Starting a business is hard because it’s a fight with yourself, an internal battle – gaining the courage to get started, etc. Scaling a business is different – the challenges you face are mostly external to yourself. Each challenge has a million mini-challenges. We wanted to create a space for conversations and stories around growth and scaling. Below, you’ll find stories and insights from successful entrepreneurs across a variety of industries and markets.

Deanna Ishii

When I first started this adventure, I stuck to what I knew: cookies, brownies, cinnamon rolls, and dog treats. Frankly, I had no confidence to go beyond that. A few months in, a good friend, Lindsay, asked me to make her sweetheart cake for her wedding but I was terrified and told her cakes aren’t my thing but I’d be willing to try. I had a newborn baby at the time but quickly got to work practicing cakes, watching endless videos to learn new techniques, and purchasing every decorating tool I could get my hands on. I remember the first cake I made, I struggled so much to smooth the frosting and sat on the floor of my kitchen crying, feeling so defeated. But I picked myself up and got to work. I made and decorated a cake at least once every week for 3 months just to practice! Read more>>

Jody Rivera

Scaling up Swamp Mermaid Beauty Project was anything but an overnight success—it was a journey filled with hard lessons, bold decisions, and a lot of self-reflection. When I started the business in 2016, I thought passion and creativity alone would carry me. While those were essential, I quickly realized that building a thriving business required more than just talent—it needed structure, strategy, and the right people around me. Read more>>

Valarie Sparks

Fancy Like at Canyon Lake, my husband’s and my business, is an upscale vacation home rental located in Texas Hill Country. You know how they say the best way to start a business is to simply start? That’s what we did. However, outside of providing excellent hospitality and impeccable cleanliness, we didn’t know what our customer base wanted nor looked like. Read more>>

Wes Gonzalez

I’m definitely still in the process of “scaling up,” but when I think about how much has happened in the last couple years of playing music and booking shows, a few important themes come to mind.

It’s always seemed important to focus on:

1) what I have to offer and

2) how it can benefit my community, the music community.

I’ve found that having that focus usually makes for the best experience and the relationships I build along the way often means that help/support from the community comes back tenfold. The community feels like a garden. And tending to that garden benefits everyone, including myself. Read more>>

Tiffany Walker

When I started my business, I knew the power of visibility would be key to my success. Social media became my primary platform for connecting with my audience and showing the unique value of my brand. I wasn’t just posting products; I was sharing a story—my story—highlighting not only what I create but the “why” behind it. I wanted people to feel connected to my brand on a personal level. Read more>>