How did you decide to start a business?

Victor Colmenarez | Founder / CEO – Burda

After more than 10 years of hard work in the restaurant industry and after learning and working in almost all areas of a restaurant, I decided to pursue my passion for great food and quality service. I learned that to break new ground in this industry I had to create something new, something unique and special. I decided to merge flavors, techniques and the decorative minimalism of restaurants with the informality of food trucks, fast food and “food porn”. Read more>>

Eden Blanco | Photographer

Before making the decision to start my own business, I spent years learning about the media and content world while working as a staff photographer for several newspapers and magazines in Venezuela. It was there that I realized that my creativity was being held back by the confines of a 9-5 schedule. After careful consideration I decided to unleash my creative spirit and venture out on my own, using my talents behind the camera to establish my editorial and commercial photography business. Today, I use this creative freedom to capture stunning photos and personal moments from my clients. There isn’t a second of my day that I think about going back to a regular 9-5 life. Read more>>

Elizabeth Seligman | Owner & Event Planner

I started my business at the age of 48. For over 30 years I had worked in the hospitality and event industry and knew this was the world I was meant to be in, I guess you could say it is my passion. In all those years I always worked for a company or other small business owners and would observe everything they did regarding to business. I always had a dream from the time I was 18 years old of owning my own company and through the years fell in love with events. As I got into my 40’s after years of being a banquet captain I was intrigued about the planning process. Read more>>

Siuyi Jamail | Fitness Coach

Some of my friends reached out during the pandemic when everyone was at home without the possibility of going to a gym. They were concerned because they wanted to workout so I told them I could design a home workout plan and a meal plan for them. We created a whatsapp group and I guided them through the process. I was able to help them lose some pounds, and realized I could help other people too. At the moment I was just selling leggings as a side hustle, but decided I wanted to start a business where I could inspire busy women like myself to have a healthier lifestyle. Read more>>

Denise Cirillo | Co-Founder, OverLay Fashion

My Daughter, model Clare Cirillo and I always talked about starting a mother/daughter, women owned business together. I have many years in marketing and advertising and Clare in the fashion/modeling industry. We put our red-heads together to create OverLay- the only ALL-SHEER fashion collection, designed to layer over your current pieces to create multiple looks with what you already have in your closet! I know right! Women always have those staple pieces in their closet they wear over and over again, that everyone has seen multiple times. Just layer on and OverLay and instantly transform your boring pieces into something new and fabulous!
Our collection is available online at www.Overlayfashion.com Read more>>

Milisent Cruz | Cosmetic Tattoo Artist & Owner of Monarch Microblading

I had been in the beauty industry as a freelance makeup artist for about twelve years prior to launching Monarch Microblading in 2019. Makeup was my first passion, but as the art of Microblading started becoming more prevalent, I took an interest in it. The best way to start a business is to find a solution to a problem and I noticed a common complaint was that none of my clients were ever satisfied with their natural brows. I figured there was a void I could fill by offering my existing clientele a service that was more niche and of course something they can keep with them since it is a semi-permanent procedure. Read more>>

Anna Brown | Functional Registered Dietitian

My thought process for starting my own business was a need I saw in our changing world. Having grown up in Colorado, I spent my early childhood barefoot (and sometimes naked!), running around outside from morning until night. I was fortunate to have this early exposure and love of nature built into my DNA because it has kept me sane and grounded despite living in cities since I was 22 (first San Francisco and then New York City for 12 years). Read more>>

Ritamae Tennyson | Executive Director & Executive Chef

Although I started my career in the healthcare industry for over 30 years now. It started as me working in a locally famous mom and pop restaurant in Coral Gables. There, I learned the value of community, communication, and prioritization. After committing the majority of my life towards this place, I decided that it was time for me to focus on myself and do what makes me happy, which was making people happy through my love of cooking. Read more>>

Kale Houser | Business Leadership Consultant

Starting this business has been in the back of my mind for several years. As I have had positive and negative experiences with Leaders in my life, both professionally and personally, I always wanted to be able to pass on to others what I had found to be the positive methods. Starting Kale Houser Leadership was a way for me to provide the tools and thought-processes behind what makes a great leader in a business. Read more>>

Meagan Fortunato | Licensed Massage Therapist

Owning my own business has always been a dream of mine. For years I was a stay at home mom. When I then became a single mom, I knew I had to show my girls that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE. While working at various different spas, I saved up to open my first location! I started out in a small studio on the second floor of a professional building in Stroudsburg, PA. While growing my clientele, I knew in order to stand out and be different I had to offer services that others didn’t. I created multiple unique “pamper packages” that instantly became a huge hit in the healing process of my clientele. Read more>>

María Alejandra Sandobal | Fashion designer

Hi, my name is Alejandra Sandobal. And my store is Colibri Miami I’m argentine. and I have 28 years of experience in the world of fashion. I left my country because I saw that after 5 clothing brands advising on manufacturing, I had many employees to generate ideas in a world as beautiful as fashion. So I went for more. and i came to usa to grow up to prove myself to be better. this is how colibri was born. who has 1 year and a half in Miami. And open the store for woman your name is Colibri We open the store post pandemic. Read more>>

Aaron Legon | Owner of Lokal Moko

I had always dreamed of owning my own restaurant and after our honeymoon in Hawaii, my wife and I fell in love with Hawaiian food. Once we got back home, we started making it for family and friends. We received such positive feedback that we though this would be a perfect opportunity! Not only is this an opportunity to peruse my dream, but it’s also a way of introducing a new culture to my home town. Read more>>

Laura Bray | Chief Change Maker at Angels for Chang

My daughter Abby was just nine when Leukemia interrupted our life. Abby bulldozed through each obstacle, determined to find her way back to normal. Carrying your child through cancer treatments is unimaginable. But, the day Abby had an anaphylactic reaction to a critical drug in per protocol, pegaspargase (PEG), our fight felt impossible. Read more>>

Emerson Day | Photographer, Guide, Explorer

I have always been interested in art and exploration. After years honing my skills as a photography and field logistic manager, I never really found a position that checked the boxes I was looking for in a work/life relationship. I have always been someone to dream big and chase large objectives, starting my own business was no different. After beginning that process, working for someone else never seemed that appealing. I try to keep my methods simple and execution flexible: Start with the end in mind, work backwards laying out all the necessary steps to get there, begin the journey, and roll with the punches till arrival. Then do it all over again. Read more>>

Chris Jacob | Custom Frame Shop and Gallery owner

I’d been working as a visual and performing artist for many years. I was drawn to New Orleans over a decade ago because of the ‘project town’ nature of the city. This city really allows you to do many things on your own terms. I felt capable of building a successful business here and wanted to create a place that I would want to be patron of. It was full circle in a way as well. As a kid my first form of expression was film photography. Read more>>

Lubeants Joseph | CEO/Owner of Kingz Creations

I decided to start Kingz Creations because I wanted to help Business Owners and Talented Individuals of all walks of life. As I was interacting with these different types of Entrepreneurs I realize that there’s a lack of service and support tailored for them. After many conversations I realized a lot of people were intimidated by the cost of marketing and even more intimidated by the process of creating the materials. Whether it was a Small Business Owner, A Creative Artist, A Musical Artist or A Model, these Entrepreneurs were having issues finding companies that can provide Quality Service at the budget that they can afford. Read more>>

Grace Cox | Artist & Art Educator

I have always created art. Even in my 1st grade journal I wrote that I wanted to be an artist. During times where I have felt lost, art has always been my preferred form of expression. So naturally, after trying out various jobs, I found my way back to my art and have never looked back. I knew this is something I will always do, so I thought, why not try to make a living out of it? Read more>>

Madison Taylor | Wedding Designer & Planner

Social Kai’s start wasn’t the most glamorous, but it was the best decision I have ever made. In 2021, I left a job I truly loved due to a shift in company culture. From there I had a decision to make; do I join another event company as a team member, or do I take my acquired knowledge and build a dream team of my own? Clearly, I decided to venture out on my own! Once I started Social Kai, it was apparent early on that there were many opportunities to build my business & my brand. Read more>>

Phil Terrill | Founder & CEO

SoleSafe, an asset management platform for sneakers, was actually started on accident. I was focused on insuring my wife’s then engagement ring and happen to ask my agent about insurance for my sneaker collection. When her response resulted in a sub-standard coverage option, I went on a mission to learn about what solutions were available in the market. I figured if we could get specialized coverage, or a rider, for jewelry or collectibles then sneakers should have something tailored just for this community. Read more>>

Nathalya (Preferably: Nat) Iraola | Nat | Freelance Photographer

At a young age, I always had a different way of looking at things and I would enjoy spending my time being as creative as possible. I come from a hispanic background and growing up as a family oriented individual, I always surrounded myself by my parents and their own artistic ways. They gave me everything a child would need and it is something I am grateful for each day. Fast forwarding to a few years after passing through both middle and high school, it was challenging yet exciting to finish and finally graduate through that time in my life. However, entering college was more of a “freeing” kind of feeling that not many can achieve. Read more>>

Deshi Singh | Founder and CEO, APRICOT

The idea for APRICOT struck me during the pandemic, when I was pregnant with my third child and low on time (and sanity!). I asked a friend for some product recommendations and she sent me an entire Excel spreadsheet. It hit me that the things I end up loving are always things recommended by my friends. It also hit me that someone should pay them for their recommendations, since they influence my purchasing decisions! Read more>>

David Hidalgo | CEO & Founder Galea Drinks

I thought that it was an opportunity in our market for a brand with special characteristics like Galea. Also, we had years of experience in the industry, the contacts to elaborate a great product and some differentiation facts. So we tried to offer something that others cannot. Read more>>

Scott Hamler | Digital Marketing, Entrepreneur

I’ve wanted to start my own business for a long time. Since I can remember I wanted to be my own boss. I just needed a pathway. I got to the point in my life and career where the smarter move was to start my own business and not let my fate be decided by an employer. Read more>>

Janine Rivero | Balloon Decorator and Event Planner

I’ve always been creative and that’s why I’m the decorator for my family events. When I became a mom I began to do small setups for my kid’s birthdays. Ever since then my passion for planning birthday parties and social events grew, but I never thought about making a business out of it. When the pandemic began, I had just gotten better after being very ill, and the fear of getting sick again heavily affected my mental health. To cope, I started using my creativity more by creating balloon decorations and small setups for my kids. Read more>>

Jasmine Carranza | Artisan Candle making

My thought process behind starting my own business was probably like most people scare and nervous. But this was something I want to do. This was the right time to do it. When the pandemic I started to do research get more information amount the products and formula on how to make soy wax candles. Since I was online school for paralegal I had some type of knowledge about how to create and doing my own business and getting all the legal documents to be able to work with the public, so people can take me serous and show I had a legitimate business. Read more>>

matthiieu piriou | Singer Songwriter, Actor, Stuntman & Race Driver, Movie Director

I like to feel things instead of thinking about them or processing them too much, so I can’t really say there was a thought process behind starting my own business. But there was an idea. An idea that I live in a country where you learn how to be safe instead of being yourself, and I never wanted that. It’s the metaphore of the bird whom has been given a comfortable cage where it’s safe from cats, and from anyone wanting to sneak up and hurt him – feeling safe makes him forget how high it can fly. I always wanted to fly, and to have the opportunity to do anything that could make me happy. Read more>>

Dr. Crystal McLeod | Executive Leadership Trainer, Creator of Corporate Wellness Programs, Mental Health Therapist

Initially when starting my business, I recognized that I had too much energy and talent that was not be fostered. I started my business during my last year of active duty in the Air Force. During this time, I realized a few things. I realized that women in leadership were not thriving, women entrepreneurs were not thriving, women business owners were not thriving and overall women in their careers were not thriving. I was a woman in leadership and I was not thriving. I was surviving in an environment that was not healthy for me any longer. Read more>>