Our city is home to so many incredible businesses and so we asked the founders how they came up with the ideas for their businesses and have shared their responses below.

Dukencia Romeus | Licensed Esthetician & Certified Lash Technician

I came up with the idea of my business because originally I needed something to do on the side to pay for tuition. What started as a side hustle became something I enjoy doing daily. Read more>>

Shayla Chablani | Mental Health Blogger

This idea started once I realized how vulnerable people really are in the day to day, and how one day I was in a similar situation and it hit me what a negative mindset do I have, how frustrated I was and everything was perfectly fine and beyond good in my life, but I was too focused in not seeing it that I rather just complain and have negative thoughts, because lets be real, that is so much more easier and less complicated than to actually shift your thoughts and think positively, Being positive and having a positive mindset is not hard, the tough part is to be able to maintain the positive thinking. Read more>>

Jaiye Empress | Poetic Edu-tainer & Healing Artivist

I am a poetic edu-tainer and healing artivist, meaning I use my artistic talents, namely poetry, to educate, entertain and advocate for social justice as well as holisitic healing. As an artist, I use my art to express my truth, and all of my art, whether writing, singing, dancing or crafting, reflect my unique experiences as a Black woman. So that’s where the concept for the business, Empressive Expressions, came from. Creating makes me feel more empowered and beautiful. Thus, I wanted a larger platform to inspire other Black women to connect with the stories I personally share and then use that connection to create and share their own. Read more>>