Starting a business is a commitment and requires dedication, resources and sacrifice. We asked some of the rising stars in our community how they thought through the idea of starting their own businesses.

Neha Dillard | Cake Decorator and Bakery Owner

At the time, I was a stay at home mom. With my new found skill set, we thought it would be a great way to bring in additional income while still being able to provide the time and attention our kids needed. Read more>>

Kathryn Guevara | Body Piercer

Being in the body modification scene seems very awesome to me. I’m all into doing stuff to yourself to make you comfortable in your own body! I always loved how piercings looked, having my face pierced was addicting. I want to go deep into body mods and expand my business soon! Read more>>

Yolonda C. Harris | Fashion Model, Pro Makeup Artist, Cosplayer & Online Fashion Boutique Owner

My thought process was focusing on what my passions are. To start a business, you must be passionate about your business. I asked myself what are some things that make me feel happy and alive. After many prayers to God, I came to conclusion that my passions are God, Art, Creativity, Makeup, Modeling, Fashion and Traveling. I started doing my own research on online fashion boutiques, how to do make up and the business side as a makeup artist. I self-taught myself how to do makeup, also took a class and became a certified professional Makeup Artist. I’ve been doing make-up for 8 years. Read more>>

Terrie Joseph | DJ, Voice Over Artist & Dance Instructor

My thought process behind starting my own business was finding something to do that would generate great income, be something that I enjoy doing and be flexible enough so that I could be at home with my young children. Read more>>

Randy Asubonteng | Data Analyst & Mobile Hookah Owner

I grew up in a home, where my parents own a private school and my mom was a business minded person. She instilled that in all her children and this led me to start my own business one day. Read more>>

Drako Tyshawn | Hairstylist

After COVID, the world had changed and I feel like we got exposed to how many people had their own business while also experiencing the pros and cons of running an entity. For me, I was curious about the lifestyle. It was so glamorized on social media, and I personally was in a space of needing more passion in my life. One morning, I woke up and decided I was going to find which talent would make me some money, and not just any money, but legal money that generated wealth. From that decision, I impulsively quit all my jobs and started my journey seeking what would be that abundant creation. Read more>>

Heath Thomas | From the Grave guitarist/vocalist

Founding member and guitarist Heath Thomas began playing the guitar at age twelve. At the age of eighteen, he began performing solo in bars, honkytonks, and dancehalls throughout Oklahoma. In 2006, Heath began attending Southeastern University in Durant, Oklahoma, to pursue the music arts and find like-minded musicians. That same year, From the Grave was formed by students who were attending Southeastern and looking to create a unique heavy metal experience. Since 2006, From the Grave’s lyrics have been derived from original poetry, life experience, literature, and film. Read more>>

Roger Wilson | Tackle Football Coach and Educator

Being a former professional rugby player, and speaking with various football players from high school all the way through to the NFL, I was convinced from having these multiple conversations around the safety of the tackle technique that I grew up with that I could make a massive different to many football players’ lives from a long term health standpoint. Read more>>

Elix Figueroa | Freelance Photographer

My thought behind starting my own business was to use my passion for photography and my love for cars to build a brand that defines me as a person and a photographer. Using my free time doing something that I love and initially turning a passion into a business opportunity while capturing the car scene in my home, the beuatiful island of Puerto Rico. Being from an Island is what brings the inspiration behind the name, Tropical Mind Media. A few years later, a job opportunity brought me to the DFW área and the dream is still the same behind the business, built a brand that shows my passion for the craft and the love for cars that I’ve had since I was a little kid. Read more>>

Alyssa and Tim Tamayo and Bovre | Co-Owners for BNTLY Photo Booth

We went to a birthday party that had a Photo Booth and we saw how much fun the guests were having while creating long lasting memories. It is a great way to keep guests entertained by being fun and interactive. We thought starting this business would be a fun side hustle while working our full time jobs. Read more>>

Amber Earl | President & CEO

Being a single mom was my reason behind my thought process of starting my own business. I want to build generational wealth for my son and my granddaughter and also provide jobs to those that are in need of work. Read more>>

Lauren Cathey | Artist & Graphic Designer

While I am still growing and learning with my small business, I started it to share my work and interests. I have several creative passions and hobbies, and I love making stuff in general. The purpose of my brand LCat is that it encompasses all my creative pursuits. My interests range from painting, embroidery, and sewing to digital design, beading, journaling, and anything that keeps me creating. Being able to share my work is exciting and rewarding as someone who loves a project. Read more>>

LANDERS ISOM | Program specialist and community activist

I wanted to move into an arena to where I could have an affect on the most minds going into the future, simply because I hate the society had developed in the manner it had, with humanity taking a back seat to the dollar. And with our children from the world of academia having no higher a level of humanity than the dope bot on the corner. Read more>>

Jade Birchmeier | Gut & Hormone Functional Nutritionist

What inspired me to start my own business was my own personal health journey. As a young girl I had health issues that were “common” among young females but still not something I wanted to live with. When I sought out help, the answer was always a different medication. As I grew up my health issues like acne and painful periods turned into losing my period, extreme fatigue, bloating and gut issues. Read more>>

Olha Kulichenko | Permanent Makeup Artist

Ever since I was young, I’ve loved body art and tattoos. This love, combined with my desire to make a positive impact in my community, led me to start my own business in the field of permanent makeup. In today’s world, we all wear many hats – we are parents, partners, professionals, and have our hobbies and interests. Balancing all of these roles can be time-consuming. With my business, I wanted to offer a solution to help people save time in their daily routines. Permanent makeup is a beautiful way to do this, allowing individuals to have more moments for relaxation and to spend with their families. Read more>>

April & Shaina Dreyson | Mobile Bar & Event Experience Coordinators

My wife and I, even before being together, had each always wanted to be entrepreneurs. Shortly after getting married, we created our vision for what we would like to ultimately do, which is own a venue unlike any other! However, you can imagine that building a venue takes quite the capital and neither of us wanted to just wait for that vision to come through before working for ourselves. So we worked backwards to find what we could do that would naturally feed into that same space and allow us to get started on building our vision sooner. We have several whys. Read more>>

Ty Lee | Real Estate Developer

When you’re an employee, someone else is determining the value of your time and effort. That never sat well with me. I also like control. Good, bad, or indifferent, I want to know that there wasn’t a naysayer that prevented me from trying something new or a different way to solve a problem. Read more>>