Joe Vicars

When I proposed to my longtime girlfriend Tori in May of 2019, we had agreed to have a backyard wedding at my parents house. This was under the condition that she would design every aspect of our wedding. When we were looking for specific rental furniture for our big day, we could not find pieces that spoke to us and fit our vibe. That was when she said, “why don’t you just build everything, then after our wedding, you can rent these items out”? That was when Vicars Built Rentals was born! So my dad and I spent the next year building farm tables for the reception, benches for the ceremony, a wedding arch, a bar, dance floor, and ceremony doors to give Tori her grand entrance.We both worked full time day jobs, so every evening after work and weekend, we would be hammering away on new products. Read more>>

Lester Young

I came up with the idea Path2Redemption while incarcerated and wanted to prevent some young person from making the mistake I did at age of 19 years old. I sentenced to serve life in prison at the age of 19 years old and I served 22 years in prison before being released at the age 41 years old. Read more>>

Natalie Monday

I started Monday Morning Press in 2015 as a custom letterpress stationery business. My focus was on luxury wedding invitations at the time. In 2019 I had the idea to use some of the beautiful papers I had around the studio to try making earrings. I started playing with different paper types, letterpress textures and colors to design my first earring styles. I was completely hooked and shifted my focus to paper jewelry design! Through a lot of trial and error over several years, I developed my own systems and processes for making the earrings. Read more>>

Patricia Johnson

One Fall morning in October, 2016, I came across a passage in my daily devotional urging us to use our God-given talents to honor him. The message struck a chord within me, inspiring me to take action. At the time, starting a hobby, let alone a business, was the last thing on my mind. As a wife, mother, grandmother and retired art teacher of 36 years, I was happily immersed in enjoying life’s simple pleasures; traveling, spending time with family and friends, being active in church, and embracing the joys of everyday life. Read more>>

Daniel Gaspar

At first, the idea for Daffodil was to host donation-based dinner parties to promote and help charities and non-profit organizations here in Austin. This concept would allow me to have a creative outlet, which is what I was craving at that point in my life. After pitching this idea to a couple of people here in our city and getting them excited about the project we booked our first event and then, the pandemic hit and the world stopped. Read more>>

Ayisha Williams

The idea to craft handmade, natural soaps was first born out of the idea to create all-natural feminine hygiene products and post-wax care. Shortly before the world shut down in what would become known as the pandemic, I had decided to enroll in beauty school to earn my esthetician’s license. I signed up, met the school’s admission’s officer, toured the facility, received the handbook and curriculum, applied for financial aid, and then just like that – classes were canceled! I had spent a considerable amount of time over the two years prior to 2020 waxing friends and family and researching and learning about processes, methods, pre and post care, vajacials and more. When I had finally convinced myself (and my soon to be husband) that the $10,000 investment was worth it and the schooling would soon pay for itself COVID-19 derailed me, like it did so many others. Read more>>

Devon Adrianne

The summer of 2013 I started my business initially as a photographer. I wanted to photograph anything and everything! I jumped right into weddings and portraits and loved every minute of it! I built my business to a thriving little small business that allowed me to quit my serving job and work photography full time. Read more>>

Amber Jobe

My journey in this line of entrepreneurship, began when I was a fresh adult. My aunt by love, called me up and said she had some things she wanted to gift me. When I went to pick them up, they were all of her treasured antiques. She was moving across the country and could not take them with her. The instant amount of responsibility of stewardship for these treasures was palpable! In 2015, after a few years of dragon hoarding some of the trinkets and treasure I had amassed along the way, I started vending my wares at the Beaverton Flea Market. Soon after, I was accepted as an in house vendor for Curiosities Vintage Mall, in Beaverton, Oregon. Selling and curating the space in the antique mall became a passion, and a side hustle. I was still employed in the hospitality industry full time. Read more>>

Amanda Persi

Working as a publicist in the music industry in Toronto, Canada was a dream. I loved every minute of my career, but in 2014 after 13 rewarding years, I walked into my boss’s office and told him I was moving to Switzerland. Read more>>

Dr. Nelson O. O. Zounlomè

My life’s greatest motivator is obtaining a quality education to empower marginalized communities. I owe this to my mother, who successfully graduated high school in Benin, West Africa when women traditionally did not attend school. As a Black male, first-generation college graduate, and child of immigrants from a low-socioeconomic single-parent background, I take pride in my educational pursuits, as they have not come without challenges. Read more>>

Jessica Battista

As a Freelance Illustrator and Graphic Designer, I’ve had the opportunity to work with a wide range of craft breweries, small businesses, larger companies like Osprey, and nonprofit organizations like The Nature Conservancy. I love connecting with different types of people, learning about their unique brand and mission, and helping to turn their visions into a reality. Read more>>

Bri Meystrik

My family is extremely close. Growing up, my cousins were more like siblings because we were around each other for so much. This meant, as we got older, we were all starting to get engaged around the same time as well! To save money on centerpieces and decorations for our weddings, we all started accumulating candles, votives, lanterns, vases, etc. and would use them to set up each other’s receptions! It was so fun and something we girls really enjoyed doing together, my mom and I particularly. Setting up weddings became our quality Mother-Daughter time. Her and I would come up with designs together and hunt down vintage, one of a kind pieces from antique shops or specific ideas that the bride would bring to us. At one cousin’s reception set up, it was suggested by our family to start a business out of our design hobby. We began expanding and doing more friends’ weddings, which would spread word to their friends. We started getting more calls until a hobby became a business, Dunkley Decor & Design! Read more>>

Amira Mustapha

I found this train of thought by doing a quick search of Art Defined on my computer (the ultimate name chosen after considering a few alternatives: starting with ‘The Company,’ then ‘Express and Expose,’ followed by ‘Defining Art,’ and finally settling on its current name: Art Defined Productions, Inc.). It had been a year since I completed my theater undergraduate degree, and while I was still processing the plethora of ideas, hopes, and aspirations my classmates and I discussed while lounging around between classes, rehearsals, and shows, I noticed that many of those classmates had already veered away from the arts, opting for steady 9-5 jobs completely unrelated to theater. Of course, they had to; now that we no longer had the protection and support of school, we had to be pragmatic and find ways to cover rent, phone bills, and other expenses because, well, that’s essential. And that lingering faith in their craft dissipated without the camaraderie of fellow dreamers. I founded Art Defined to address that need. I was born and raised in the Bronx, the eldest child of immigrant parents, and an artist myself. The pursuit of success is in my blood because I know my parents immigrated here to succeed and provide me with opportunities to do the same. When I informed them of my decision to major in theater instead of the more secure psychology I went to school for, they were not thrilled, but I reassured them that I would make it work, that I would succeed in this endeavor. It’s evident that the Bronx, my home and the place where I earned my degree, has always been underserved, but I saw the beautiful tapestry that can be built with community. Read more>>

Marco Carmona

Cherry Co-operative chose me! I believe that riding bicycles is a right of passage for everyone, so naturally when my son was born I couldnt wait to get him on a bike. As my son learned to ride his own bicycle our front yard became the bike hang out for our neighborhood kids. We live on the East Side of downtown San Antonio in a mixed income neighborhood with the majority of us being regular working class families. We dont have alot of resources but we do have extra bikes and so naturally we gave what we could and realized that every child in our neighborhood could at the very least have their own bicycle! I believe our story is special because our co-op was founded by children and adults with nothing more to give than an extra bike and time. Having this happen in my front yard gave me an extreme amount of joy and peace because I was now apart of impacting and seeing there physical and mental health. One day as the kids were in the yard working on bikes my neighbor and friend Tom Moreno mentioned to me how nice it was that everyone gathered at my house. I replied that about how much happiness it brings me even though the kids wake me up on the weekends super early to ride bikes! To my suprise Mr. Moreno looked at me and mentioned that we needed a clubhouse and that he owned a dilapidated house around the corner on Cherry St. that he thought would be a perfect home for our bike co-op, and thats how Cherry Street Bicycle Co-operative was born! Read more>>

Charlie Neville

The idea for Gym Near Me started from a combination of personal; passion as well as professional frustration. I have always been interested in fitness, but the more I studied the world of fitness, the more I was able to pinpoint things that gyms, as well as fitness centres, were missing. They mainly focused on the physical aspect of health while neglecting mental and nutritional elements, which are equally crucial for a human body. This realisation came to me through the means of my own struggles. That’s when I thought of creating a place that considered all aspects of health. A place that treats fitness as a part of complete wellness. I knew this idea was worth it as it addressed a genuine problem faced by the market. Individuals were actively looking out for holistic care solutions, and the increase in mental health awareness raised the need for a holistic care method. Read more>>

Liam Vella

Tthe idea for Support the T came to me at the end of 2015 and officially launched on January 1, 2016. I had spent the previous 2 years focusing on my gender transition with all the milestones- and expenses, that come with transitioning. While connecting with other trans people around the world for support I saw countless people struggling to save money to reach their transition goals, and with that a myriad of different fundraising efforts in order to afford transition related care. At the time it was extremely rare for any insurance to cover transition expenses and almost a universal experience that trans folks were stuck struggling to afford that care. I had also recently graduated college with a degree in Print Design and was working in a screen printing shop and I fell in love with the process of creating apparel- and wanted to experiment with the art form on my own. Feeling fulfilled with where I was at in my own transition, longing for a way to help out the community around me, and wanting to explore my creative expression through screen printing I had the idea to start printing t-shirts as a way to help fundraise for others transition expenses. Read more>>

Jessica Divine

In 2015, my health was at an all time low. I was 30lbs overweight, dealing with chronic allergies, low energy, and pre-diabetes. It felt like I was in a black hole of declining health. I was tired of popping prescription medications daily and feeling like my health wasn’t improving. I knew if I continued on that path, I would be chronically ill within a few years. I decided to take matters into my own hands and started researching about healing the body naturally. I learned from so many great teachers. As I started to try herbal products and shift my diet, my health drastically improved within months. It was literally a mind, body, and soul transformation. I was so amazed at how effective the herbs worked that I wanted to make my own to ensure I was receiving the highest quality. Creating concoctions using food and plants is something I have always loved to do, even as a child. It came quite naturally to me. I wanted to create high quality products that were tasty (since most on the market were bitter and hard to take). I knew that if I created good tasting blends, I would be more inclined to be consistent. As my health improved, my coworkers and family were curious about my products. I started making products for them and it was a BIG hit. I was pretty much forced into selling the tea and supplements. People loved that the products were not only providing good results but also tasted amazing. Eventually, this resulted in me creating my brand, Herbal Renaissance. My belief is that healing can be delicious! Read more>>