Going from idea to execution isn’t easy. Part of the difficulty is that often there is no playbook to follow and while we can’t offer a playbook either, we wanted to create a space where aspiring entrepreneurs could read the stories of how some very smart, very thoughtful entrepreneurs form the community got started.

Vannesia Darby

“I can’t retire from here.” It was the third day working at my dream company when I figured out that my plan of climbing the idolized corporate ladder in the Gospel music industry was crumbling – quickly. It had only been 72 hours and I already bumped into a few glass ceilings and red tape at the second largest music conglomerate in the world. I stood in my office realizing that I signed a year long lease in my brand new apartment. I did not have any money to break a lease and resolved that I would be working at the job for at least a year. Read more>>

Taylor Williams

Going from idea to execution is probably one of the most exciting and nerve-racking processes in the entrepreneurship realm. It is because everything inside your head is now suddenly right in your face. This opens your eyes to how prepared you really are. Sometimes it is not always HOW you start but more importantly WHEN you begin. When I first launched my business I was very nervous about the “selling yourself” portion in order to get clients. Read more>>

Adam Mason

Creating my own business in the music industry was an organic growth from the career I already held over years as an instrumentalist and musical director in New York City. I am a born perfectionist – though nothing is perfect about me or my life; I have an innate need to find perfection in everything I experience. I have come to know that there is a duality in me between my artistic creativity and my need for organization and structure. Read more>>

Sheila Thomas

Teaching and training have always been my passion. For several years, I served as a trainer for daycare providers in Georgia. Sharing tips and strategies for teachers and staff with tools to support student learning was such an enjoyable experience. Still, during most of my training sessions and my years as a classroom teacher, the same message resonated from teachers: “We need parent support. Read more>>

Natalie Ramchandani

The inception of the bakery business stemmed from my long-standing passion for baking, which I had harbored since my childhood. Even at a young age, I found immense joy in crafting delicious desserts for my family and loved ones, and it quickly became my go-to activity for special occasions. Read more>>

Patricia Carrigan

My first trilogy of novellas, The Antiserum Novels (Antiserum, The Rising, Venom), came to life from my high school journal. I for a good part of my freshmen summer into sophomore year, I was fairly depressed and took to keeping a daily journal. It kept my brain functioning in a way that made it easier to deal with the things that I felt were hard and was a place where I could figure out the bigger picture–not get stuck on the small things. Read more>>

Jessica Krewson

Fifteen years ago, my entrepreneurial journey began while working as an art director for a local yoga magazine. My mind was brimming with ideas that I simply couldn’t contain any longer, and I made the bold decision to jump ship. I refer to this as my “zero moment,” as I had no savings, no clients, and no clear plan of action. Nonetheless, I took a risk and founded DesignKREW. From that moment on, I’ve been motivated to assist those who help others. Read more>>

Jordan Brown

July of (2022), I had just came back to work from being on maternity leave for my second son. I was easing my way going back into full time being a nail tech. I LOVED being a nail tech, the connections, the environment, the social aspect and the bond I created with all of my clients. But, I knew I was missing out on something. I needed to be home, raising my babies. Read more>>

Samantha Jones

Starting Beau Swim was the best thing, and yet the most challenging thing I have ever done. But it all started with an idea. When Covid hit in 2020 I had nothing but time after I was laid off from my job. For fun, I designed 4 separate swimwear collections not thinking anything of it. Read more>>

Daryl Mackin

The inspiration of “A Soldiers Child” Birthday Foundation came while I was preparing for my own 6-year-old son’s surprise birthday party. Like most parents, I got caught up in all of the “chores” to pull off my son’s celebration. I quickly lost sight of the joy of the moment. I was sitting at my computer at work, where on my wall, I have a memorial of Staff Sgt. Marc Golczynski. Read more>>

Tessa Kim

I started my journey in the world of bridal accessories and veils when I decided to create my own headpiece and veil for my August 2009 wedding. Wanting something that truly reflected my individuality on such a special day, I embarked on the task of crafting a unique and beautiful piece. Little did I know that this personal endeavor would ignite a passion within me and pave the way for the establishment of my business. Read more>>

Kylie Butler

When it came to our crystal sugar scrubs, that was probably one of the best original product ideas I had come up with to add to my shop. The idea stemmed from wanting to add some type of self care product but still wanting to incorporate and keep the theme of crystals. I have always loved and used all types of self care products, but always hated the fact that most popular skin care lines have so many chemical based ingredients, they are harsh for the gentle human skin, and oftentimes I don’t receive good results from the product. Read more>>

Marley Powell

Leading from idea to execution is the discovery process for creativity, the whole thing is the discovery along the way. Taking an idea to its execution is the clarity of knowing what you want in the immediate moment. What you intend the end result to be from the start will always change if it’s competing interest or limits of the form. I kind of believe in the idea of the “art coefficient.”  Creativity is the difference between unexpressed intention and what is unintentionally expressed, and none of it matters until somebody else thinks about it as a creative work. Read more>>

Kelsey Bailey

Someone once asked me “What made you transfer over to entrepreneurship?” I replied, “It kind of found me.” Before I was a hairstylist I worked as a Traffic Inventory Specialist for Raycom Media (now Gray Media). That job title is a fancy way of saying “I’m the person that places your tv commercials in the order that they run in.” I did that for 5 years, and absolutely hated it. August 2019, I made up my mind that I would quit my job and figure out how to turn my passion into income. Read more>>

Tammy Ash

I knew there was a need for not only a mobile Stylist to come to people that couldn’t get it to Salons. These people range from having severe disabilities that restrict access to vehicles easily or one that are in hospice nearing the end of their lives. Read more>>

WenChun Cheng

I worked as the director of The Glory of Global Chinese, a program that highlights the contributions and achievements of Chinese citizens who have had a profound impact in various fields. The program has been airing on Xumo since the beginning of 2022, and I worked on it from around June to October of that year. I directed two episodes, EP11 and EP12, which focused on entrepreneurs in environmentally friendly businesses and philanthropic work, respectively. Read more>>

Mimi Amaral

The journey was unexpected, and I must give credit to Cosmic alignment and Divine guidance. One night as I was walking to my car during the end of my undergraduate program, I was in a very blissful mood appreciating all the flowers, trees, and nature surrounding me, and suddenly within myself I heard, “you should create a focus called entertainment psychology.” Read more>>

Amanda Maggiore

Writing a book was never on my radar. Ever. Never did I think I would sit down to write my story, but here we are. Let’s start from the beginning. I graduated college in December 2020. A terrible time to enter the workforce and the real world. We were at the height of the pandemic, no companies were hiring, and the entire world was at a halt. Read more>>

J’rai Hammonds

Everything begins in the mind. I started Get Up And GLO in my families garage in 2014. I created fitness routines and sketched out designs that developed into fitness apparel. I think it is important to protect your creations at the beginning stages to help you establish your brand identity. I always knew I had to stay true to my mission, which is waking up each day and being the BEST me. Read more>>

Diona Limas

I’ve always had this idea that it took months, even years to execute a business idea. Since starting my own business I realized that the timelines I had thought were concrete things weren’t concrete at all. Often times my ideas are completely random and the whole theme of things just starts to unravel themselves. I can have an idea at 3 AM and within a couple of days I’m working on a new label, ordering new fragrance oil blends, and testing out a new candle recipe. Read more>>

Sonia Paryani

Starting a new business in a completely different industry was a challenging but rewarding journey for me. As a retired fine jewelry store owner, getting into the food business was a totally different ball game. But I had a passion for creating delicious and healthy baked goods that are free from gluten, grains, dairy, and refined sugar, and I wanted to share them with others who have dietary restrictions and health issues. Read more>>

Jenna Reece

The idea to open my own boutique came to fruition shortly after losing a longtime position due to the COVID shutdowns. I had been in the retail industry on and off for almost 10 years, and I decided that this was the time to either go all in, or find a different path. In the fall of 2020 I launched my online store, Maggie M Boutique, named after my daughter, Magnolia Marie. Read more>>

Brenda Reynosa

I am grateful to have had my parents instill the entrepreneur life in me at a very early age. Through their influence, I was able to execute my own business a year after the pandemic. What really motivated me to start Urban Glory was wanting to have the freedom to work a non corporate job and accomplish new goals for myself. At that time in my life, I was juggling a position that I was very stressed and overwhelmed about. Read more>>

Diana Stobo

I’m pretty sure we have all had at least a dozen great ideas in our lifetime that we never take steps to see to fruition. I know I have. But this one came in a a package called “life lessons and your destiny”. There was no way I could ignore the signs that I was supposed to build a world class wellness resort and spa in the middle of the Costa Rican jungle. Read more>>

Juniper Johnson

In reading “The Creative Act” by Rick Rubin, he talks about how turning an idea into a full fledged project can be intimidating because you’re bringing the intangible into the tangible, and I completely agree. In your mind, the idea can be as abstract as you want it to be, but in reality it becomes something else, no matter how heavy of a hand you have in it. Read more>>

Mike McCord

Hey, I’m Mike McCord in from Community Foodscapes in Atlanta, GA. My story began as a child surrounded by forests, waterways, veggie gardens, and cooking. Constant interaction with my surrounding ecosystem and food supply led me to a degree in agriculture from UGA, then WWOOF’ing (World-Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) in 5 different countries. Upon my return from these experiences, I was prepared build community using freshly grown, hyper-local food. A vision of community foodscapes. Read more>>

Jessie Dib

It all began with my passion for clothing design at a very early age and my desire to create something truly unique at a later age. For my senior fashion show, I incorporated jewelry into the garments in a geometric, minimal, and bold way, but it was not then that I thought about having a jewelry business. I still wanted to get experience in the fashion world and worked with renowned designers such as Vera Wang, Alejandro Ingelmo, Elie Tahari, Gap, Uniqlo, and Banana Republic. I wanted to learn as much as possible from the industry, and it was all focused on clothing at the time. Read more>>

Kelly J Glusovich

I was approached by Nick Raskind in 1993 at my store, who at the time was a partner in Brooklyn Headhunters Brand. I ran a little flavor spot called Hi Post in LES, NYC and we sold clothing, cool items and we cut hair. We sold Echo (original spelling), PNB Nation, Milk Crate Athletics, Non-Stop Hip Hop, SOHK and others. We had been selling Headhunters for a few months when Nick asked me if had more Hi Post items other than the 2 t-shirts I had for sale. I had not. Read more>>

PATTY BLANCAFLOR

After working in the nutrition business for a few years for others, I noticed some patterns being repeated over and over again. Many People were not able to make sustainable changes in their lives and were putting so much energy into how much they weigh instead of their overall health and wellness. I wanted to have a more WHOLE-istic, WHOLE person approach. Read more>>

Rachel Strivelli

Permission to Pivot: I didn’t know that I would love business or be an entrepreneur until my late 30’s. Environmental education was my passion and my career. I was ever seeking ways to make a difference in regards to how people treat the environment. Through my ever questing for the most impactful place I could use my skills and interests, I went to graduate school to study soil science & sustainable agriculture. People eat 2-3 times a day on average, so the production of food is a big place to impact the environment, health, etc. Read more>>

DemonTrae Davis

So, I have multiple business ventures I am currently pursuing. My primary focus is becoming a full-time content creator/influencer. Secondly, I’m trying to obtain my physical trainer certification and my cosmetology license. The one I’m going to be speaking about is my content creation. Read more>>

Harper Black

I’ve had the desire to write/create stories for a long time, but never really thought about pursuing it until a few years ago when I took a creative writing course. I enjoyed the course, and after completion, I considered the possibility of publishing a book of short stories or essays. Work and Life took over, so those thoughts were pushed to the back burner. Read more>>

Assane Sy

Ideas come to my mind at any moment. It can hit me while I am in an empty environment or while I am with my friends. Whenever I do have something in mind that I want to create: I write it down first in my note. Read more>>

Lina Younes

I always wanted to publish books. I worked with some publishing houses on translating and editing books. I had the idea for my own books but I couldn’t afford it. I talked with some publishing houses’ owners to publish my books. A lot of them liked the idea and considered them appropriate English Academic books that suit the culture but they couldn’t afford it either due to known economical and financial conditions that hit the country. Read more>>

Isaiah Dunn

So me and Jaysanityy, the other cofounder, started performing together in like 5th grade under the group name Forever Young. We had made a connection like most kids do, over something we were passionate about. Music. As the years went by and middle school came around we just got deeper and deeper into our individual crafts and while we were on that path we met LPTHERAPPER, entirely over the internet. Read more>>

Sharnise Christy

Starting from a challenging situation, I embarked on a personal journey that eventually led me to launch my credit business. It all began when I left a difficult situation for safety reasons, feeling emotionally broken. Initially, starting a credit business wasn’t even on my radar. However, witnessing how it had transformed my own life, I decided to help family and friends with their credit struggles, and that’s when things started to grow. Read more>>

Ramona Adkins

My story goes back to high school. I have been an eyewear lover since I was a teen. Sir Elton John was my idol regarding eyewear styles and still is a staple for my frame choices today. My eyes were always very sun sensitive, and I wore glasses to help turn down the light intact. Read more>>

Dj 4Play

The company was launched after 4Play was sent back home from school after a situation dealing with McMurry University in 2019. He was force to return home without the ability to return after the school denied of receiving aid for the following year. Dreams turnt into nightmares even more when the pandemic hit in 2020. Read more>>