Westport, MA — While the rest of Quaker Fabric’s employees were stricken by its closure in 2005, Lynn McCarthy was more optimistic. This was her opportunity, after working there 17 years as a textile designer (right out of college ), to start her own business.
She had already begun development on a line of soy-based candles and all-natural room and linen sprays and had been testing them on her co-workers at Quaker. With the boot from Quaker Fabrics — one of Fall River’s last major manufacturing facilities — Ms. McCarthy became her own boss.
Her candles and sprays are sold in an end-of-the-aisle display at Lees Market. But the majority of her business is done through her website at www.4elements.us and in her house in Westport on Quail Trail, a quiet dead-end road on the Adamsville line. Read more...
Adrian Lindsey is used to getting phone calls.
''It's great getting calls when you're in business,'' said the 18-year-old Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy senior who works hard to promote and sell his product, the All Net Sak.
But he was taken aback by the call he received one afternoon in mid-August.
It was from the National Museum of Education in downtown Akron. Read more...
Starting a business from scratch is a large task, and entrepreneurship requires much courage and perseverance. A new business can face many obstacles and setbacks, which can be discouraging.
However, Pat and Terry Thompson are two entrepreneurs who show it can be done. They own Patterry — hence, the ode to their names — in downtown Wilmington, and their shop has seen great success since its inception.
After working in a large business setting for most of his career, Terry had ideas about opening his own business. Read more...
Jill French was just looking for a place to make a present for her grandson when she stumbled on something more - a business plan.
The former South Lyon resident was living in Florida at the time, and visited a combination coffee shop/pottery painting shop to make the gift. She immediately fell in love with the place and asked her son, Chad Ortwine, "Wouldn't something like this be awesome in South Lyon?" He responded with a yes, and French immediately got on the phone to see if she could make it happen.
She eventually connected with Lee Ann Tolinski, owner of the Gallery Cafe, and pitched her idea. Tolinski, who is best friends with French's sister Lynn, thought it would be a great idea, and when French moved back to Michigan in June, planning began. Read more...
Debbie Wentzell had been selling insurance for years when it occurred to her that there was something missing from her professional life.
She wanted to own her own business.
It was a big step but in 2006, she opened Images Home Decor & Gifts in West Bradenton. On Wednesday, she will celebrate her second anniversary as a small-business owner. Read more...
England — Running a business is in Mark Fletcher's blood. His mother owned a series of cafes and there is a long family tradition of running shops in the East End of London.
So when Mark, 31, opened his Fig 1 ethical gift shop in Totterdown, south Bristol, a year ago, he was surprised to find how much the first year of trading had to teach him.
'I was realistic about the pressures of running a business, but I had no idea just how important cash flow management was,' he says. 'It affects your day-to-day operation, especially when you're establishing new relationships with suppliers and planning to buy stock.' Read more...
Talking shop with Cyndie Grimes of Shimmer & Chic in Fort Myers: Grimes owns the store along with her two sisters, Teri Hansen and Kathi Graham.
The three sisters banded together to create their company, Sassy Sisters, while each continues to pursue careers in nursing, marketing and education. Read more...
Plymouth, MA - Needless to say, there probably weren’t too many women who owned their own business in Plymouth 90 years ago.
Fourth generation John Alden Gift Shop owner Laurie Gibbs wonders what it was like for her great grandmother Mae, when she and her husband, Willard, opened the store in 1918, two years before women won the right to vote.
“Everyone is surprised it was my great grandmother who started it,” Gibbs said. Read more...
Troy — Dana Rudolph remembers applying for a bank loan to open her first business in 1977. The form asked for the owner's name and then for the wife's name. "But I don't have a wife," she said to the banker. And she didn't get the loan.
But Rudolph launched her business career anyway. Today, she operates Dana Rudolph and Co., a bead shop at 209-211 River St. in downtown Troy.
She's one of more than two dozen women who own businesses in a small section of downtown. Read more...
Money can't buy everything, but it can buy new equipment, finance an expansion of your existing business or provide the means to bring an entrepreneur's dream to life.
With the lending market tightening, it's more important than ever for small-business owners in search of financing to make a compelling case to lenders, and experts agree that means one thing: Be prepared. Read more...
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