Many books on startups and business talk about how there are right and wrong reasons for starting a business. So, we asked a handful of successful founders about their reasons and the thought-process behind starting their business.
Alycia Brown Owens | Founder
The idea for Storyboard came after I met a nonprofit leader who was doing incredible work for his community, but every time he ran out of resources, he had to stop what he was doing to fundraise, recruit volunteers and spread awareness. I heard story after story of the lives he was impacting through his work, and I knew that, if other people had the chance to hear these stories, they would want to be a part of what he was doing. Read more>>
Trish Terry | Fiber Artist
My whole life, I worked jobs that I had no passion. When I started making my own mohair horse tack, for personal use, I though that it would be wonderful to actually make these beautiful pieces for a living. I saw others who were selling handmade tack, and I thought I could do it as well. It didn’t happen overnight. For the first year, I continued working my regular job, and made tack in the evenings and weekends. I started setting up social media pages, then a website, to get my business name out there. I also took on barrel racing sponsors, which also helped to market my product on the rodeo circuit. Read more>>
Stephen Fitzgerald | Founder of Rodeo Labs
Rodeo Labs has a unique story. It started as a local cycling team with no intention of becoming a business, but the team took off pretty quickly when it was started in 2014, and the interest in our ongoing story led to a pretty great audience and community who wanted to be a part of what we were doing in different ways. Some people wanted to ride with us. Some people wanted to wear our jerseys or shirts, and other people wanted to buy the bikes that we were riding and experimenting with. Read more>>
Tyler Savino | Independent Filmmaker
Put plainly, I want to be the Willy Wonka of Ohio indie. My wildest dreams extend to a retrofitted car warehouse full of sets and props, the ability to host local indie productions. and the freedom to decide just how far I want to break the rules of independent film. While I do have a great amount of respect for the way things have been done, I’ve always maintained that the ability to create comes from the person. I’ve seen incredible productions come from teams of one person, and I’ve seen multi-million dollar productions boil over into oblivion. Art comes from the artist, and not where he lives or who he knows. Read more>>
The Bean Book | Unique marketing for the coffee industry
The Bean Book came about when four friends sat down and realized they all had a great idea. From there it wasn’t a question of how we would make our idea a reality it was when we would. All four of us have an entrepreneurial spirit and a love of coffee. it became apparent that this was something we were meant to do, a company we were meant to start! Read more>>
Laura Winkel | Crystal Healer, Soul Shift Healer, Manifestation Guide, Oracle
The world is in a time of transition, a great awakening. I have been called as a guide during this. I opened my business to become available for people, direct positive change in this world, and to weave old practices into current times. To stand up and awken our rewilding. Read more>>
Amy Mattox | Owner of Greeley Game Night and Greeley Events at Boomer House & Family Medicine Physician
My husband and I began hosting weekly game nights in our home ten years ago- word of mouth, neighbors, colleagues and friends. Five years ago, the group was outgrowing our home, and honestly becoming a little to insular (just playing the ‘heavy cardboard’) and we wanted a broader outreach, we wanted to find more gamers! At our annual BGG.con (Board Game Geek Convention) in Dallas we met a lot of Texas gamers using MeepUp, and so we went public in 2017. Our MeetUp group is called Greeley Game Night, and we met every Saturday at various venues around town- a few breweries and a cafe. Read more>>
Kaylee and Neko Knibbe | Owners
Neko grew up in a family where his grandfathers and dad owned their own businesses and worked for themselves. He always knew that he wanted to do the same and when the opportunity arose, we went for it. We both have talked for a very long time about wanting to create something of our own in Colorado Springs and be able to build a community and be able to give back to things that we find important in life. We also like to have a work life balance where we like to spend time with our family and our daughter, London. Read more>>
Heather Emerson | Prep To Your Door
I was raised in the 80’s, in a small, Texas town eating boxed, frozen, or fast food. Not because my parents didn’t care about my health, but because they thought processed food was perfectly fine. This was during the height of “Milk, it does the body good” campaigns, followed by “got milk?” ads featuring celebrities wearing white milk mustaches. Needless to say, I was utterly shocked and offended when the raw vegan at Whole Foods in 2005 told me that milk was for baby cows, not humans (gasp)! Read more>>
Elisabeth grandma” Toft | Photographer
Honestly, when I started Elevated Locals I wasn’t thinking of creating content, becoming the media company we are today, or anything involving photography or videography – I just wanted free lift tickets at snow resorts for me and my friends. Creating a blog and telling snow stories was the idea, and it worked – we got all the lift tickets! Read more>>
Mister Goldie | Creative Director / Artist
I wanted to create a brand that stands the test of time. I understand brand loyalty and some people continuing to shop with a brand because they love them, not particularly because of what they sell. The brand evokes an emotion, and that’s what I want my brand and business to do. Read more>>
Roger Wood | President for The Kyle Wood Foundation
When we lost Kyle, we saw how important the support structure is. These kids are in the fight for their lives and their family and friends are an important part of their fight. We offer some normalcy in these little ones lives. Having Thanksgiving dinners and Happy meals together as a family, brings smiles that may not have been there. We also offer assistance to families to help bring family members in. Thru Kyle’s Miles, we help bring family members in that otherwise could not afford too. Read more>>
Rebekkah Traptow | Full Spectrum Doula & Maternal Educator
I grew up watching my dad build a business from the ground up using his education and experience in his field. I always wanted to follow in his footsteps. About a year and a half before I embarked on my journey to becoming a doula and maternal educator I, unfortunately, fell into the MLM (multi-level marketing) “own your own business” scheme as it sounded like the perfect way to not only start my own business but to love, encourage and help others as I did. Read more>>
Wendy Pyatt | Hair Stylist
I was being called to make a big move to a career that utilized my creativity and interpersonal skills. A dream I had carried for a long, long time. I had to go back to school and start from scratch in a completely new field which was frightening – but I had a lot of family support. I knew what I wanted and I had people in the same line of work to show me the ropes and offer endless advice. I knew the work of building a business would be so hard, but I was confident that I would have people to catch me when I fell. Read more>>
Sirena Dudgeon | Astro-Wellness Expert & Yoga Teacher
During my 200hr YTT I had a massive download of how Yoga and Astrology were ultimately connected. As I started to teach classes and share the astrology of the week, such as moon phases, planetary shifts, eclipses, energy, and archetypes of the Zodiac signs, more and more students would approach me after class to share how they were deeply impacted by the it and the class structure. The students would share their life stories with me of what was happening in the moment, Read more>>
Laura Herb | The Golden Guest House
I felt I had no choice. My life up until then was full of choices. This time I was newly separated with a 5 year old daughter in tow 50% of the time. I couldn’t afford my home. I had left my interior design career in the 2008 economic tar pit that swallowed 75% of the design / build community in Chicago. It had been 8+ years since I had worked in an office. My earning potential was still way off the mark. I imagined paying people to pick my daughter up from kindergarten, and to mow the lawn I wouldn’t have time to mow, just to do a job that wouldn’t pay me enough to keep my home anyway. Read more>>
William Leslie IV | Co-Founder
I had been leading cycling classes on the Auraria campus while attending Metropolitan State University of Denver. My cycling classes were always packed and in high demand. It gave me a great inner high. As graduation became closer I wrote my business plan to launch a chain of cycling studios but I couldn’t make the economics work. Read more>>
Mary-Catherine LaBossiere | Registered Dietitian & Owner of Defy Nutrition
Starting my business was one of both necessity and wanting to fill a void in the local community. I had geographically relocated due to my husband’s career, and options within my own career field were limited unless I wanted a minimum 1.5-hour commute one way. Read more>>
Tree Sayles | CEO/Founder of Tree Naturals
When I started my business over 11 years ago, my goal was to create hair care products for people with naturally kinky, curly and wavy hair textures…like myself. I’d recently big chopped (cut off all of the relaxer from my hair) and was discovering how to care for my own curls, but I noticed a huge dilemma. There were very few products readily available for my hair type and I knew I had to do something about that. I’m not going to kid you, I was terrified! High anxiety and doubt from others pushed me to the brink of almost not starting my business. Thankfully, I was able to use that fear as fuel and begin what would later be known as Tree Naturals. Read more>>
Dylan, Dalton McClain, Bevill | Co-owners Animas Artisans
We decided to start our own business because it allows us to control what we work on, who we work with, and how much we work. Being in control of all of these makes every day interesting and exciting. We choose projects that we are passionate about which means we go above and beyond in crafting each product. It is also great to be able to collaborate with other individuals who share similar passions, have different perspectives, and are excited to learn/push the limits. Read more>>
Eric Dorninger | Naturopathic Doctor, Licensed Acupuncturist
I started my health care journey as a hospice volunteer and as in EMT riding with the ambulance. I appreciated palliative care and dying with dignity and the power of Emergency medicine. Nevertheless, the job of the ER is to make sure you don’t die today and then discharge the patient back to their unresolved chronic illness. I saw the need for helping people and patients find the true underlying causes of their illness so we could develop treatment plans that could restore health rather than mange symptoms. Read more>>
Priscilla Varner | Principal Owner of Beach Haus Swimwear
In 2020, while on lockdown, my husband and I discussed the possibility of opening a business. We worked through a list of ideas and we knew it had to be something that we were passionate about. We weren’t passionate about opening a fast food franchise or a swim school. We weren’t passionate about owning an auto shop or a gas station, but I was incredibly passionate about swimwear. I stopped into a swim shop in Florida and got to talking with the owner and found out she wanted to sell her business. Read more>>
Rosa León | Rosa León/Business Consutant & Life Coach
I realized that I wanted to live for myself and for my community based on my talents and doing what made me truly happy. That’s why I decided to reinvent myself. I decided to change the direction my life was taking. At that moment I understood that it is not a cliche to think that life is short, because it is. So I decided to start a business where I could use my talents to help others discover their talents, to reinvent themselves; Read more>>
Ranier Lopez | Psilly Co-Founder
This company is inspired by psilocybin. In fact, PSILLY was created while 2 of the co-founders were having a mushroom experience. At the time, they did not know what they wanted to do, but they knew they wanted to help build and create something beautiful for the community. We’re here to spread love, happiness and growth. The PSILLY team is here to help you in whatever direction you may want to go. Interested in learning more about microdosing? Check out our blogs and soon enough, our “Trips n Trix” series. Read more>>
Jay Hanna | Drone Photographer
It began with a passion for flying drones and taking beautiful pictures and videos of sunsets. My neighbor asked me to take some drone footage of a deck he built with his construction company, that gave me the push I needed to see that there was a business opportunity with drones. I have owned, and failed, running several other businesses, so I know what it’s like a little, to run a business. This is the first business Ive ran that is successful. Read more>>
Austin Martz | Dream weaving New-age agricultural food producer
I am a dreamer and an Idealist. I have also worked in the “natural and organic” food sector for almost a decade. Starting my own business was the only way I knew to be able to produce the level of quality that I know needs to be, in our food system. Read more>>
Amy Vaughan | Owner & Chief Empowerment Officer of Together Digital
Not many people can say this but the chance to run and own my own business happened while walking down a hallway at a Together Digital National Conference. Before I became the Owner & Chief Empowerment Officer of Together Digital, I was actually a member and long-standing volunteer. I’d been working in agencies as a digital creative director for about 14 years when the founder of Together Digital (then Women in Digital) found me on LinkedIn and encouraged me to join and become the Board President for Cincinnati. Read more>>
Sarah Patrick | Registered Nurse & Holistic Aromatherapy Epsom Salt Creator
As a nurse working during the pandemic, I was searching for a way to unwind and relax at the end of my day. I needed to find a way to help process my day and slow my racing thoughts. I started taking warm baths at night as it was a great way to have some quiet alone time. I found that a warm bath helped me fall asleep faster and sleep more deeply. I began to experiment with a variety of epsom salts and essential oils and found some great combinations that elevated these baths. After sharing some samples with co-workers, they encouraged me to create my own brand. Read more>>
Anna Zesbaugh | Founder + CEO
I was furloughed from my job during the COVID-19 pandemic! During this time the mayor of Denver shut down the liquor stores for a brief few hours deemed the “Denver Prohibition of 2020” — I thought to myself, this time is going to look different, people are going to be connecting in new and different ways. I saw the rise of the kombucha market and at the same time was researching the prohibition era of the 1920s and the name hit me Hooch Booch — Hooch like prohibition alcohol, booch like kombucha. I couldn’t stop thinking about it and knew I had to go for it! Read more>>
Dylan Demery | She’s Fly Founder and Owner
When I started fly fishing, I started small with a cheap rod-and-reel combo. I didn’t want to spend a bunch of money if I didn’t like it. As I grew to love the sport, I wanted to buy waders and boots. I was shocked at the lack of women’s fly fishing gear in local stores or online. I didn’t know where to find what I needed to do this sport I was falling in love with. That’s when “She’s Fly” was born. I thought, “If I can’t find what I need, why don’t I make a store that has what I need? What everyone needs?” I shared the idea with my two co-founders, Emily and Jaclyn, and they enthusiastically began to build upon it, sharing their experiences, brainstorming how this thing could work… and we decided to take the journey together. Read more>>
Lisa Blake |
**** What makes you happy? Being able to create every day lights me up. I’m grateful to have continuous creative outlets through my writing, authoring children’s books and leading creative journaling workshops. I’m happiest when I can share the tool of writing as an outlet for others and when I connect with readers on a mindful level. Read more>>
RJ Boyle | Professional Fisherman, Marine Artist, Instructional Teacher & Entrepreneur
My dad owned his own business, so at an early age I was exposed to entrepreneurship. My dad owned a successful retail furniture store in south Florida. I grew up in the warehouse and around all of the employees. I attended all industry trade shows and was exposed to entrepreneurial thinking in my early years. My dad never pressured me to be in his business, he always encouraged me to find something that I loved and if I found it, to give 150%. With regards to my own business, it was a step-by-step process. Read more>>
Alicia Sanchez | Founder of Dear God Are we there yet?
So, I come from immigrant parents . . . they literally didn’t have anything, and they built everything they have. My dad actually had a cleaning business, and he also did real estate — he was able to save up his money and invest in multiple properties. So, I came from an entrepreneurial background. But also in the Dominican Republic, a lot of people have their own businesses, even if you’re selling coconuts or beans or rice or whatever. Read more>>
Ariah Owens | Social media influencer
I knew I wanted to work for myself have my own schedule and never have to choose between family time or making money for my family. Read more>>
Murat Tercan | Hair Designer & Investor
My Favorite quote ‘ Whatever you do with your hand, do it with your heart.” Hi everyone this is Murat Tercan. I moved to US in 2002. I was 22 when I came to the United States, 20 years ago. I didn’t speak English, only a couple words. I was working with International Beauty Organizations as a Platform Artist for hair coloring techniques, hair cutting techniques, high fashion hair up-do’s, fashion shows, and worked as educator for human hair extensions, and color and designer haircuts; that’s how I came to United States. Read more>>