Spotlight Entrepreneur Round Up 2012

Susan Cannella, Gardening Gals

Helen Denny, Gardening Gals

This year we had the pleasure of introducing you to 12 entrepreneurs harnessing success in 2012.  Did you identify with any of their challenges? Did you take any of their inspiration and apply it to your own business?

We look forward to continuing this series in 2013. If you would like to nominate a Entrepreneur for Spotlight- please email us today!  sleeveshirt (at) hotmail (dot) com.

Amanda Haddaway, Author of Destination Real World: Success After Graduation

Shelley Oppedisano, Co-Editor and Co-Publisher of Macaroni Kid

Barbara Goldberg, Back on Track Solutions

Kelly Mistry, MyFairyTaleBooks

Candy Tolentino, Marry Me Already and Earth Cafe Living Foods

Jill Salzman, Founding Moms

Monica Wreede, Connectz

Jody Mahoney, Jody Mahoney Photography

Jenn Furr, Picture That Sound

Tangela Craft, Inventor of GoPillow!

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Spotlight Entrepreneur: Susan Cannella and Helen Denny of Gardening Gals

This month I am so pleased to introduce you to The Gardening Gals.  Meet Susan Cannella and Helen Denny, founders of the Charlotte-based raised bed gardening company.  Whether you're looking to have a little vegetative guidance or want the gals to jump in and get dirty- Susan and Helen are there for you! From rain barrels to compost and all the blooms in between the gals are there to walk you through the process.

How did the two of you decide it would be a good idea to go into business together?

Helen: Susan and I have been friends for almost 10 years.  About three years ago, the two of us worked together as camp counselors for a summer camp at our swim and racquet club.  We found that we really enjoyed working together and that we made a good team.

Susan Cannella

Helen Denny

Do you find the gardening industry to be a male-dominated field, and if so have you had to overcome any obstacles?

Susan: We primarily build raised bed gardens, and deal mostly with men as far as purchasing materials such as lumber through a building supply company and soil through a landscaping company.  On the other hand, our customers have been mainly women from whom we have gotten a lot of positive feedback for owning our own business and offering the service that we do.  We do come across the occasion quizzical look from a customer after having explained that WE would be the ones building the bed and filling it with soil.  I suppose they have a moment of disbelief that two women would be doing the labor.  

With Fall approaching, what are some things that we should think about doing in our gardens? 

Helen: Some plants might still be producing.  I am still getting tomatoes, peppers and egg plant.  I will freeze most of tomatoes I harvest at this point by blanching them in boiling water just until the skin starts to split and peel away. Once they reach that point, remove from the water, let cool, then peel.  The skin will slip right off.  I freeze the tomatoes in zipper lock freezer bags and use them in recipes throughout the year.

If your plants have finished producing, now is a great time to clean up the summer garden by pulling up the old vegetation, work organic plant food into the soil, and plant fall vegetables.  Spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage are just a few vegetables that can be planted at this time.

You don't have to have a green thumb to have a great garden...
         

I love to garden with my kids, what are some tips you could provide on getting children excited about gardening?

Susan: Most children love the idea of helping with a garden, and they can participate and just about every aspect of tending to a home garden.  The more involved they are, the more rewarding the experience will be and the more dedicated they will be.  Let your child choose some of the types of plants you plan to grow.  Let the garden be a science experiment.  Plant some items by seed and some by plant and make observations.  Children love to water but should have some guidance.  I find my own children are sometimes too eager to pick vegetables.  Remind them to harvest the vegetables when they are truly ripe.

What advice would you give to a friend who was thinking about starting her own business?

Helen: I would certainly encourage anyone to start a business.  In our case, we turned a hobby into a small business where we can make a little money, but more importantly have fun! We truly love working together and helping our customers.  I would encourage any friend to stick with an area of business that they feel passionate about.  Keeping an open mind and knowing that your business might change or offer different services over time is also important. 

Thinking about sprucing up your yard and investing in a raised bed garden? Give the Gals a shout!  

Fan them on Facebook 

Tweet @GardeningGals

Gardening Gals, LLC
web:  www.gardeninggals.com
email:  info@gardeninggals.com

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Spotlight Entrepreneur: Kelly Mistry of MyFairyTaleBooks

This month we are happy to spotlight Kelly Mistry of MyFairyTaleBooks. In 2009 Kelly and her husband launched their personalized children’s book company.  They offer a large library of adventure, fantasy, and holiday themed books where your child is the main character of the story.  On top of books, they also offer personalized Music CDs, DVDs and other fun accessories.

Tell us about your target market:

Our customers are looking to give a unique gift to the children in their lives.  When a child receives a book from MyFairyTaleBooks they discover that they have been cast as the main character in the story.  With customized details such as hometown, special dates, sibling and friends names, a MyFairyTaleBook becomes a story that your child wants to read again and again and preserve forever as a special keepsake. 

There are other companies out there that sell personalized children’s books. What sets you apart from your competition?

When you shop with MyFairyTaleBooks you feel secure in our online environment, you find our prices competitive, you are impressed with the product ratings provided by customers and you are pleased with the customer-service that we provide. 

Your company is growing. What is next on the horizon for My Fairy Tale Books?

This past year we have focused a lot of time, energy and market research on a unique, one-of-a-kind personalized book called The Good Friend.  We have partnered with a talented author, an amazing illustrator and expect to put it into production in early 2013.  This fall we have launched a Kickstarter campaign to bring awareness and to raise funding for the production of the book. We are offering some fun rewards to donors that fall in line with our anti-bullying theme.  We’re very proud of the book, we’ve received some fantastic feedback from audiences who have previewed it, and we can’t wait to share it with the world!

What advice would you give a friend who is looking to launch her own business?

Write a business plan! Our business plan has brought clarity to our mission and has given us qualitative and quantitative milestones to help us measure our success.

What is the most challenging thing about being an entrepreneur?

Maintaining a work-life balance is hard, but one of our top priorities as a family.  We want to teach our four year old daughter the importance of working hard, but we also want to be sure that we have enough fun time to play hard as well!  This summer we took our first vacation since launching our business back in 2009. It was long overdue, but not possible without help from trustworthy staff that could help us keep customers serviced while we enjoyed a few days away.

You mention your daughter, how does she inspire you?

Maya inspires us every day. We read her the manuscript for The Good Friend to ensure that she connected with the storyline, and we always look at our product offering and ask ourselves if these are products that we would want for our child.

MyFairyTaleBooks offers a large variety of children’s products that you’ll love to give to the little ones in your life.  A personalized book is a gift that will be cherished for a lifetime. Connect with MyFairyTaleBooks through their website, on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and be sure to stop by their Kickstarter campaign to lend your support.

www.sleeveshirtconsulting.com

Spotlight Entrepreneur: Jenn Furr of PictureThatSound

Your family singing "Happy Birthday" at your daughter's first birthday, an imaginative wish list for Santa from your 4-year-old, your baby's ultrasound heartbeat. Have you ever looked back at your photos and tried to remember those sounds?

PictureThatSound was founded to meet an unmet need in the memory-keeping market. The product pairs a creative photo matte with a recordable device for sound. Another reason I love this product is that it was developed by a fellow mom-preneur, Jennifer Furr. Like many busy moms in America-- a wife, mother of two, corporate employee, community volunteer, she decided to leave her corporate job to bring a product to market that she could not find on retail shelves.  She has grown a "customer first" life-experience company that creates, markets and delivers products that help preserve memories pairing picture with sound.

Q: Jenn, it's been a little over 2 years since business inception of PictureThatSound and now you are preparing to take your product LIVE on one of the premiere home shopping channels.  What is the biggest lesson you've learned in the last 2 years?

A: Wow. I have learned so many over these past few years. Persistence is probably the biggest take-away. There were plenty of days where I doubted what I was doing, where I was going and if PictureThatSound was going to truly take-off. But I continued to follow my gut instinct and with the support of friends and my family I have been able to take one step at a time towards this fantastic opportunity.

Q: What is it like preparing to go on-air LIVE to millions of households?

A: I'm not going to lie- it's a little nerve-wracking.  When I met Shivan Sarna, HSN personality, she had some great advice: Smile while you speak!  Smiling is infectious, and it projects energy and warmth.  I only have a few minutes per segment, so I also want to ensure that my customers learn all about our amazing product features like our archival paper, replaceable batteries and high-quality memory chip.

Q: You will be offering exclusive products for the HSN audience- can you tell us a little about what we can expect?

A: Yes, we have developed exclusive product packages for the HSN audience.  Please tune in to see the exceptional offer we have put together. Our first air date is February 28th at 6am and 7am.  We will also be live on March 6th (times are tbd).  If you place an order by 800#, there is a chance you'll be able to speak with me live on-air!  My team will also be live-tweeting from the green room during my on-air appearances. If you don't already, follow us at @PictureThtSound to hear all the ins and outs of the Home Shopping Network experience.

For a demonstration of how PictureThatSound works, check out this YouTube video Jenn put together:

We wish Jenn nothing but the best for her television debut!


www.sleeveshirtconsulting.com

Spotlight Entrepreneur: Kristen Ford-Stevens of Cute Beltz

In our final Spotlight of 2011 we're happy to introduce you to Kristen Ford-Stevens, CEO and Founder of Cute Beltz.  We were thrilled to discover Cute Beltz leading up to our daughter starting Kindergarten.  Our school district mandates a uniform for elementary and middle school children and if your pants have belt loops, you must wear a belt! The Preppy-Girl Belt with a velcro closure was the perfect solution for our 5 year old.  Be sure and check out the Cute Beltz website for holiday specials this December!

Tell us a little about how Cute Beltz was born.

This is how it all started, “Mommy, my pants keep falling down!” It was a statement my toddler echoed many times, it was from those words after countless hours trying to remedy the problem that “Cute Beltz™,” a line of belts for children 6 months to 6 years of age was founded and thriving online in a matter of months.

I became very frustrated that the major outlets weren’t offering belts for toddlers.  So, I decided to research the toddler belt industry and found that there was no major competitor.  From that day forward, I put together a 3 year business plan to execute which has brought me to this point, www.CuteBeltz.com.  Now, we are planning for the next 3, very exciting!!

What are your top-selling products?

We have been very fortunate that one of our first belts introduced, Pink Flower Power Girls Belt is and has been our top seller for the last 3 years.  Also, our Nautical Boys Belt is currently our top seller for boys, due to our placement in the July 2011 issue of Parenting magazine.

For the holiday season we will be offering several gift sets which will include two belts for $20.00.  The offer will run from December 5 – 11, 2011.  Leading up to Christmas there will be many surprises along the way, so check in often at www.CuteBeltz.com.

What is your philosophy on customer service?

I am a strong believer in good, quality customer service.  I have always expected and demanded that an establishment have excellent customer service, so I give the same excellence to my customers.

I believe every persons question is valid, so I do my best to answer a request quickly and honestly.  I have found that many have appreciated my follow up thus referring Cute Beltz to their family and friends.

What do you enjoy most about being your own boss?

I enjoy being my own boss because I am working towards something I truly believe in which gives me great motivation to get up every morning with a “let’s go” attitude.  My spirit has always been one of an entrepreneur, so it is a joy to know that I am right where I was intended to be.

How do you juggle being a mom and being an entrepreneur?

I don’t know if I have quite mastered the “mom/entrepreneur” thing, but I work on it daily.  I know that I do make it a point to work while my kids are at school, which gives me about 5 ½ hours to get as much done as possible.  When the kids come home, I spend my time with them because I feel they and I need the time together.  Once the kids are in bed, I usually do a little (sometimes a lot) more work before calling it quits for the night.  My days are long, but I know my dream is being realized.

What is your advice for females who are thinking about starting their own business?

I say go for it!  BUT first do your research.  Many women start a business because they are bored, which happens quite often.  Take the time to research a business and find out if it is a realistic venture.  Do you have the financial resources, is there an immediate need for your product or service, is there a void in the market, etc.?  If you can answer yes, then take the next step and prepare a business plan.  This will be your guide as your business grows.

With all of the social media outlets, join a few and talk to people about what they think.  Locate a few people in the “industry” you want to enter via social media and pick their brain.  You will be surprise, many “industry” people will advise you via twitter and facebook.  Also, talk to your friends and mom groups to see if this would be something they would buy.  

Never be afraid to “toot” your own horn, because if you don’t do it, who will!  So, I say GO FOR IT, you never know, you may have the next GREAT idea. 

Thank you so much for Kristen for sharing her inspirational story.  To learn more about this high quality, handmade in the USA product visit Kristen on Facebook, Twitter or join the Cute Beltz mailing list!




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