk you through the journey of how I went from having an idea to launching our business. Read more>>

Hannah Killebrew

From a young age, my fascination with photography was sparked by the beauty of the world and those around me. With each photo taken, I realized the power of freezing time and preserving memories for many years to come. In high school, I took a photography class and was asked by a classmate to take her graduation photos, which turned out better than expected. Read more>>

Shanah Leaf

I have always loved creating, and throughout my life, people close to me would affirm that I had a gifting in visual arts. I wanted to learn to communicate visually and to be able to transform a space with mark making. After studying visual arts at UCCS, and staring my career in education, I began to seek out walls as canvases at any small business, church, or community space that would have me. I’ve created at Axe throwing alleys, restaurants, small businesses, schools, homes, and churches. Read more>>