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.

Hadassah Vincent

How did it start?? What a loaded question, lol! Well, in my heart of hearts, I’ve honestly always loved planning, organizing, creating, making things pretty, bringing people together, etc. It started pretty much at a young age that started with my own personal birthday parties. My mother insisted on having a party for my birthday every year. I didn’t really care to have a celebration on my behalf, but I did like planning and executing the party. Ever since then, doing parties/events was always fun for me. As tiring and daunting as it can be, I genuinely enjoy it. Then in 2020, along with 3 other friends, we all decided to start our own businesses. Read more>>

Cecilia Valles

Before I created Grime Girls I was a Dj. I was DJing for about half a year before I decided to start throwing my own events. I noticed I wasn’t getting gigs I resonated with at the time, so I thought… why not throw my own. I also saw a lack of female representation in the Seattle rave community. I saw others around me doing it and have attended several underground raves, so I had a general understanding for how it should look. Read more>>

Lola Sanchez Liste

**The Story of Rockin’Blinks: From Idea to Reality** The idea for Rockin’Blinks was born out of my personal journey as a sleep consultant and mother of two young kids, during one of the most challenging times for families: the pandemic. As the world slowed down, I noticed something that had always been present but felt even more urgent—parents everywhere were struggling with their children’s broken sleep. Read more>>

Stephen Pavlik

How this all actually started is kind of silly, and not too important as this “business” has been around in some form for years through multiple DBA’s in multiple cities. It didn’t become interesting or productive until around 2020/2021. Either way, this company designs and manufactures unique antenna solutions for the music industry. I was and still am a touring Sound Engineer, specifically a Monitor Engineer. I mix what a live band hears during a show which means I am responsible for a lot of inbound and outbound radio frequency (RF) signals, think like wireless microphones, guitars and wireless monitoring systems. Read more>>

Karlos Galvan

Starting my newest venture SCV Hitting Lab & Sports Performance was the culmination of a dream, years of preparation, industry experience and a whirlwind of strategic planning. The idea for the SCV Hitting Lab became more of a reality as I have gotten more involved in coaching my daughter’s softball team. My passion for my family and sports now became one. I noticed the lack of specialized spaces for athletes in my community and places that catered to their unique needs rather than generic fitness goals. I wanted to create a solution to help athletes reach their peak performance. I was able to also combine SCV Hitting Lab with my current fitness studio GoTribe Fitness. This allows us to reach more of the community and continue creating solutions. Read more>>

Amanda Chitarra

Gulung Bakehouse began its journey in 2021, shortly after my husband and I moved to a larger apartment. This new space gave me the opportunity to rekindle my love for baking—a passion I had to set aside for nearly six years due to the limitations of our previous, smaller home, with no oven. With a renewed sense of creativity, I started experimenting with various recipes: cookies, brownies, pound cakes, and more. Then one day, I stumbled upon a recipe for decorated roll cakes. While the original design featured a simple polka dot motif, I decided to adapt it with something close to my heart: Indonesian batik patterns. Read more>>

Molly Watts

The idea of opening my own business at 22 years old; during my 3rd year of undergrad…with a 6 month old! The idea came about slowly I’d say. I had an internship doing social media management for a small business owner. I thought the idea of opening a business was super cool; I’d work for myself, be able to do what I want and just be my own boss. But then the scaries would creep in… “what if you fail?”, “how are you going to do this while being in school?”, “Am I going to be able to support myself financially”? You name it, the thought has crossed my mind. As I mentioned, I was in undergrad when I opened my business. I have my Bachelor of Science in Public Relations from the University of Florida and throughout my time there, my electives had something to do with social media. Read more>>

Joanne Payne

I had the idea for Halo Administrative Services almost 12 years ago now, although the company itself is only about 6 months old. My husband passed away very suddenly back in 2013 and all of the activities in executing an estate hit like a tsunami. There was so much administrative work to do at a time when I was coping with the grief of his loss, closing his business and managing my own executive role as a Vice-President of Human Resources for a large, multi-national organization. As I moved through this period of my life, I strongly believed that there was a potential business opportunity helping people through all of these activities, and I wanted to put my own personal experience, and the skills I had developed over the course of my career, to good use helping others in similar situations. Having said that, my own career at that time was challenging and exciting and I was not ready to give it all up quite yet. Read more>>

Connie Mansfield

Jelly Cup Collective: A few small businesses had a holiday pop up in a vacant space and we were offered the opportunity to continue in the space beyond holiday. Upon brainstorming, we realized there was a real need for an Asian American-focused artist and maker space. And just like that, Jelly Cup Collective was born! Read more>>

Emmanuel Mesen

Never Come Home at its conception was just a group of friends that loved the creativity in the world. We agreed that there were so many opportunities for creatives to show their work to the world they just weren’t really sure how to get there. We took it upon ourselves to use our knowledge to provide these photographers, writers, and anyone willing to work hard with opportunities to grow as creatives. We started to just reach out to publicist and sometimes directly to artist with the hopes of getting media passes to give to these amazing young talents. It didn’t take long for us to realize we were building a community of people who cared about their craft and from then on we began to explore the rest of the creative world. Read more>>

Athena Gardner

The idea for WeWealth Women came to me during a moment of quiet reflection while I was working at a client site. At the time, as a CPA working for a consulting firm, my role was to help clients resolve complex accounting challenges. Though the work was fulfilling, I often felt a pull toward something deeper—something more personal and meaningful. Read more>>

Quinn Reitz

It was 2014 and I had just had a baby. I was searching for a cotton nursing tank top with built-in padding for breastfeeding. I didn’t want a top with those removable pads that would come out in the wash. I also didn’t want the tank top to look like an undergarment. After a lot of research, I came to the conclusion that it did not exist and that the options for nursing clothes were limited in general and moms deserved more! Read more>>

Brittany Florentine

Peach Pollen started with a simple but persistent frustration: single-use plastics in tea bags and packaging (and shipping material). I was learning about herbalism, growing my own herbs, and blending teas for fun, and I began to wonder if I could create a product that aligned with my values, something sustainable, plastic-free, and for consumers who cared about the planet. That initial spark turned into a vision for Peach Pollen, but I knew I had a lot to figure out. Read more>>

Yebo Moyo

Mastering the process of ideation to execution has been one of the most important lessons I’ve learned in business, and it’s one of the primary determinants of anyone’s success. Everyone has unique ideas to contribute to the world, but few take the decisive action required to transform those ideas into reality. Read more>>

Emily Graham

My journey into photography started almost by chance. I was a sophomore in college when my husband, who was my boyfriend at the time, mentioned he had an old camera sitting unused in his closet. He handed it to me and said, “Do whatever you want with it.” That single moment sparked something I hadn’t felt in a long time—a creative curiosity. I began playing around with the camera, capturing anything and everything, and quickly realized I had a genuine love for photography. Read more>>

Marcia Topiwala

I was at a farmers market one day and I realized that once I left there’s no way I’d remember the names of the vendors I’d shopped with. The farmers market website didn’t list all of its vendors, and many of the ones that were listed didn’t have easy-to-find contact information. I realized that if there was a website where local vendors could be listed it could be a very helpful resource, not just for farmers market shoppers but for folks shopping for gifts also. Read more>>

Talia Manzanares

Entering college during the COVID-19 Pandemic, the natural reaction for me was to get involved at my school, San Diego State University (SDSU). As an emerging business major, I was drawn towards Women in Business (WIB) for their emphasis on a female community that shared common professional goals. I worked my way through the executive board up to co-president my senior year and the organization received accolades that I couldn’t imagine – we were selected Most Outstanding Organization at SDSU, and became the largest academic organization sitting at 900 members. It was clear there was a need for a motivating, safe space for young women to access business development tools. Read more>>

Marcos Cobos & Bianca Castillo

During the Covid-19 pandemic, we had the fortune of being able to perform our work remotely, and most of our essential needs could be met contactlessly. While this was greatly appreciated for health and safety reasons, many of our usual activities were being canceled, leaving us in search of new hobbies. We explored DIY projects, baking, walking our pup in open areas, and, most notably, food experimenting. Read more>>

Grace Mac

I’ve always been an ideas person – constantly planting little seeds of invention, but my problem was that I was continually losing interest in those ideas, so I couldn’t sustain the work needed to bring anything meaningful to fruition. After finishing high school I started a pattern of coming up with brilliant ideas, designing logos, websites, and creating, and doing all the fun, quick dopamine stuff, telling everyone what I was working on… and then just as quickly as it had grown, my passion for each new idea would fizzle. Reflecting back on this pattern, I felt embarrassed and frustrated about my lack of follow-through. Read more>>

Jody Fidler

When my first child was born in 1998, I found the snaps on his onesie to be impossible to fasten because for some reason, he wrestled on the changing table. I wondered why onesies weren’t designed to simply slap closed with Velcro – was it too scratchy for babies? At this time, I didn’t even own a computer at home and research wasn’t as easy as it is today. After speaking with a few friends with newborns, I secured hook and loop samples, selected the finest and most flexible style and took it to the local tailor and had them modify a couple of onesies for me. My design incorporated a larger loop patch on the lower stomach to provide for adjustability which I felt would be another improvement. Read more>>

Niibeis Elliot

The Journey of Pet Madness Inc.: From Idea to Execution Pet Madness Inc. was born from a deeply personal mission: leveraging advanced technology to save millions of pets and enhance their quality of life. Some of our ideas stem from personal experiences, like the heartbreaking loss of a beloved dog to undetected seizures. This inspired us to create technology that could monitor pets’ health, preventing such tragedies. Another pivotal moment occurred when trying to assist a lost dog—despite getting close, we couldn’t read the name on its tag. This inspired our visual phone name tag, allowing anyone within 50 yards to safely access pet information, a revolutionary feature aiding first responders and rescuers. Read more>>

Alexa Denaburg

Starting Curated Creations was both exciting and daunting. The idea sparked during my final year in the corporate world. During that time, I was diagnosed with a neurological condition, Spasmodic Dysphonia, which affected my ability to speak. This forced me to reset, take a leave of absence, and re-center. It became clear that I needed to make a change and align my work with something more personal and fulfilling. Read more>>

Elaine Freitas

It all started with a conversation with a Business coach about my dream studio, I had a vision and after the discussion and meditation I wrote down in a journal. After 7 months I was in a nother Business coaching program when the topic came up again and thats is the action started. I started to inquiry about place for rent and started visiting those place to learn the field and the pricing, in about a month I came across with the ideal place, I went to the bank and ask for a loan and a week later a signed the contract to get the place in 45 days. Read more>>

Samantha Gunther

In a world where the challenges faced by neurodivergent children are often overlooked, a spark of inspiration ignited a mission to create Camp Willow: a transformative summer camp program tailored specifically for kids with moderate ADHD, learning differences, and social anxiety. The idea for Camp Willow took root during a conversation with a dear friend and client Margot Anderson, a seasoned Camp Founder who has dedicated 32 years of her life to running life-changing camps for at-risk youth. My own experience as a camp counselor at one of her camps had left a lasting impression on me. I witnessed firsthand the incredible transformations among the campers, who emerged from the experience with newfound confidence and lifelong friendships. Read more>>

Tasha Howard

I have been a calligraphy lover since I was very young – any millennials out there who remember American Girl’s “Letter Art” book? I was completely obsessed with it in elementary school, and never missed an opportunity to doodle in the margins of my notebooks. In my 20s, I often created calligraphy place cards for my friends’ weddings as a gift. But I never saw this “hobby” as a business venture, and equally never saw myself as a creative entrepreneur. Read more>>

Johann Vazquez

When I first had the idea for VSL Studios, it was one of those moments where inspiration hits you, but then the reality of execution sinks in. I knew I wanted to create a design agency that wasn’t just about building websites but about crafting experiences that help businesses stand out and actually drive results. But having that vision was just the beginning. I had to figure out how to make it real. Read more>>

Michael Frino

The universe works in very interesting ways! When I decided to get my MBA and Ph.D. in Organizational Learning and Leadership, I had no clue the path it would take me. I didn’t know the people I’d meet or the lessons I’d learn. I was never a great student growing up, and my quest to earn a graduate and terminal degree was something that I needed to do to prove to myself; it was more about focus than ability. Read more>>

Ruth Truett

My adventure in food blogging began during quarantine. Like many of us, I was bored and needed something positive to do while we all sat around staring at each other. At that point, I had already begun saving my recipes and sharing them on social media, so a blog sounded like a natural next step. One day, I decided it was time to start even though I knew absolutely nothing about blogging. And, when I say I knew nothing, I googled “What is a blog?” I am in no way a computer guru, and the technicalities of it all were incredibly daunting. So, I secured my domain and step by step, began to build Rufus For Real.  Read more>>

Nicole D. Miller

When I first got into book publishing, I started as a blogger. One day after writing the blog “How to Overcome Heartbreak: Recovering from Misguided Love,” I heard God say, “That’s the name of your first book.” It was a whirlwind after that. I reached out to a friend who I knew was self-published and he connected me with KDP, Amazon’s self-publishing arm, back then known as “CreateSpace”. I started hitting up events to sell my books and began my own email list, all while still blogging. Read more>>

Jennifer Celeste Briggs

My daughter has special needs and is on the autism spectrum. When she was four she was still non-verbal, still in diapers, and getting her to eat enough was a struggle. Her eye contact was becoming less connected. I decided to train at the Autism Treatment Center of America to learn how to run a Son-Rise Program for her. I learned how to set up a focus room, how to play effectively in a way followed my daughter Sarah’s lead while also working towards the goals I had for her, and how to find and train volunteers to help me with this venture. I called my program Sarah-Rise. I started by sending out an email to friends, family, and acquaintances, telling them about how I was going to be working with Sarah and asking for their help. Read more>>

Miranda Waser

I once had the opportunity to work for a designer I had admired for years—someone I truly idolized. For a long time, I doubted my ability to succeed in the interior design field because I lacked experience with essential programs like CAD, SketchUp, and Chief Architect. Still, I was determined to work for her, so I made a point of reaching out regularly to express my interest. Read more>>

Jessica Jamison

What made me want to start my business was me having lymphedema and was not have sucess with pain meds. So i started baking for friends. Then i decided to get legal. First i created my name and LLC. Getting all your paperwork in order is very important especially in my business. Once i had all the legal things out there. I started my social media presence and starting doing pop ups and events Read more>>

Tim Savy

I remember painting with my 4 year old niece one time and just watching this innocent little human scribbling all over the paper, just zero f*cks. It was so perfectly imperfect. Because kids don’t give a shit about what other people think, so they can just draw and paint so unconditionally, it’s really cool to see, very beautiful and free. My favorite artist is Jean Michel Basquiat, and I love his work for the same reasons. There’s like absolutely no rules when you paint that way. And I loved the freedom behind that. That’s what makes it so fun. Read more>>

Coco Martinez

Although I had been studying art since childhood and have a degree in art, my career began in Visual Merchandising and literally doing art in the windows of Bergdorf Goodman, Henri Bendel and Macy’s here in NYC.. It is just within the last 4 years that I taught myself how to create digital artwork. Initially I sent my raw floral designs to the New York Botanical Garden (Bronx). They liked my work and suggested I put it on a product. It came to me, as a woman who loves scarves, that scarves might be a product I could pour myself into, and I knew someone producing scarves in India. No sooner had I conceived of the idea than I found a good company in India myself to work with. I produced several of my designs in silk and cotton which provided me with a solid experience of what’s involved with production and a solid connection with a good company. Read more>>

Sarah Cucuzzella

The story of Aussie FIT began at 15 when I joined the gym and discovered my passion for fitness. At 16, I made the decision to pursue a career as a personal trainer, starting with individualized coaching and later expanding into group fitness. I returned to school to study nursing, but my heart ultimately led me back to fitness. Over the last 20 years, I’ve trained in Melbourne, Toronto, and New York—experiences that have taken me around the world and shaped my approach to fitness. The real turning point came when I became a U.S. citizen. it was time for a new challenge—something bigger for my future. So, I built a brand. Read more>>

Liz Mbwambo

I have basically always done some form of marketing throughout my career. However I was no longer happy at my last job. It was no longer the place I knew and loved. I wanted to support my clients in the best way I could and I came to the reality I could not do it there. One day I jokingly told my husband that “I could just start my own marketing agency” He very seriously told me I could do it. Read more>>

Amanda Addy

When I launched my business, it started with a lot of trial and error. I spent a few weeks learning and perfecting the right painting techniques to work around bottle labels. I knew I couldn’t sell my designs until the base paint job was flawless. Once I had that down, I self-taught myself how to master decoupage as an all-over technique on champagne bottles. It took time, patience, and practice, but I was determined to create something truly special before sharing it with others. I started trialing different techniques at the beginning of January, and after weeks of perfecting my process, I was able to start selling bottles by the end of the month. Fun fact: my husband helped me come up with the name for my business, which made it even more meaningful! Read more>>