Blogs

Nevada entrepreneur uses legacy as catalyst for starting two small businesses

Elena Ellingson-Cosenza — Fri, 30 Aug 2024 14:05:30 +0000

Friday, August 30, 2024

Shawna Wells never predicted she’d be the founder and CEO of two small businesses. While building a career in education as both a teacher and a principal, she became involved in business and executive coaching, which led to an important realization.

“People really needed to have conversations about who they were, what they wanted to become and what was the impact they wanted to leave,” she said.

Shawna’s aha moment led her to launch 7 Gen Legacy Group, where she coaches non-profit executives and CEOs who are doing social good and want to make a difference. She found that people in these professions often intertwine their personal identity with their professional identities. By conflating them, leaders can easily experience burnout and forget to live a full life. Shawna helps them “name and claim” their personal legacies, and then use them to align their lives toward realizing their goals.

While she works to help others define their legacies, Shawna also wanted to continue building her own. This led her to found B is for Black Brilliance, a curriculum and products company with a membership community for caregivers raising Black children to be the next generation of leaders. Being a business owner and living her legacy means “real liberation and the ability to chart a new path,” she said. “It’s the opportunity and creativity and space to create your own ecosystem of people who are working to make a similar impact and then pass it on to the people coming after us.”

Shawna also authored B is for Black Brilliance, a children’s book that uplifts the achievements of often overlooked Black leaders. Even as a child, she was frustrated by the lack of Black representation in books.

“I found myself reading the same few books over and over again,” Shawna said. “I was looking for characters that looked and sounded like me who had similar life experiences and I couldn’t find it.” She decided that if such a book didn’t exist, then she had to write it and create the change she wanted to see.

Shawna urges prospective entrepreneurs seeking to drive social change to find clarity. First, they need to decide exactly what impact they’re going to make with their business. After clarifying their beliefs, then they need to figure out how the business will make money. Without a profit, Shawna noted, impact can’t be built over time because both the founder and others who do the work alongside them can’t sustain themselves.

Several key skills have contributed to success across her career path. However, being a teacher taught her how to be responsive, have empathy, manage a budget and time, and measure her efficacy. Additionally, part of her success as an entrepreneur comes from her companies sharing a common thread.

“People put labels on skill sets which are associated with certain jobs, and that limits our thinking on what we can be and do,” Shawna said.

While 7 Gen Legacy Group and B is for Black Brillance do different work, they both aim to leave the world and society better than it was before and challenge the status quo through conversation, practice, and intentional action.

“Those of us who have made magic on the margins of life can all do more than we think we can do,” Shawna said. “All the rules are made up, so go ahead and make your own. Whatever you’re thinking of is valid for your effort to figure out how to make it come true.”

Issues:

Women's entrepreneurship

States:

Small Business Profile

Illinois entrepreneur gets a boost from Verizon to grow her business

Elena Ellingson-Cosenza — Mon, 05 Aug 2024 19:52:30 +0000

Monday, August 5, 2024

Karla Yatckoske always thought she’d become a classroom teacher because of her passion for education. But while following her dream, she encountered a problem. While teaching, she noticed that students in a classroom of 25 were at wildly different academic levels. Karla said “some couldn’t read at all and others were bored with the curriculum and needed to be challenged more.”

Karla began tutoring students and adults in various subjects so she could help them learn faster. She later determined that running her own educational company would allow her to serve clients by being more responsive to their educational needs.

This realization led Karla to begin tutoring as a sole proprietor in 2007. In 2021, she took the next step by establishing her virtual education company, Uplifting Melodies Tutoring, LLC. Her business offers private tutoring in reading, math and Spanish. But Karla didn’t stop there: she also launched her signature program, El Loro Club, a subscription-based online community to help professionals improve their conversational Spanish. Through entrepreneurship, Karla has “an opportunity to solve problems in a way no one else has and be a relationship builder who connects with other people to receive and give support.”

However, while entrepreneurship is rewarding, it isn’t easy. Like many entrepreneurs, Karla has struggled to access the capital needed to grow her business. She had received two microgrants from Sunshine Enterprises, but was otherwise self-funded. This limited her ability to grow her business. Karla said that “although it is a special honor to be a business owner, it can be very challenging.”

Things changed for Karla, however, when she learned about a grant from the Verizon Small Business Digital Ready program. Fortunately, the application process was easy and only took her an hour. Karla received the grant and began planning how to grow her businesses. Thanks to Verizon, Karla received a grant that provided her with the financial breathing space to reassess her business model. She realized the need for a scalable approach because exclusively taking on private clients wasn’t sustainable, so she developed a subscription model for her businesses. The funds also helped her obtain business insurance, cover digital subscriptions and join local chambers of commerce. These changes enabled her to expand her reach by doing workshops at her local chamber, and many attendees later joined El Loro Club.

“Keep going!” Karla advises other small business owners. “You will have many ups and downs as an entrepreneur, sometimes in the course of one day. Allow yourself to feel your feelings, then get up and keep going. Surround yourself with people who will support and encourage you, as well as give you a gentle nudge when you’re headed in the wrong direction.”

Issues:

Women's entrepreneurship

States:

Small Business Profile

Activism through entrepreneurship: An Idaho small business owner’s work for change

Elena Ellingson-Cosenza — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 21:06:04 +0000

Monday, July 8, 2024

Caitlin Copple never thought she’d become a small business owner.

“In college, I wasn’t a business major and didn’t take a single business class,” she said. “I was into activism and making the world a better place. But I’ve learned that if you start your own business, you have the freedom to do it differently than how it’s been done before even if there are not a ton of role models out there. One reason why I try to be visible as a queer single mom is because that was never an example of what a business owner could be.”

That mentality led Caitlin to leave her job at a social impact branding agency to start Full Swing Public Relations in 2019. She quickly hired her first employee, Holly Conti, who later became a partner and co-owner. Many of Full Swing’s clients are small business owners, on the cusp or just over seven figures, so Caitlin is uniquely positioned to help. “We’ve been in their shoes; we’ve scaled from nothing to becoming a company with over one million dollars in revenue,” Caitlin said. When clients turn to Full Swing Public Relations for help, they get both PR and strategic thought partnership as they scale. Additionally, entrepreneurs can utilize Full Swing’s free PR Roadmap to Reach 1 Million that teaches small businesses how to boost their visibility. It helps connect the dots for small business owners between PR and actual sales.

As an employer, it’s important to Caitlin to support her employees. Full Swing Public Relations offers comprehensive employee benefits, including healthcare, vision and dental coverage on the first day of employment because “healthcare is a basic human right.” Additionally, the agency offers parental leave regardless of employee tenure. Full Swing also offers unlimited time off and mandates that people take off at least five days in a row where they’re fully unplugged and unreachable. Caitlin says she does this because not only is it the right thing to do, but she needs to be competitive since agency employees are from Los Angeles, Seattle, New York and North Carolina. By offering good benefits, Full Swing Public Relations is a competitive employer that can more easily recruit and retain talented employees.

Additionally, when the Dobbs decision overturning Roe vs. Wade was leaked two years ago, Caitlin knew she had to take action. Although Full Swing Public Relations is remote, Caitlin and several other employees live in Idaho, which had a trigger ban outlawing abortion entirely if Roe v. Wade was overturned. She decided to institute a new policy where the business would pay for those who need reproductive healthcare to travel out of state to receive the care they need.

The business owners that Full Swing Public Relations works with are mostly from under-recognized communities, and include women, BIPOC and LGBTQ+ leaders. Clients are mostly business owners but have a social impact component to their work, such as ending racism in healthcare, expanding access to child care, or ending pay discrimination in the legal industry. Nonprofit clients have partnered with Full Swing to fight anti-trans legislation and protect survivors of domestic and sexual violence. Caitlin hopes that other small business owners pay attention to what’s happening in their state legislature and at the federal level and take action in a way that complements their business objectives.

“More businesses in Idaho should advocate for women and other people who could become pregnant to get the healthcare they need,” Caitlin said. “Unfortunately, we don’t see much of that in the Idaho business community.”

Thanks to Caitlin and Holly’s journalism backgrounds, digital marketing expertise and ability to secure news coverage for their clients in top media outlets, their business has earned accolades. This year, Full Swing Public Relations was recognized as one of the fastest growing companies in the Rocky Mountain region by Inc Magazine with 193% growth over the past two years.

“You need to know your ‘why,’” Caitlin said. “Entrepreneurship can be really hard and knowing why you’re doing it and why it matters is what’s needed to sustain motivation to keep doing it.”

Issues:

Healthcare

Entrepreneurship

Women's entrepreneurship

States:

Small Business Profile

Illinois entrepreneur advances agricultural equity

Elena Ellingson-Cosenza — Tue, 02 Jul 2024 16:40:32 +0000

Tuesday, July 2, 2024

Evera Ivy never planned to take over the family business. In the early 1970s, her parents moved the family from Chicago to rural Pembroke Township, Ill. to start Ivy League Farms. Evera and her siblings initially didn’t want anything to do with the farm. However, another farmer in the area once told her that “Land is the one thing that cannot be produced or reproduced.” That wisdom stuck with her and opened her eyes to the value of her family’s land and business.

As her parents started to get older, Evera began to wonder, “What will become of the land and the farm?” At the same time, she became interested in hemp and its active ingredient CBD. This led her to become more “hands-on” over the course of 10 years, and she now handles office work, farming and logistics. Under Evera’s leadership, the farm once received a hemp license; however, they decided not to renew it as the emerging industry doesn’t have a lot of structure or resources. As the industry develops, Ivy League Farms may renew its license in the future. Meanwhile, the farm continues its production of eggplant, pepper, watermelon, okra, squash, peas, beans and other vegetables.. She reflects, “All this time, I grew up in an area with something so valuable. I had taken it for granted and stepped away from it. But when I came back, I really appreciated it.”

Due to Evera’s knowledge and passion for the industry, she was appointed to Illinois’ Agriculture Equity Commission, which promotes equity by recognizing the difficulties and inequities faced by Black and other minority farmers in the industry, and the effect of those difficulties on the vulnerable communities that rely on their produce. The commission is currently in its beginning phase and they’ll soon begin their work. It’s much needed as less than 2% of America’s farmers are Black. Evera states “There are some people that suggest the resources that are coming to communities or businesses of color are for us to somehow get ahead. But it’s not about getting ahead, it’s about leveling the playing field.”

In Kankakee County where Ivy League Farms is located, Evera notes that in the past, resources have not been equally distributed between communities. Pembroke Township–a historically Black farming community–has been historically disinvested in and remains one of the most impoverished communities in Illinois. Evera says that she wants her farm’s land to be “Productive and profitable. It’s not enough to have the land, you have to do something with it. For me, entrepreneurship means ‘how do you use what you have to do the most good for others?’”

That’s why Evera’s goal for Ivy League Farms is to collaborate with more partners, especially to expand access to fresh produce and reduce hunger. She plans to partner with a grocery store so it can sell the farm’s produce. She notes there’s food deserts across the state, including in under-resourced parts of Chicago. Also, Evera plans to take this further by partnering with food pantries in the future.

As she reflects on her entrepreneurial journey, she advises other small business owners to “Build a strong and passionate team that can do the work with you: your business thrives, as your people thrive. You’ll go as far as they do”

Issues:

Rural Entrepreneurship

Women's entrepreneurship

States:

Small Business Profile

Small Business Majority network members participate in roundtables with the White House National Economic Council

Elena Ellingson-Cosenza — Tue, 25 Jun 2024 20:10:22 +0000

Tuesday, June 25, 2024

Over the past few months, Small Business Majority network members participated in roundtable discussions with the White House National Economic Council. Small business owners from across the country had the opportunity to voice their top concerns, share their experience with federal small business programs and suggest issues they would like the federal government to address. As small businesses continue to navigate an ever-complex economy these roundtables helped the Biden-Harris administration better understand the evolving needs of America’s entrepreneurs.

The two conversations covered the federal government’s pandemic-era assistance programs and access to capital challenges. While the business owners shared that COVID relief programs were critical to keeping their doors open, especially the COVID Economic Injury and Disaster Loan (EIDL), without which many of the entrepreneurs on the call said their small business wouldn’t have survived. However, some are now struggling to pay back their loans and fear that the amount of debt could lead them to sell their business or close their business.

Jude Olinger, business growth coach with Bloom Growth and business owner of the national market research firm The Olinger Group, worries that “A large number of small businesses have not recovered from the pandemic and are defaulting on their EIDL loans. The interest accrued in the forbearance period makes the balances such that many people’s payments are interest-only payments making it even harder to repay the loan. While I believe that the program saved a lot of businesses from failure and was needed, I believe that some mechanism should be created for relief for businesses unable to pay back the loan.”

Capital is crucial for entrepreneurs because it’s necessary to start and grow a business. While many of the small business owners shared they’d struggled to access capital through traditional bank lending, some had more success with their local Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs). Additionally, they expressed concerns about attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs and funding opportunities. Lawsuits against government and private programs serving minority-owned small businesses, such as the Minority Business Development Agency and the Fearless Fund, have further restricted capital access for minority small businesses.

The third discussion covered procurement. The federal government is the largest purchaser of goods and services in the world, so there are many opportunities for businesses to work with the government through the procurement process. Unfortunately, it can be very difficult for small businesses to navigate the acquisition process at the federal level without substantial guidance, resources and access to contacts. While the Biden-Harris administration has made significant progress in expanding small business access to government contracts, there is still work to be done.

The fourth meeting covered creating a modern workforce with quality jobs for all. While many small businesses seek to hire new employees, a huge challenge is finding quality candidates and retaining them once hired. Brendan McCluskey, owner of Trident Builders, described two of the challenges he faces with retaining his workforce, saying, “The continued cost of healthcare and insurance is getting harder for small businesses to match what larger organizations can provide. We are limited to programs that aren't as generous or cover as much. Every year we are paying more and getting less in return. Additionally, the cost of childcare is a huge challenge for employee retention. All of us had experiences where we lost valued employees, some of whom had been with us for years and had developed deep knowledge and skills to support our specific business activity, only to have them leave to work at a larger company that provided childcare benefits.”

The final roundtable discussion covered fair competition and the need to level the playing field for small businesses. With mergers, predatory pricing, and other monopolistic behaviors, larger corporations can push small businesses out of the market. Jude Olinger described some of the challenges of working with corporations as a small business owner, sharing, “We have very large household-name brands as clients that changed our payment terms from 30 to 90 days and sometimes even 180 days. The reason is obvious: they have all the leverage to demand such terms against small businesses who can either take it or leave it. Enough businesses–mine included–suck it up since we have no choice if we want the work. We’re unable to recoup the cost of the money by raising prices since marketplace competition keeps a lid on prices to stay competitive. It’s quite unfair for a small business to have to finance Fortune 500 companies.”

The participants relished the opportunity to speak honestly about their experiences as small business owners. Nora Gilbertson, owner of Stay Loci, reflected on her event participation, sharing that “The issues facing small businesses and our workforce are wide-ranging. Participating in the roundtable demonstrated that this administration genuinely cares about the challenges facing entrepreneurs and the modern workforce.This engagement gives me hope that meaningful change is on the horizon for small businesses like ours.”

Issues:

States:

Books, Advocacy and Community: A Kansas entrepreneur’s vision for a better world

Small Business Majority — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 17:21:10 +0000

Thursday, June 20, 2024

Danny Caine never thought his job at a small bookshop in a college town would lead him down a path of entrepreneurship and antitrust advocacy. However, the community the previous owner of Raven Book Store in Lawrence, Kan. fostered really resonated with Danny who feels as though the bookstore is a vehicle for positive change and community enrichment. In 2017, he was able to purchase the shop through a seller-financed loan.

Danny has since carried on this employee ownership model, offering his employees minority shares of the shop. A writer and a poet himself, he has become a huge advocate for small businesses and anti-monopolistic practices. To date, he has written two books to educate people on why resisting large corporations is so important to keeping communities intact.

“You can’t just assume people will know the importance of shopping locally and divesting from big corporations. Us business owners have to tell our own stories in a compelling way,” he says, “We've seen some durability and success in the face of Amazon, but it's only because we're willing to talk with our customers about anti-competitive practices and antitrust policies. The conversations have been amazing. And the support has been really overwhelming.”

In fact, when a large chain bookstore opened across the street from the shop, many believed the Raven would not survive. However, because of the support Danny and other local business owners were able to rally, the new bookstore eventually closed and the small business owners were able to maintain their foot traffic.

Small businesses like Danny’s are important to keeping communities alive and provide so much more to their neighborhoods than just a place to shop. In response to the anti-transgender legislation they were seeing in Kansas and across America, Danny and his staff have implemented the Perfectly Queer Little Library, a section of their store where LGBTQ+ youths can find free books written by LGBTQ+ authors with LGBTQ+ protagonists that have been donated by members of the community.

Danny explains, “It’s essential that the young people in our community can find themselves in literature. Books should be a safe space where people can escape to and explore their identity and community.”

The team at the Raven Bookstore are well adept at pivoting the business in order to meet the community’s needs. In 2020, Danny moved all of the business online, delivering 75 books per day five days a week all around town. Not only did this keep his team and his customers safe, but it was also incredible for Danny’s bottom line. In 2021, he moved the Raven Bookstore to a larger space and has been able to double both his inventory and sales. The legacy of his pandemic era pivot still remains as now 20% of his sales come from online purchases.

Danny explains, “As a business owner, sometimes there is an impulse to not speak out and keep your beliefs to yourself in order not to offend anybody, but I have really found it to be our greatest strength. As small business owners, we have a really important point of view and voice in our community. I am now using my small business as a tool for a fight for a better world, and I encourage others to do the same.”

Issues:

Fair Competition

Entrepreneurship

States:

Small Business Profile

Small Business Majority hosts series with SBA Deputy Administrator Dilawar Syed

Elena Ellingson-Cosenza — Fri, 14 Jun 2024 13:12:55 +0000

Friday, June 14, 2024

Over the past few months, Small Business Majority hosted a new small business engagement series with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Deputy Administrator Dilawar Syed, who is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of the agency, alongside the staff in the office of the Administrator, and the Associate Administrators across the SBA’s core program offices. At each event, small business owners learned about a different pressing issue and had the opportunity to ask questions and engage in conversations about the SBA’s impact.

The first webinar, “Supporting a Technology-Savvy Modern Small Business Economy,” covered the importance of understanding and harnessing the power of technology for small business success. Small businesses need to adapt digital technologies to better compete with large corporations in an increasingly competitive and digitizing business environment. When small businesses adapt new technologies, they report many benefits including increased sales, increased efficiency and reaching a wider audience of potential customers. Additionally, this event covered the emerging use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the small business ecosystem. Mr. Syed explained, “Our view is that AI will move at a speed much faster than you’ve seen with software or social media. It’s important that small businesses make use of this and 48% are already using some form of AI.”

In the next session, “Fostering Innovation and Access to Capital Programs for Entrepreneurs,” Mr. Syed covered updates on the SBA’s capital programs including recent efforts to modernize and streamline the SBA’s processes and systems. Access to capital is critical to entrepreneurs’ ability to start and grow their businesses. Unfortunately, many small business owners–especially women and people of color–face barriers. The traditional financial industry often can’t meet many businesses’ needs due to outdated and stringent banking regulations, credit worthiness tests and the level of perceived risk when making investment decisions. Additionally, these lenders do not provide the small and microloans needed to reach the smallest businesses.

Mr. Syed shared that the SBA recently lifted a cap on the number of Small Business Lending Companies (SBLCs) and made over 140 Community Advantage (CA) lenders a permanent part of the SBLC network. These lenders are primarily made of mission-driven regional and community banks, which serve individuals and small businesses in their local communities. Furthermore, we learned that the SBA is focused on providing small dollar loans through their microloan program so the smallest businesses can access the capital they need. “The average loan size through our microloan program is $13,000. There is clearly a hunger and demand for that product,” Mr. Syed stated.

Finally, in “The Modern Entrepreneur: How the SBA is supporting innovation across America,” we covered how the SBA is working to meet the ever evolving needs of small businesses. Over the past three years, a record 18 million new business applications have been filed and this growth has been fueled by entrepreneurs in under-resourced communities. However, there is still work to be done.

To meet the increased demand for SBA resources fueled by the current small business boom, the Deputy Administrator stressed the importance of expanding partnerships with mission driven lenders and community organizations. The SBA is also focused on partnering with federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and U.S. Department of the Treasury, who also offer critical assistance to small businesses nationwide through programs like the USDA’s Rural Business Development Grant program and the Treasury’s State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI). The SBA is also working to deliver easily accessible trainings and educational resources to small businesses across the country, including the Administration’s new Investing in America Small Business Hub.

To view a complete list of upcoming SBA educational events and webinars, please visit https://www.sba.gov/events. If you missed any of the events in this series, visit https://smallbusinessmajority.org/events/conversations-with-sba-deputy-administrator.

Issues:

Business assistance

Entrepreneurship

States:

National

Small Business Majority network members participate in the White House’s Midwest Regional Small Business Summit

Elena Ellingson-Cosenza — Wed, 05 Jun 2024 20:28:48 +0000

Wednesday, June 5, 2024

On May 31, Small Business Majority network members, alongside other small business owners and advocates attended the White House’s Midwest Regional Small Business Summit. The entrepreneurs met with U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman and other Biden-Harris administration officials to discuss the administration’s work to keep up America’s small business boom. The small business owners also provided input on how the federal government can help Main Street thrive. Small businesses make up 99.9% of all businesses and employ 45.9% of US employees so when they prosper, their employees and communities also flourish.

First, attendees had the opportunity to speak with Administrator Guzman about how small businesses are a crucial part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s economic agenda. The SBA is focused on serving underserved businesses and helping fill gaps in the marketplace. Access to capital is a perennial challenge for small businesses, so the SBA has worked to increase the amount of lenders who can meet small businesses where they’re at through small-dollar lending.

In a fireside chat with Council of Economic Advisers member Heather Boushey, entrepreneurs learned about the White House’s new Climate Capitol Guidebook. The guidebook is designed to provide a program-by-program overview of the resources available across the federal government to climate start-ups, small- and medium-sized businesses and their investors. It helps break down a barrier to accessing capital for small businesses by raising awareness of federal funding opportunities and explaining how to access them.

Later, small business owners had the opportunity to hear from a panel of SBA officials, including Deputy Chief of Staff of External Engagement Kendall Corley, Director of Policy for the Office of the Administrator David Brown, Associate Administrator for the Office of Entrepreneurial Development Mark Madrid, Associate Administrator Jaqueline Robinson-Burnette and Associate Administrator of the Office of Capital Access Katie Frost. They discussed their work to increase goverment contracting opportunities for small businesses and how to improve access to the certifications needed to obtain a government contract. Additionally, they discussed the SBA’s business loans–notably 7a, 504 and microloans–and their work to ensure that those lending products meet the needs of small business owners.

Throughout these conversations, entrepreneurs stressed the importance of accessible capital. Entrepreneurs cannot start and grow their businesses without it. Furthermore, women and minority entrepreneurs often face additional barriers in obtaining traditional loans, leaving them vulnerable to seeking alternative financing products which may be predatory with excessive interest rates. Lisa Marsh, owner of Mrs. P’s Gluten Free reflects on the meetings, saying “There is hope and opportunity. There are reasons for us emerging business owners to have confidence that we can make it through whatever comes our way.”

Later at the Small Business Majority office, the small business owners participated in an advocacy training with our Government Affairs team. The group discussed the fact that small business owners are highly trusted messengers, and their voice is critical to shaping public policy. During the training, attendees learned about how to get more involved in advocacy, steps to take to be an effective advocate and how to work with policymakers.

Ryan Clark, owner of Ticket Falcon, emphasized the importance of small business advocacy, “Small businesses make up the majority of revenue in our local areas. It’s small businesses that generate opportunities for people in our communities. What we’re doing is important and needs to be amplified.”

Issues:

Entrepreneurship

States:

National

Colorado entrepreneur buys back the family business

Elena Ellingson-Cosenza — Fri, 31 May 2024 18:58:16 +0000

Friday, May 31, 2024

Entrepreneurship runs in Dusti Budd’s family. Capitol Deli was originally owned by her step-dad, Steven Lloyd. Around 25 years ago, Dusti worked under him until he sold the business. Fifteen years later, Dusti was taking business classes at Colorado Mountain College, which required her to create a business plan. This later inspired her to buy Capitol Deli and open a location in Newcastle, Colo.

She relocated Capitol Deli to Rifle in 2019 right before the COVID-19 pandemic. While Capitol Deli “muscled through” the pandemic, Dusti says the relocation was a blessing. Its previous location in Newcastle was secluded in the member’s clubhouse of a golf course, and it would’ve had a much more difficult time surviving the pandemic due to its remoteness.

Still, rural entrepreneurship has its challenges. Dusti notes that, “Your clientele is more limited and you have to gain their trust.” Rifle has a population of just over 10,000, so the foot traffic present in larger towns doesn’t exist. Additionally, she thinks that rural small business owners in Colorado have less access to knowledge-based programs and financial resources than small business owners in cities like Denver.

However, entrepreneurship is still rewarding. Dusti explains, “I really enjoy working for myself. I worked for a corporation for a really long time, and one of the main reasons I opened my own business was so I could have more flexibility in my schedule.” It also gives her a chance to be involved in the community. The relationships she’s built with her regular customers are meaningful, and Capitol Deli is community based.

Dusti makes sure she is involved in and gives back to her Rifle community. She provides gift certificates to local schools when they have special events and to school teachers. For veterans, she’s donated $1000 worth of food for their annual golf tournament and Capitol Deli also offers a discount to veterans. Additionally, the relationships she’s built with other small business owners–especially those in the restaurant industry–are rewarding. They’re always helping each other out and supporting each other's businesses.

Dusti advises other small business owners,“Don’t be afraid of the unknown. You’re always having to adjust to the changes around you. There hasn’t been a year when I haven’t had to make changes, so don’t be afraid to ask for help.”

Issues:

Rural Entrepreneurship

Women's entrepreneurship

States:

Small Business Profile

Texas entrepreneur creates connection for her community

Elena Ellingson-Cosenza — Thu, 23 May 2024 16:53:20 +0000

Thursday, May 23, 2024

When we last spoke with Jaja Chen in 2020, her business was adapting to survive the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. She and her husband and co-owner Devin started Waco Cha as a pop-up in the Waco Downtown Farmers Market in 2018 and later obtained a food truck. In March 2020, they opened their first storefront in Waco. However, opening in the middle of the pandemic was difficult, especially as they couldn’t open for dine-in until late summer. However, due to Waco Cha’s roots, they had the experience and model needed to facilitate to-go orders and outdoor catering through their food truck.

It was a stressful time, but Waco residents stepped up to help their small businesses.. Jaja reflects, “We and other local restaurants experienced a lot of support from our community to make sure we would get through the pandemic. That camaraderie, despite the challenges of the pandemic, is what helped us continue.”

In 2021, Jaja and Devin rebranded their business as Cha Community to better reflect its mission: to bridge cultures and to create community through boba tea and fast-casual Taiwanese and Chinese food. Cha Community specializes in loose leaf tea and uses real milk in their boba drinks instead of powdered ingredients, and they strive to source organic teas and/or direct trade teas whenever possible. They were able to open a second storefront in Temple in 2022, and are planning to open another storefront in the Waco area in collaboration with another local small business.

As a second generation Taiwanese-American, Jaja lived in China and Taiwan during middle school and high school. Boba shops were on every street corner, so when Jaja moved to Waco it was a “huge culture shock.” There wasn’t access to as much Asian food and she would need to travel to Houston or Dallas to source groceries and more Asian ingredients. Jaja and Devin both wanted to see more representation of Asian culture and cuisine locally. Through Cha Community, they successfully brought authentic Taiwanese and Chinese-style food to Waco but felt like they wanted to do more. Jaja explains, “Through our experience as small business owners, it can be quite lonely and difficult to connect with others, especially for Asian American cultures.”

Jaja and Devin began to organically connect with other Asian small business owners and community leaders. They determined there was no other nonprofit serving the needs of Asian Americans in the Waco area and they wanted to increase community and connection. This led them to become founding members of the Asian Leaders Network (ALN), a nonprofit that builds community amongst Asian and Asian Americans in the Greater Waco area, uplifts Asian leaders in their community, and connects Asian leaders to resources to elevate their influence.

Through both ALN and Cha Community, Jaja is helping to connect her community. She encourages other founders to pursue ways to bring their communities together because “even though it can be risky and vulnerable, there’s so much joy in taking those risks when you can identify needs in your community.” This February, ALN hosted their first Lunar New Year Market and festival alongside the Waco Downtown Farmers Market. The event was a success: thousands attended and more than 20 vendors participated. ALN now has a board, event planning team and volunteers that come together to plan future cultural events to bring Waco together.

Jaja says, “Being a business owner is about creating change and creating innovation. You work alongside the community. Business owners are changemakers. It all started with a dream that came into fruition.”

Issues:

Entrepreneurship

Women's entrepreneurship

States:

Small Business Profile