Business Discussions

In 2005, Leslie teamed up with her best friend Meredith to start NutraBella, a business focused on prenatal health with a line of tasty bars and chewable vitamins created specifically for women. 10 years later, she's learned a ton about what it takes to build a business from the ground up — including how to find funding and how to emphasize the value of your product with your pricing. Ahead of her talk at QuickBooks Connect 2015 with Julie Gordon White on "Lessons Learned from Growing a $1M Business," we sat down with Leslie to get the full scoop on how she built NutraBella into a thriving, sustainable business. Take it away, Leslie! Name: Leslie Barber Business: NutraBella Bellybar Products Started In: January of 2005   Tell us a bit more about why you and Meredith decided to start NutraBella and the Bellybar. Was there a gap in the market you were trying to fill? Meredith and I met originally when we went to business school together. We'd both been working in technology fo

  When Dan started growing out his beard two years ago, he had no clue that the search for a perfect beard balm would eventually lead to starting his own business. In the middle of the pre-Christmas rush, Dan took a few minutes to chat with us about what he's learned so far about pricing his products and where he's hoping to take his business next.     Name: Dan Foley Business: BaldyBeardy Started: October 2014   Where did you get the idea for starting BaldyBeardy? I started growing out my beard two years ago and wanted to find products I could use to keep it strong and healthy. Most of them were overpriced and none of them made my beard feel good. I have sensitive skin and most of the products had added artificial fragrances, which made everything worse. The market needed something better, so I started experimenting with balms and oils. At the time, I was working as a web developer and had no experience with doing anything like this before, but I knew what wo

  Three years ago, Kavita started taking her handmade batches of FreshPaper — special sheets that are infused with organic spices and keep fruits and veggies fresh for 2-4x longer —to her local farmer's market. She had no funding and no experience, but she believed this simple idea could help her community eat healthier and save produce that so often goes to waste. Now she's leading a grassroots movement to reduce global food waste and inspiring entrepreneurs around the globe with her story. As a recent top 10 finalist in Small Business Big Game, we had to learn more about Kavita's journey to becoming a small business owner and her advice for anyone here who is just starting out.   Name: Kavita Shukla   Business: FreshPaper   What was the moment that has most surprised you so far about running your own business? Honestly, every day is a surprise!  The moment that was most surprising for me so far happened a few weeks after I started t

  Purl and Loop could have been over before it even started — lenders practically laughed in Angela’s face when she asked about taking out a business loan for a local yarn shop. Why? Because they thought the idea was outdated and unnecessary.  Luckily, Angela persevered and now she's building a successful wholesale business through her online shop. Read on for the big "a ha" lesson she learned while selling at a wholesale show and her trick for creating great photos on your website, even if you only have an iPhone. Take it away, Angela! Name: Angela Smith Business: Purl and Loop Started: 2011   How did you create your awesome job? It was my dream to create a local Houston yarn shop, but I couldn’t get any funding from banks to open a brick and mortar store. They didn’t think there was a big enough market and they wouldn’t give me the time of day. Determined to prove them wrong, I took money from my savings and started an online store. I planne

  Chubbies Shorts launched in San Francisco in 2011 on a mission to make "the most radical shorts known to mankind."  Four years later, they're inspiring thousands of customers across the U.S. to join Chubster Nation and celebrate the weekend in a pair of their unique, colorful shorts. As one our Final 3 in Small Business Big Game, we had to know more about their story and what keeps them inspired as small business owners day in and day out. Take it away, fellas!   Names: Tom Montgomery & Preston Rutherford Business: Chubbies Shorts Started: 2011   How did you come up with the idea for starting Chubbies Shorts? It was the most natural thing in the world for us to start a men's shorts company. We were four guys who always wore a particular style of shorts that were either handed down from our dads and uncles or found at thrift shops. When we wanted to find more, we couldn't find them anywhere to purchase.  We had an i

  Andreas had no experience in jewelry making when he teamed up with his wife Elisha to take her fledgling Etsy shop to the next level. Friends called them crazy, but he knew they were on to something big.  Six years after he took the plunge, we chatted with Andreas to find out more about how he transitioned to running a successful jewelry business and what he's learned along the way about setting attainable goals.   Name: Andreas Argentinis Business: Metal Pressions Started: 2009 How did you create your awesome job? My wife Elisha and I moved to Savannah, Georgia from Connecticut 10 years ago, right before the economic downturn. My family had a business here, so I moved back to help them out, thinking I’d stay for three of four years before moving on to something else.  After the economic crash, it became almost impossible to find good work in the small town of Savannah, so when the time came for me to make a career change, I had to go it alone. My wife was m

Ariane stumbled on an idea for a business while she was making wedding favors for her best friends on the side. In less than a year, making candles went from a fun hobby to a serious source of income for her and her husband, as stores all over the United States are lining up to stock their literary-themed products.  We couldn’t wait to find out more about how she keeps her days organized with so much going on and what's next for Ariane in 2016!Name: Ariane Scholl Business: Hearth and Hammer Candles Started: February of 2015 How did you get the idea for starting Hearth and Hammer? My husband and I rent a room at 715 Vintage, a co-op store in Batavia, Illinois, where we sell antique outdoor goods.  It’s a side project for both of us — he’s a graphic designer and I’m a part-time nanny. When we got married last year, I decided to make candles as gifts for our bridesmaids and groomsmen by melting down wax, mixing it with essential oils and pouring it into vintage teacups. I

  For 85 years, Vidler's 5 & 10 has been an institution and a tourist destination in East Aurora, New York. The family-run "five and dime" harkens back to a simpler time, when the local general store sold (just about) everything under the sun and the customers doubled as both neighbors and friends. We met Don Vidler and his amazing team as part of Small Business Big Game and we were immediately struck by their passion for building a sustainable local business and their dedication to customer service — not to mention their hilarious series of videos on YouTube. Take it away, Don!   Name: Don Vidler Business: Vidler's 5 & 10   What is your favorite thing about being a small business owner? My favorite thing about running Vidler's 5 & 10 is that we're a family business.  We've been here for 85 years, the same store in the same location on Main Street. We've been in business for three generations and we've had more than th

      Harry is a freelance videogame and technology journalist who's worked for a number of different publications including The Independent, Pocket Gamer, App Spy, Android Magazine, Micro Mart and Den of Geek. He shares his techniques for finding new clients through Twitter how to create a stand-out portfolio.   Name: Harry Slater Job: Freelance Videogame and Technology Journalist Started: 2012   Q: How did you get started as a freelancer writing technology and video game reviews?   A: By accident, really! I won a competition in PC Gamer magazine for reader review of the month. I knew I wanted to be a writer and I knew a lot about games and technology, so I just squashed the two things together.    First, I started out by working for free for a variety of small, volunteer websites for a while. Once I had a portfolio of work, I immediately moved on to looking only for paid assignments. After building up enough

      We love Owen Jollands' story. How many people originally trained as a scientist can say that they became a comic book artist and colorist? Today   Owen leads an exciting career as a comic book colorist, taking on new, broader challenges as he goes. We wanted to soak up everything we could about Owen's path to his lucrative, fulfilling career as a self-employed artist.    And in return, Owen has a question for all of us :-)  We'll let him take it from here...     Name: Owen Jollands Job: Comic Book Colorist Started: 2010 Q: You are a professional comic book colorist. How did you get this amazing job?   A: I started out practicing in my spare time with line art from the Internet and coloring it in using Photoshop with a Wacom tablet. I also took a comic book creation class with a tutor who had strong ties with Markosia, a leading publisher of graphic novels. From these connections, I landed my first gig co

  After just one year in business, Anthony and Elizabeth Becker have learned a ton about how to build an online store – from why it pays to invest in using a professional photographer to the importance of tracking their time on each project.   We asked Anthony to dish on how he developed their pricing formula and what he's hoping to learn from all of *you* when it comes to finding the right retail platform to reach their target audience.       Name: Anthony Becker Business: Wake the Tree Furniture Co. Founded: 2014   How did you create your awesome job?   I had a stable job working with reclaimed wood for a long time, but I wasn’t able to create the kind of furniture I felt passionate about. It was so frustrating to be around so much raw material and to have so many ideas for what I could do with it, but no freedom. That job gave me the confidence, experience and drive I needed to start my own business.   I started Wake the

  Fashion school grad Kristin Perk wasn’t getting the creative satisfaction she needed from her day job as a restaurant manager. In need of inspiration, she decided to revisit her love of thrift shopping and started reselling her finds on Etsy.   Four years later, she figured out how to turn a fun hobby into a full-fledged company. We had to learn more about how she did it. Take it away, Kristin!     Name: Kristin Perks Job: Owner of OldSchoolSwank, an online vintage apparel and home goods shop Founded: 2011   How did you create your awesome job?   I have a degree in Fashion Design from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. After college, my partner and I drove from New York to California with friends and settled in beautiful Lake Tahoe for a post-college adventure.    I took a job as a restaurant manager at a ski resort, which, although fun, left me missing the creative buzz that New York City

Is there a magic formula for your pricing? Meet Christen to find out.     Christen Strang always wanted a tattoo, but a fear of needles and permanent ink held her back. Eager to channel the rockstar look without the lasting side effects, she started to design her own trendy temporary tattoos and her Etsy shop was born.    Christen's designs have now been worn by thousands of people across the globe, so we couldn't wait to ask her how she got here and what she's learned along the way. Take it away, Christen!     Name: Christen Strang Job: Graphic Designer and Owner of happytatts Started: September 2013   How did you create your awesome job?   I love tattoos, but I’m way too much of a commitment-phobe to get one myself! So, I set out creating the exact tattoo I wanted so that I could apply it to my body whenever I wanted and wash it off a few days later. I figured that there must be others out there who wanted the s

Karly Santiago creates heirloom-worthy cross-stitch portraits. When she realized she could turn her hobby into a company, she took a break from working as a birth doula to start Cloth & Twig.  Karly’s love of her craft shines through in every piece her work, but it was learning how to navigate social media that really got things moving for her — and her business. We got the lowdown from Karly on how she juggles motherhood with full-time crafting, and how Star Wars led to the launch of her business. Name: Karly Santiago Business: Cloth & Twig Started: 2014 What inspired you to create Cloth & Twig? About two years ago, a friend sent me a cross-stitch of Star Wars characters as a gift, because I love the films. I ended up taking it apart and figuring out how to do it myself.  The first one took me months to finish and it wasn’t perfect, but it helped me work out how to cross-stitch on my own. My very first piece was a portrait of my family, and it made me think

  Karly Santiago creates heirloom-worthy cross-stitch portraits. When she realized she could turn her hobby into a company, she took a break from working as a birth doula to start Cloth & Twig.  Karly’s love of her craft shines through in every piece her work, but it was learning how to navigate social media that really got things moving for her — and her business. We got the lowdown from Karly on how she juggles motherhood with full-time crafting, and how Star Wars led to the launch of her business.   Name: Karly Santiago Business: Cloth & Twig Started: 2014   What inspired you to create Cloth & Twig? About two years ago, a friend sent me a cross-stitch of Star Wars characters as a gift, because I love the films. I ended up taking it apart and figuring out how to do it myself.  The first one took me months to finish and it wasn’t perfect, but it helped me work out how to cross-stitch on my own. My very first piece was a portrait of my family

A former freelance photographer, Toby Thomas found his career skyrocketing after he joined James Allen and Elliot Hammer to run one of London’s most exciting creative agencies. As Creative Director for Birch, Toby has advised brands like GQ and Christian Vision and shot images for Deutsche Bank, Reebok, Elle Magazine and Hillsong London.  We caught up with Toby to hear more about what he's learned after transitioning from freelancer to small business owner and the biggest pricing lesson they've learned so far.   Name: Toby Lewis Thomas Business: Birch Started: August 2009 (Toby joined as co-owner October 2014) How did you create your awesome job? While studying photography in school, I became involved in the music industry. I started touring with bands as a videographer/photographer and, shortly after, I decided to pursue it full-time. I rented a studio and started off with really small jobs, but my clients were always happy to recommend me. Back then, content — and par

After living in the Big Apple and working as an actor for a few years, Marie Jensen moved back to North Dakota where she established Relax Event Studio to plan parties and sell wedding graphics on Etsy. Along with doing a ton of volunteering work, she also found time to become a state representative in between!    We spoke with Marie about juggling it all, the one regret she has after trying out Pinterest advertising and how she developed her pricing formula.Name: Marie Jensen Business: Relax Event Studio Started: July 2014 How did you create your awesome job? I have several jobs, so I’ll tell you about all of them!  After graduating from NYU, I worked in the acting industry for a couple years and found it wasn’t my path, so I moved back to North Dakota and worked as the executive director of the local arts council. The job involved planning events, like a conference for 30,000 people or a dinner meeting for ten. I was also responsible for marketing and graphic des

With an eye for design and a love of creativity, stay-at-home mom Emily Carr crafted an Etsy store around her interest in pyrography — creating decorative designs in wood using burn marks. She balances raising a family with growing her customer base and has carved out a niche online for her unique hand-decorated wood pieces. We were thrilled to speak with Emily about building her small business from the ground up, how she sees her shop developing in the coming years and the excitement she still feels every time she makes a new sale. Name: Emily Carr Business: The Blonde Moose Started: 2012 How did you create your awesome job? I opened my Etsy shop after I found myself wondering what I could do from home while also taking care of two toddlers. I worked as an interior decorator before starting a family, so having a creative outlet was always really important to me. I wanted to be able to continue that alongside my new job as a stay-at-home mom. When I came across wood burning

After a number of years in traditional accounting firms, Andrew Berg realized that his and his partner’s special blend of business management, effective bookkeeping and their ability to identify key areas for improvement was helping their clients grow their businesses in a big way. Deciding to start their own firm next was the obvious choice.    Andrew recently gave us some insight into how his business consulting and accounting services make a real difference to his clients — and how he teamed up with Mike Brown at Death Wish Coffee Company (our big winner in Small Business Big Game!) to give Mike's business an extra boost.Name: Andrew Berg Business: Berg Partners Started: 2011 How did you create your awesome job? My partner Megan and I have been working together for 13 years now. This is the third public accounting firm that we've worked at together. Before this, we were with a real estate company, helping them with project management and corporate development. 

  As small business owners and self-employed professionals, financing and funding matters can tough to navigate — especially when you're just starting out or your business is still young.   When we first heard about how Christina Stembel from Farmgirl Flowersdiscovered a financing "trick" to make sure she's always ready in case her equipment breaks or she loses precious inventory, we immediately shared her tips with everyone we know.   Here's her story...     "At Farmgirl Flowers, we're 100% bootstrapped. I started my business with $49,000 and my whole goal was to never run out of money. I got down to $411 at one point, so I understand the struggle very well. My biggest suggestion for any small business owner is to get a line of credit when you *don't* need it, and sit on it.    My business is seasonal, so if one thing goes wrong, it's the difference between surviving or not. Once, one of our coolers broke and we lost $80,000 in flowers! I had to g

  How many times have you read a "how-to" and wondered, "How do I really use this for my business?"     Hack 1: Start With Your Why 17% of you told us that Instagram is your *most* effective social media channel for getting new customers. Even more folks shared that if Instagram isn't currently #1, it's not far behind.   There are a lot of how-tos out there and articles that also confirm this. We've even heard that Instagram is providing some brands with 25% more engagement over any other social platform.   Connecting with your customers matters, right? But is Instagram the right place for *your* business? We learned from our members that Instagram provides opportunities for both service-based businesses and product-based businesses to visually share their mission and their perspective with a targeted audience.  In fact, we heard that for many folks it's less about sharing images of your products and

  We have a mission — to capture in one place the largest collection of practical stories, experiences and ideas from small business owners and the self-employed for finding and freeing up cold, hard cash in a matter of days.   Cash flow is the lifeblood of every small business. For some of us, December brings a holiday bonanza of sales. For others, it’s a month with a never ending outflow of expenses and no new clients coming in. It’s the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat all rolled up into the final month of the year.  

    Advertising on social media is uncharted territory for many small business owners, and building the most effective strategy is even more so. Helping navigate this great unknown is Michael Koral and his co-founders. Their company cleverly creates, targets and optimizes advertising campaigns for small businesses across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.    We chatted with Michael recently to hear the story of how they came up for the idea for their business, his key strategies for hiring and the biggest lesson he's learned about pricing.   Name: Michael Koral Business: Needls Started: March 2014   How did you create your awesome job? I worked at a large corporation after college and hated it. I quit after a couple of years, traveled around Europe for six weeks and tried to figure out my next move.    I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit and I wanted to be my own boss. Two of my friends from childhood,

  Staying up late and bending wood until 2am wasn’t exactly how Jenny Wong-Stanley envisioned life with two small children. Nevertheless, she's found a way to make her new passion pay by selling her unique handmade planters online — and her future looks bright.    We caught up with Jenny recently to chat about how she's learning to balance being a small business owner *and* a mom.   Name: Jenny Wong-Stanley Business: Art of Plants Started: December 2012   What inspired you to create your business, Art of Plants? It was sort of a fluke how it worked out!    I taught science before having my two kids and planned to go back after maternity leave the second time around, but it didn’t quite work out. One day, during nap time, I was reading about deforestation and found a misplaced article on bending wood.   I’d never heard of bending wood before, but thought it sounded cool, so I found an old wooden ruler, steamed it and tried to bend

   When a flooded apartment left Jeriel Sydney and her husband re-evaluating their lives, they decided to pack up and get back to basics in Italy. While traveling and volunteering on organic farms, Jeriel learned how to make soap — a hobby she kept up after she later returned to the US.   But this newfound skill wasn't the only thing Jeriel brought home with her. Her experiences abroad also left her determined not to pursue a typical 9-to-5 job. Soon, interest in her soaps started to bubbled up, and her business has been thriving ever since.     We recently chatted with Jeriel about the friends who helped her gain confidence in her company, as well as the advice she wishes she hadn’t asked for.     Name: Jeriel Sydney Business: Fable Soap Co Started: November 2014   How did you create your awesome job?   My story is pretty unique in that I went from studying clinical psychology to starting a soap company! My husband and I wer