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.

Leana Shayefar

Arebesk specializes in high quality luxury grip socks and creator of the first sock wash bag sold with each pair of grip socks. Arebesk was born after I took a Pilates class 5 years ago which reignited my passion to design. I had given up on being a business owner / designer after starting 3 businesses in the past and not being able to fully get them off the ground they way I wanted to. I had 2 kids and took some time off. It was during that time I walked into a Pilates studio and after taking classes for a month I noticed really bad grip on all the sock options in studios as well as basic socks that didnt match nicely with any of my fitnesswear. I had the idea to make more elegant socks and started on my first prototype which was a grip sock with fish net design. Read more>>

Anita Ivancevic

When I first started my business, it started from a desire of wanting to use all of my God given talents. I was in a career I was not passionate about and thought that surely, there is more I can do to serve the community around me. I didn’t know the particulars of how I would begin but I knew I wanted to reach my full potential, no matter what. I had a love for gift wrapping as this is something my mother instilled in me at a very young age, going above and beyond to make people feel special and loved by the gift presentation. When the idea of a gift wrapping service popped into my head, my primary thought was how do I share this talent with others? Having never owned a business before, I went into action. Starting with the basics, coming up with a company name and setting up a professional email. address, instagram and Facebook account. Read more>>

Ademaris Price

A late night, glass of wine and desire to pursue an untapped personal desire of mine fueled me to challenge myself in a way I have never done before. I worked at a children’s hospital for years prior to this new venture, but felt it was time to wear a new “hat” (pun totally intended) and start something of my own. I created my boutique and hat bar initially as a fun addition to my small town and as a way to meet new women in the area. I lived here for one year, before I knew I had to bring something new to this growing town. I started as a small space, 49sq ft to be exact, and continued to work as a respiratory therapist at the hospital. One thing led to another and I felt like I wanted to take the leap of faith and move out of the space I found myself in to my own stand alone brick-and-mortar. Read more>>

Catherine Curry-Williams

In a world where equity and inclusion are vital topics of discussion, I came upon a startling statistic one day while searching for speaking topics that left me incredulous. The statistics claimed that women and girls in the nonprofit sector received less support than animals, accounting for under 2% of all charitable giving in the United States. Struggling to come to terms with this shocking revelation, I went on a deep dive into the issue, only to discover that the numbers were, in fact, accurate. My initial reaction was one of anger, prompting me to share this disheartening information with a few close friends who, like me, found it difficult to fathom. Read more>>

Sakina Ibrahim

The journey from idea to execution is a challenge that many struggle with. While plenty of people dream big, not everyone follows through. Personally, once I envision a project, it consumes my mind until I bring it to life. Throughout my artistic and business ventures, I’ve gleaned some valuable insights: 1. Patience is a virtue: While setting deadlines is important, it’s wise to allow for more time, especially if the project is dependent upon collaboration with others. Immerse yourself in the creative process and give yourself and others grace. Read more>>

Robin Daumit

An Odd Journey, It Was! Having grown up in a Mediterranean influenced home, where we cooked all foods from scratch and grew most of the herbs we flavored our food with throughout the year, cooking just came naturally for me. However, a food service career was not a consideration for me in those early years, it was a lifestyle. As a young girl in my teens, my mother had opened her first Beauty Salon, and it was there that I felt my career was about to bloom; and bloom it did. Many years of making people look and feel good about themselves, in a salon of my own, while raising my four children as a single mom, made me aware that I had developed an interesting knack for connecting with people. Interesting? The connection was developed through their reflection in my mirror, a parallel I would later build on through the lens of a camera. Read more>>

Emily Backus

In early 2020, I was in the midst of a move to Seattle while also experiencing immense fear as the Coronavirus pandemic began. I was experiencing the gamut of emotions, and found myself turning to nature as a space that offered solace, balance, and an important perspective on my daily life. As I traveled in the mountains, forests, and parks, I found myself inspired by the slow pace, freedom, and simplicity that exists in natural life. I began creating keepsakes for myself that felt as colorful and meaningful as each place I had experienced – something I could never find among the cookie-cutter souvenirs in gift shops and travel stores. Read more>>

Brittany Combs

I would say my fascination and excitement with design came when I was living in Canada. I was in eighth grade when I had the idea to sketch out a design for my graduation dress. It was a three-tier pink ombre design off the shoulder dress which I created with the help of a family friend. It was that moment, seeing my design come to life, when I knew I wanted to pursue a career in Fashion. When I stepped onto the campus of O’More College of Design in August 2011, I realized I was about to make my dream a reality. I had learned some of the basics and knowledge about textiles and sewing from my mother, but this paled in comparison to the experience I gained at O’More. While in school I took classes consisting of but not limited to pattern making, draping, sewing and illustrating. Read more>>

Andrea Ward

Before I launched my production company I had to learn and study the craft of filmmaking and creating a business structure while building a visual portfolio for myself. A few years ago I found my inspiration to write screenplays again which eventually lead me to directing and producing my own content, I become so great at the art of story telling I started building a clientele through referrals or word of mouth. Most importantly for me was coming up with a name for my business, one that would make a statement for my company. Next I made the necessary steps in forming my business legally along with a website and a form of marketing. From then on I began directing and producing bigger budget projects along with gaining major credits with networks. With my business it’s really about the story, crew and quality of producing. I had to figure out everything creatively and legally for business production and how to properly cast talent for film and tv projects. Read more>>

Khadijah Fair

Once I had the idea of creating a children’s book, I was filled with excitement and anticipation. I knew that I wanted my son, Khalil, to have a book character that looked like him. A character he’d love to follow along with. So, it made perfect sense to share Khalil’s animated personality with young readers everywhere. However, I had no idea where to start or what the process would be like. My first step was to research and understand the world of children’s books. I delved into different genres, styles, and themes to better grasp what would resonate with young readers and their families. After careful consideration, I concluded that a humorous and adventurous sprinkle with learning surprises throughout the story would perfectly fit the Oh Khalil book series. Read more>>

Jeremy Arviso

My yoga mat company Hood Mats was an idea that I brought to the market in about 2 months. I had the idea brewing in my head for a while and I’m always looking for ways to bring in residual passive income. As a practitioner of yoga and other active forms of movement I felt there was a need for a product that I’d yet to see become available. One of my mentors always spoke about investing in anything that you enjoy doing, something that comes naturally and what you can have fun doing. I love yoga first thing in the morning when I wake up, it gets me motivated for the day and provides me a boost of energy that fires my brain up to be creative. Read more>>

Krista Manus

This whole crazy idea started when my husband asked me why I never took “sexy pictures” for him. I often feel like I have something to prove so I started doing some research and started learning to take selfies with my DSLR. It became this fun thing I did on a weekly or every other week basis that was also a bit of a treat for him. As I did it more and more my skills improved and I became more and more interested in this genre called boudoir. Read more>>

Haley Mustak

Being an avid record collector myself, owning a record store had always been a back-of-the-mind fantasy. As vinyl has skyrocketed back into the spotlight over the last decade, the stars seemed to align. I began with testing out whether I would enjoy opening a business by utilizing third-party selling services like Mercari. Luckily, this was fairly simple to do given the used/vintage nature of records; however after a year or so those outlets weren’t as practical given my volume of inventory and the direct competition taking up space on the same platform. What really made my dream a true reality, was investing the time, money and effort into creating my own ecommerce site that catered specifically to modern capabilities needed for providing a seamless record-buying experience. Read more>>

Jenney Korasick

The idea for Leche was born during a time when my co-founder, Trish Clifford, and I were both breastfeeding our babies who were born two weeks apart. It was during that time that we realized how much of a precious resource was wasted in the ways that were available to us in storing and using our breast milk. We knew we could find a better way and through much research, created Leche. Read more>>

Tristen Blake

I started my ceramic pipe-making business during the pandemic, but it actually was not established until this year! As a little girl, I always had personal experiences with making jewelry such as earrings, bracelets and small sculptures trinkets. This however, was never adult clay, but specifically for children. Ceramics today for me, clearly is a childhood memory that I never would have imagined would circle it’s way back to me. Read more>>

Dom Brightmon

One of the major factors that hold aspiring entrepreneurs back from taking their ideas and executing them is the perfection gap. Sometimes we feel that we have to have everything right the first time when starting out, not knowing that in the beginning, every master was a disaster. This was the case for me after launching my first book and wanting to start a podcast. Back in the fall of 2016, I completed a side quest of publishing my first book because I was dared to write one at a leadership conference. The book was a side quest because starting a podcast was something that I always wanted to do first because of my voice. Little did I know that publishing my book as an indie author gave me more clarity about what I wanted my podcast to be about. Read more>>

Sequoia Williams

When I first thought about starting my business, it was during the pandemic. I wanted to find something I enjoyed doing, and could possibly make a living out of it. First, thing I did was pray and ask god to open my ears, mind, heart, and a spark of creativity. Then I started all these different hobbies for example, resin art , learning about crystals, my sister introduced me to waist beads, and I was already obsessed with accessories. Next, I thought about how I could incorporate all these things together and that’s when my business name popped into my mind!! Kute Sis Accessories!!! Why not incorporate everything I love into an accessory boutique! Everywhere I would go someone was always telling me how they like what I had on. They would say “Omg that’s cute sis!”So it all started from there! Read more>>

Britta Checketts

I always find this question funny because the truth is it started when I was a child. I was totally that kid that not only put up lemonade stands, but I would print flyers and hand them around my neighborhood and at church stating that I would mow your lawn, paint your walls, recycle your newspapers, and babysit your children. I was a major hustler from day 1. I get that from parents. My father, who was born and raised in Germany, moved here as a late teenager, learned the art of sales through cars, worked his way up and eventually started his own company. He’s had a lot of the same clientele for over 30 years now, which speaks to his personal touch that I try to emulate. Read more>>