We are so inspired by the businesses in our community because of how many of them are committed to helping to make the world better than it is today. Check out some great businesses below and how they are helping others.

Margaret Palanca | Community Director for Yelp LA East

Yelp was launched to help people discover and connect with great local businesses. As a community manager, I get to meet with so many great business owners around the Los Angeles area and market them to our community via showcasing them on our newsletters, social media (@yelpla), weekly Elite e-mails, events, and more. Read more>>

Ting Chu | Artist and Space Holder

I personally believe in honoring and standing ground to our own truth, it truly is one of the fundamental rights we were born with. So once this truth is challenged whether by outside narratives or our own, I feel it is important that one needs an unconditional space where they can allow themselves to be or at least feel safe to explore whatever they could become. This is where my studio space could support, to act as a safe space for people to come and ‘be’ rather than ‘do’. Read more>>

Stizzo Speaks | Leadership Development Coach & President of Alluvione Organization

I have and will always be in the business of helping people! I am a people person! My business focuses on everyone else but me and I wouldn’t have it any other way. My work is really about impacting lives and communities, from a place within my heart which has been reserved to do the work of a healer, while focusing on business leadership. I strive to impact others by being a fearless and unapologetic woman of color, living authentically in a world which tends to have many hurdles and obstacles placed in our way; both in the workplace and society. Read more>>

Kanani Kroll | | Health & Wellness Coach | Athletic trainer

Being a health and wellness Coach has so many amazing layers of service. Teaching people how to breathe when anxious. How to De-stress through movement. How to LET GO through meditation- Providing the tools for a better life experience Read more>>

James Sie | Author & Voice Actor

Writing fiction has the potential to create empathy in the reader, to affect not only the mind but the heart. Think of the last good novel you read, one whose characters stayed with you long after you’ve set the book down. You’ve been given the opportunity to see the world through another’s eyes, and that can be quite a powerful experience. Writing about marginalized communities, if done right, bestows a second blessing: it not only fosters understanding and acceptance from those outside that community, but also allows those within the community to see themselves reflected and affirmed. The best fiction acts as both window and mirror. Read more>>

Lucas Tepman | CEO of MUSA

Art at its core has the mission to unravel societal truths. It has the power to preserve how it felt to exist in a particular place at a particular time and is often a vehicle for social change giving voice to the socially disenfranchised. Throughout history, art has suffered censorship but at times found its way of emerging beyond the censorship leading important transformations in our societies. As societies become more complex, censorship changes, but censorship remains in the art industry. Read more>>

Emiko | Film Composer, Producer, Recording Artist, Hifi/Audio Advocate

Though I work in the entertainment industry as a film composer, documentary producer, songwriter and hifi advocate, my goal is very clear: it’s always to be in service of others in everything I do. So, for example, if I am aligning with a film or documentary, I do my very best to make sure the message of the film is one that will be helpful to others. If I’m writing music, same thing! And when I work in the hifi/audio world, it’s all about educating as many people as possible about the deeper importance of an elevated listening experience and how that can benefit you not just developmentally but neurologically and physiologically as well. I’ve found that the work I do in service of others always end up being the projects that are the most successful, most connective, and make me the happiest! Read more>>

Aubrey Ares | Professional Dancer/Dance Behavioral Therapist

Owning a dance studio, people automatically assume that I work with kids. But my dance studio is mainly for adults and helping them empower themselves through dance. In 2014, I started dancing a style called Bachata. It’s a “Social dance” and is danced in local Latin dance clubs (a lot like salsa). There was something so beautiful watching people dance bachata song after song, and with a different partner every song. It was so astonishing that people would show up on Wednesday nights, week after week and dance until 2 in the morning. Read more>>

Emilie Perz | Yoga CEO

As yoga-based wellness brand we have evolved to capture a huge, diverse market in less than a year. Our mission is to serve four unique health pillars: physical, mental, emotional and energetic health. Read more>>

Jonny Ahdoot | Real Estate Consultant

In my business we make a huge push towards giving back to the community. We are in a unique position to increase the quality of living of individuals and families. This is truly a special position that is also a fortunate one. We have done several beach clena ups, charity events and will continue to do so. When we look back at our business we want to know we left the world a better place than when we arrived. Read more>>

Freya Graf | Holistic Sex Coach & Yoni Mapping Therapist

I’m in the business of empowering people through holistic sexuality education and coaching, and supporting women to heal through Yoni Mapping Therapy. Given that sexuality is an integral part of what makes up the bedrock of humanity, I feel strongly that this is a pretty darn important and special gift that I share with the world. Read more>>

Nychol Lyna | Author & CEO of Dream North Entertainment

I am passionate about and dedicated to encouraging women, youth, and community empowerment through my business development attributes and creative works of art. Established in 2014, Dream North Entertainment’s mission is to promote the advancement of minority individuals and communities, while emphasizing the importance of bridging cultural gaps by way of collaboration and utilizing artistic expression as an alternative outlet. Read more>>

Melissa Hagerty | visual artist and musician

One of my longest on-going and greatest inspirations is an intentional community-building installation project called “Heart of the Hive”. This project teaches participants how to weave a honeycomb hexagon-shaped “cell” of a beehive in the indigenous Huichol weaving style known as the “ojo de Dios” (the eye of God). Each participant is asked to make an intention for their weaving, honoring the traditional practice of weaving a God’s eye. Next we connect each of the cells together creating a woven beehive installation that can be placed in any shape space. Read more>>

Kristina Wong | Performance Artist, Comedian, Elected Representaive and Overlord of the Auntie Sewing Squad

**If I can, I’d like to reframe the questions to steer away from the word “business” since it’s actually a mutual aid collective and we reject capitalist language and the capitalist “goods for cash” way of exchange and giving. “Social impact: how does Auntie Sewing Squad help the community or the world?” In March 2020, I started the Auntie Sewing Squad as a casual Facebook group to connect to friends who were sewing masks for frontline and essential workers because of the PPE shortage. The idea was that we’d only exist for a few weeks until the cargo boats of factory made masks from China got here and the US Government got masks to everyone. Read more>>

Jerika Vincent | Executive Producer and Casting Associate

Jerika’s Showcase is a television program and advertising agency that creates a fun way to advertise any business! The TV show encourages consumers to shop local and to check out the latest trends and hot spots! We help businesses by showcasing their products or services in a fun reality style way! The business gains brand awareness, new customers, social media engagement, and so much more! Read more>>

Rafael Thomaseto | Film and Television Producer

Driven Equation is an international production company that was founded to become the vessel of expression for selected work from Helena Sardinha and me. As young professionals, Latinxs, Queer-identifying, and advocates of gender equality, we have as our greatest mission the expansion of inclusion and representation in media. Since 2018, Driven Equation was formed from our previous working years, through the realization of sharing not only the same ideas but also the same values, approach to creation and synchronicities of life that brought us together. Read more>>

Kristin Dee | Yoga Teacher & Coach

I started Nourish the People to support the belief “a nourished world, starts with a nourished you”. I not only believe, but I’ve experienced this first hand – positive change in communities begins with the individual. If one person learns how to live honestly, in integrity, and to nourish themselves, it gives those around them permission to do the same. We need more people living from their expression of truth and joy. This energy is infectious, and wonderful. And it can absolutely begin to shift the collective into a place of greater well-being. But it starts with you! Read more>>

Jess Van Zeventer | Entrepreneur – Owner of Fig + Rosewood

At first glance, a home decor business can seem superficial, but over the past year people have seen how important it is for their home to be a welcoming space. My home has become a safe haven, a place of warmth and light that I share with others. And this feeling of home has transcended into what my business represents. I started hand making boho decor resembling sunshine and this brought light into my customers’ homes. As my business grew, my personality became intertwined with it. Read more>>

Vickie Brett and Amanda Selogie | Co-Founders and Civil Rights Attorneys

The Inclusive Education Project’s primary focus is to ensure that all students, including those living with disabilities, are given an EQUAL OPPORTUNITY to access an appropriate public education. More often than not, children living with disabilities are denied this equal opportunity that their typical peers are given and the Inclusive Education Project seeks to change this. Ensuring this equal opportunity at a local level, will in turn promote a more inclusive and understanding society and world. We believe if we are more inclusive and understanding of each other’s needs, we can better work together to create a brighter future. Read more>>

Eve Harrison Harrison, VMD, CVA | House call veterinarian, course creator, & coach for The House Call Vet Academy online course

I actually serve two communities with my veterinary house call practice. My goal is to make changes in the way we take care of animals, and simultaneously I have a strong investment in changing how we care for other veterinarians & vet techs in our community. As a veterinarian, I have practiced, lectured, & published internationally. My work with animals in clinics, emergency rooms, & operating rooms in many different places over the past 15-20 years has made it very clear that veterinary medicine in the clinic is stressful for almost everyone involved: the patients of course, but also their caregivers. Read more>>

Elsa Unenge | Certified Breath Coach

My business helps people by teaching them how to breathe again. Breathing is something most of us have forgotten how to do and by teaching people how to breathe right, I help improve their mental and physical health.
When we are born, we all know how to breathe. But as we grow older, we gradually forget. We start mimicking our parents breathing habits (who are likely doing it poorly as 80% of the adult population suffer from dysfunctional breathing patterns). Read more>>

Matthew Nichols | Artist

Our goal is to create a platform for positivity. We focus on working with people to promote all different types of wealth, be it social, intellectual, emotional, creative, etc. The brand is about the complexity real life and being rich beyond just a financial means. Read more>>

Keiko Feldman | Business Owner, Non-profit Co-founder, Mom, Wife, Ally.

I am the co-founder of a 501c(3) called Gender Nation. We have a single mission– to bring LGBTQ affirming story books to public elementary school libraries. We believe that when a community acknowledges LGBTQ youth and stands up to fear and intolerance, it can literally save lives. LGBTQ youth are three times more likely to consider suicide than heterosexual youth, and a majority of transgender and non-binary youth have engaged in self harm. Read more>> 

Joseph Prichard | Creative Director & Designer

Since Kilter’s founding in 2017, one of our studio’s core areas of focus has been creating work for the nonprofit and public sectors. Our clients run the gamut from homeless services agencies, to schools, to museums and we pride ourselves on bringing a level of craft and commitment to these projects that exceeds expectations. One of the joys of working with cause-based organizations is seeing the immediate impact of our work on the communities in which we live. That can mean helping to elect a candidate to congress, like our work on Katie Porter’s 2018 campaign, or helping to spread vital public health information, as we did with our pandemic-related work for the City of West Hollywood. Read more>>

Alan Milstein | Founder & Musician

My business is called Muuch. And at Muuch we are looking to expand the possibilities of what it means to be a self-employed creative professional. We are looking to build tools that help the ever-growing creative community to make the best projects they can while also being able to build a stable business behind their skills and abilities. By providing a streamlined process to create projects based on which stage you are at in you project and bringing cross-collaboration capabilities clients can build a team to create their projects faster and better while freelancers get to work in great projects they love with other talented people, growing their network and knowledge. At Muuch we are constantly looking to develop the next tool to facilitate the chaotic world that is the creative industry. Read more>>

Isabelle Fox | Executive Director | Mending Kids

Our organization provides life-changing and life-saving critical surgical care to underserved children in the United States and the world. To date we have helped better the lives of nearly 4500 children from 68 countries. Read more>>

Kyle Strauss | Co-Founder

I think it is safe to say that 2020 was a challenging year for most everyone. The pandemic forced people across the globe to reevaluate how we approach our daily lives with cleanliness and sanitation as a top priority. .
From an early age, my parents instilled in us the importance of giving back to our community. As three brothers who live all over the globe, Suriv was a unique business opportunity that could help the world. Read more>>

Shawn Anderson | Master Coffee Roaster / Activist / Owner of Old Town Roasting

Old Town Roasting was founded on three things: coffee, community, and compassion. Since founding the company in 2011, I have proudly used 20% of Old Town’s profits to make a positive impact, both locally and globally. Our financial donations have been used to support various groups such as Black Lives Matter Los Angeles, GLAAD, The Innocence Project, The West Memphis 3 justice campaign, Beyond Blindness (formally the Blind Children’s Learning Center), Reclaim the Block, the ACLU, the NAACP, and the League of Women Voters, to name a few. Read more>>

Saera Hur | Hairdresser / Hush Cut Founder

ShoutoutLA No one is perfect, but we can do our best to put some good out into the world while we’re here. As an immigrant to this Country at a very young age and constantly being displaced, I knew community is something that I always craved and was important to me. Now, to avoid a memoir saga- I will lead off with the word “collectivism”. Collectivism is something that’s ingrained in the fiber of my being due to my culture yet growing up in America, I learned “no one has your back but yourself”. Read more>>

Courtney Kinnare | Abstract Artist

Coming from a background in environmental economics, I’ve always had an affinity towards bettering the environment and world. After leaving my full-time job in the sustainable packaging industry to pursue art, I wanted to try harder to positively impact our planet both in and outside of my studio. Seeing as my practice uses resin – which is a synthetic compound similar to plastic – I knew that I had to make changes in order to use this medium without the negative impacts of the waste it created. Simultaneously, as I moved my studio to Downtown Los Angeles, it became clearer how broad the homelessness crisis was. Read more>>

Stefanie Barboza | Fitness Instructor and Owner of The Barboza Method

You can come to my studio at any stage in your life. My studio is a safe place to come and workout and be part of our Barboza community—no matter your fitness level. People come to my studio at their lowest, physically or mentally, and it’s such a joy to see them transform and grow and get stronger week after week. My studio is a place for people in the community to come and feel comfortable and get on this journey with us. Read more>>

Darika Brown | Board President

Stopping Cry’s Inc. is a nonprofit that provides the homeless youth with hygiene products. Our nonprofit was established last year in hopes to educate the youth on the importance of hygiene. It is critical to keep your body clean, doing so is vital in combating and preventing illness. This is especially crucial because of COVID. For example, washing your hands can prevent the spread of germs from one person to another or from one part of your body to another. Read more>>

Yasmin Deliz | Actor|Singer Song Writer|Spiritual Activist

I like to believe that I influences the higher consciousness of those who access my current publicized work, be it through my webpage, youtube, instagram or soundcloud. My work speaks to the current need society has to SLOW DOWN and stop thinking with our mind. As a matter of fact to think less and feel more. Feel with our hearts. Okay well, then what’s next? Feel with my heart and then what? Then, let go of the pain/fear you are inevitably going to feel. Read more>>

Dali | Creator or the Diversity & Anti-Bullying Academy (#DABA)

I began speaking about the issue of bullying, which leads to many other social issues such as discrimination, inequality, domestic violence, sexual assault, and mental health challenges to just name a few. The work that I do helps parents educate themselves and empower their children so that they can speak up against bullying and other types of injustices. Youth and parents can also help them become upstanders. It all starts at home and in order to help reduce the injustices in the world really starts at the micro-level. There is no magical solution. It just starts with each individual. Read more>>

J.Stephen Brantley | Actor and Playwright

Actors are taught to take what we get and never say no to a job, but we’re much more powerful than that – or could be. It’s a belief in the power of storytelling that gets us into this business in the first place, and we should be using our power as storytellers for good. For me that means applying an antiracist ethos to everything I do. It means saying no to projects that don’t align with those values. And it means pursuing and championing projects by historically excluded artists in which I can help tell the hard truths about our society. Read more>>

Laura Howe | Clothing designer and Gallery Owner

I see myself and my brand as a smaller part of the global community, and I try to keep this in mind when controlling our supply chain. Our use of deadstock fabrics is just one example of this view of the planet. Instead of letting fabric bolts end up in a landfill, we rescue and reimagine unique threads. We also take this approach to the production table as well; instead of mass-producing a garment and inevitably creating a lot of waste, we create each garment to order which also allows us to make it to the measurements of the client. Read more>>

Emma G | Singer – Songwriter – Artivist – Youth Empowerment Coach – Author – Podcaster

Music is the 6th sense. It allows us as humans to really feel deep within our soul, and connect with people beyond the physical – or even the emotional, I’ve been an artivist [artistic activist] for a very long time now – I wrote and released my first song [Look Around] when I was just ten years old about environmental awareness and economic equity, and my business has just grown, developed and flourished since then. Read more>>

Arynetta Northcutt | Creator, Effie Monroe

I believe that one of the biggest impacts our company can make on the world is teaching children to believe in themselves, and their inherent special gifts and skills, so that they may impact the world in just the way they are meant to. And that’s exactly what Effie Monroe aims to do. There is a reason why the Effie videos and meditations end with the words: “You are so awesome and smart and capable of doing anything you put your mind to.” It’s because we believe it’s true. On our website’s About Me page are the words: “…your child is as amazing as a double rainbow over a glistening ocean, shooting stars on a glossy night. The Aurora Borealis. The Saturn Jupiter Conjunction! Actually, those are only somewhat substantial compared to the magnificence that is your child…” Read more>>

Nancy Kanter | Fine Artist, Jewelry Designer, Writer, & Feminist

I designed a special collection of feminist jewelry in support of a passion project of mine — inspiring and empowering women — and I donate a portion of the profits from that collection to organizations that help improve the lives of women. In addition, I’m working on a non-fiction book about how society defines what it means to be a woman, how it punishes those who don’t follow the rules, and how we can reclaim our power and define ourselves. I also founded Beauty Is Inside, a website and popular feminist Facebook community that now has over 220K followers. I’ve received hundreds of messages from readers in places as far away as Sudan, Serbia, India, and Bosnia and Herzegovina about how my work has empowered and inspired them. They’ve poured their hearts out to me and many of their stories have brought me to tears. To say it’s been humbling is an understatement. Read more>>