We had the good fortune of connecting with Desire Stephens and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Desire, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I have always been around entrepreneurs and working for a franchise corporation and then for a small business that bought a franchise, I knew franchising was the right fit for me. My 10 year goal out of high school was to be making my own money. I always wanted to work for me. I purchase Mosquito Shield 12 days before that 10 year goal and while I hadn’t made any money I had invested time, money and energy to do so. Starting my own business through a franchise gave me the opportunity to earn more, to give back to the community and develop myself and my team further than I ever thought I could. It was a big leap to jump into my own business, but betting on myself was the best decision I could have ever made.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Mosquito Shield of Northwest Los Angeles does residential and commercial mosquito control company. We pride ourselves on providing the highest quality of service to our community and working to make their yard and home mosquito free each season. We set ourselves a part by focusing on mosquito and tick control. That’s all we do! Our proprietary product helps control the mosquito population and prevent them from coming back by creating a barrier around the home using mostly natural products like cedar wood oil, peppermint oil and citronella!

Getting a business started is never easy, but its the mentality of choose your hard, I decided that I would rather work to build my own business than to build someone else’s and I am motivated each day to continue to expand and grow what we do. I think the biggest lesson I have learned being in the service industry is, it’s not about what you do all the time, it’s about how you do it. My favorite review to receive is that we communicate well, that we were nice or that my clients feel they are taken care of. So much of this world is transactional and I know I am in pest control, but we always like to bring a little humility to the industry in the service we provide.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I currently live in the San Fernando Valley but I lived most of my time in LA on the west side and it’s where I take most of my friends and family to come visit. We typically do some touristy stuff like the Santa Monica Pier or Malibu Country Market. We definitely would have to venture over to Abbott Kinney for some shopping and a must is to hit up a sporting event! LA has some great teams and I am such a fan of sports and it’s always so fun to be in the crowd supporting LA.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Growing up watching my parents build their business gave me the mindset that I could do it too, but it wasn’t until I started working for a couple fitness studios out here in Los Angeles until I really saw multiple females running their own businesses that gave me that push I need. I think watching the original founders of Soulcyle and working with Felicia Alexander at BoxUnion allowed me to learn how to lead, manage and grow a business and watching strong females run businesses in a predominately male dominated industry allowed feel like I could do it too. Then, when the Mosquito Shield opportunity came along and I was about to purchase a pest control business (also a male dominated industry) I felt that I was ready for the challenge. So my shoutout goes to all Felicia Alexander and all the strong female entrepreneurs out there!

Website: https://moshield.com/northwest-los-angeles/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mosquitoshieldnlaca/

Image Credits
Kelsey Fisher

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