Category: Business Owner Stories

Sole proprietor Symphony Astoria founded SoCal Succulents with the intent to bring her community together while maintaining the flexibility to be active in her daughter's life. After just one year in business, SoCal Succulents is thriving and doing just what Symphony intended: bringing the community together. With dreams of opening a storefront location one day, she shows no signs of slowing down. SoCal Succulents is one of the runners-up in this latest Nav Small Business Grant Round, and were kind… Read More

As the Public Relations Manager at Nav, I have the privilege of reviewing each of the applications that are submitted for our company’s Small Business Grant. In all honesty, it’s the best and worst part of my job all rolled into one. The week of reviewing applications is truly an emotional rollercoaster for me as I work with the team to narrow down the applicant pool to only a handful of finalists. The minute I read Maggie and Jaron Clayton’s… Read More

John Pascoe is the founder of the Pascoe Law Firm, a dual-practice law firm in the Houston area that focuses on car, truck, and motorcycle accidents. Instead of keeping up with the “Joneses” of other large local law firms, Pascoe focuses on providing excellent customer service rather than outspending competitors. Starting Out Why did you start the company? I graduated from college in one of the worst time periods, during the economic collapse of 2008. I had a good job… Read More

With Earth Day on the horizon (April 22), many businesses will soon take a pause to reflect on ways they can reduce waste and recycle materials. Sara Swisher-Anderson, founder of jewelry company Lennon Harper Designs, is already on top of her game when it comes to reuse. She creates upcycled pieces from repurposed heirlooms and treasures, such as vintage buttons and antique cameos. Swisher-Anderson has managed to create a promising business using materials that are almost completely reused, from flea… Read More

U.S. veterans are a proud part of American heritage and an ongoing source of wisdom, leadership, and business acumen. It should come as no surprise that they make up a significant portion of our best and brightest business founders. While many vets are heading up small business and startups, some of our best-known brands were started by those who once served in our armed forces. Their impact is significant, owning more than 2.4 million – or 9% -- of U.S.… Read More

Earl White is the vice president and founder of House Heroes, a real estate investment company that operates mainly in Florida. The company buys properties that need a lot of work, fixes them up, and rents or resells them. The company struggled to gain customers until it focused efforts on online marketing. Starting Out Why did you start your business? I was a philosophy and economics major at Rutgers. There really aren’t any jobs for that, so I went to… Read More