SewPretty Designs
From baby shower gifts to a booming business, SewPretty Designs has grown from a hobby into a successful small business. Owner Shena Allen was inspired by the personalized and monogrammed gifts she received at the baby shower for her daughter Nyla in 2017. Shena started making gifts for friends and neighbors to give them the personalized ‘wow factor’ that she…
Aeroforce Logistics
Heather Varney learned to be a resourceful problem solver and a good communicator at an early age. While in the Marine Corps, she experienced a bad accident, which had a galvanizing effect. She decided that if there was something she wanted to do, she was going to do it regardless of what got in the way. Forced to change jobs…
Taco Holler
Ashley Bledsoe is the mastermind behind Harlan County’s Taco Holler, a food truck and catering business established in 2017. After coming up with the idea during a visit to Taco Luchador, a popular taco spot in Louisville, Kentucky, Ashley and her wife, Leslie Bledsoe, got to work to bring a similar concept to far southeastern Kentucky. Finally, in summer 2017,…
Copy Cats Printing Company
Debbie Stepp of Copy Cats Printing has been providing printing services out of her shop in Paintsville, Kentucky, for more than 13 years. She has helped countless families and businesses celebrate significant moments like baby showers, graduations and grand openings since opening the shop in 2007. She serves a wide range of customers from several Eastern Kentucky counties and is proud do…
Sunhouse Craft
Cynthia Main is a multi-talented modern craft maker, combining broom making and wood working out of her studio in Berea, Kentucky. Her specialties include hand woven brooms, and wooden wares hand crafted by axe and knife. Taking care to source the raw material from local, sustainably raised sources, each item is unique and special. And people are noticing. Her work…
Bernadette Mopera and Co. Showroom
Bernadette Mopera has been the proprietor of a woman-owned and operated apparel and accessory showroom since 1997. Due to COVID-19 and the Safer at Home Order, Bernadette’s wholesale apparel distribution business was severely affected. The European brands she sells were shut for business and warehouse shipping was halted due to pandemic. This led to her business revenues to plunge 50%,…
Skylar Security
By the time Jamine Moton walked away from the world of collegiate track and field in 2004, she was a national champion, a hammer throw record holder, an Olympic alternate and a future Hall of Famer . However, when she retired from her sport, Moton didn’t leave her identity as an athlete behind her. Rather, in 2014 she combined her…
Pastry4U
In 2003, Harriett Wilson retired from her long career in pharmaceuticals and began to pursue her passion, baking. She ran with her desire to be a professional baker by pursuing her Baking Production Certificate. But Harriett wanted to train where the greats hone their culinary talents and where pastries reign supreme: France. So in 2011, Harriett moved abroad to receive…
Hudson & Associates
Shelia Hudson is a sole owner of Hudson & Associates, LLC established in 2005. The business provides Project management, operation support, planning and public relations services. Hudson & Associates, LLC specializes in parking systems, project and construction management. The COVID pandemic and shelter in place order has taking a huge impact on the industry the business services (parking and airport…
Sweet Joy Ice Cream
Growing up, Talia Holmes spent summers in the kitchen with her mother and grandmother making homemade ice cream. As an adult, she worked for different companies, and when both passed away, she decided it was time to follow her vision and open an ice cream shop. It had been a shared dream of all three women, and Talia wanted to…
Cool J’s Apparel
Cool J’s Apparel is a woman and minority-owned business that held its grand opening of its bricks and mortar store on May 28, 2020 and had gotten started a year previously through online sales. Owner Toni Hopkins created this business after understanding a need for a women’s apparel store in the local Springfield community. Her goal is to provide quality,…
Wandering Goat Soap
Since 2013, Tanya Rudy and her mother Cheryl have been making handcrafted soaps from their family farm in Midcoast Maine. This mother-daughter team located in Union makes their soaps in small batches and uses only the finest quality ingredients. They combine fresh goat’s milk from their own herd with organic oils to create naturally scented and colored products. Despite the…
Experience Maine
Rachel was taking clients and recruiting members for her website, ExperienceMaine.com. Everyone in the industry was enthusiastically making plans for 2020: “2020 was supposed to be a banner year for Maine tourism – we were looking forward to the bicentennial, being a stop on the PGA’s top developmental tour, a visit from one of American Sail Training Association’s Tall Ships –…
Tribali Foods
The terms all-natural, paleo and frozen-food aisle aren’t normally found together. But whole-foods evangelist Angela Bicos Mavridis has set out to make that the norm at major retailers that you may regularly frequent. Mavridis is the owner of Tribalí Foods — a product line that offers the convenience of frozen meals without the synthetic binders and antibiotics you may find with the major brands. The basis…
Burke Mercantile
Over the course of eight years, Maggie Stoll lived out her dream of working in the clothing business as a visual merchandiser and store manager for a well-known, fast-fashion brand. But as Stoll got older, her focus shifted toward wearable pieces that were better designed, sustainably made and durable enough to last numerous fashion cycles. Enter Burke Mercantile, a retail lifestyle…
MMELO
MMELO is a Columbus-based, woman and minority owned small business dedicated to all natural, artisanal sweet treats and pastries. Michelle Allen was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio, and was a business owner in Spain before moving back to her hometown. Back in Columbus, Michelle connected with ECDI and The Food Fort – an incubator for food industry start-ups and…
MedCode Professional Career Academy
Jasmine Hall’s first job in her teens was in medical collections, a role where she found a natural talent for understanding the terminology and explaining bills to patients. As a
young mother, Jasmine was looking for a higher paying career that would also allow her to spend more time with her daughter. After seeing a commercial for medical coding school, she decided to put her talents to use and earn her Certified Professional Coder (CPC) certification.
Mariama’s Beauty Supply Story
In January 2012, when Mariama Jallow arrived in the United States from her home country Gambia, she had ambitions to be a part of the growing immigrant business‐owner community in Portland, Maine. After overcoming many hurdles, including advocating for and seeing the shift in a state law, developing a business plan, and opening a type of business that was new to the state of Maine, she now owns and operates Mariama’s Beauty Supply store on Forest Avenue in Portland.
Dellwood Pharmacy
Dellwood Pharmacy is located in north St. Louis County in an area that is considered a “pharmacy desert,” where in recent years two major chain pharmacies have closed. Rebecca Mawuenega first came to Justine PETERSEN to access an SBA Community Advantage loan to acquire the community pharmacy that had been in business for 13 years. Subsequently, COVID-19 led to a 40%…
Revive Outreach
Revive Outreach Inc. helps individuals and families as they seek to improve their quality of life through the provision of safe, secure and affordable housing and economics security. This loan assisted Revive Outreach Inc, in their commitment to provide affordable housing in underserved communities during the pandemic in 2020. Dayonne is a returning client that has another business, Revive Janitorial…