Starting and growing a business is hard, but often deciding to start the business in the first place is even harder. We asked some successful entrepreneurs from around the community to open up to us about how they thought about starting a business.

Valentina Trentini | Sign Painter & Gilder

When the pandemic forced many people to work from home, I decided that it was time for me to reinvent myself and put everything I knew and worked so hard for together. I wanted to be able to split my time between my family and what I decided it was my dream job, but I wanted to be able to own my time and making sure I was taking care or myself too. I knew I just wanted to paint the whole time, without having anyone telling me how to do my job anymore, which is what happens when you have a 9-5 job. Read more>>

Raphael Alves | Sports Director

Since I moved to the US, wasn’t hard to identify that youth sports was much more focused on the “profiting” than everything else. It happens with many sports, but in soccer I would say it’s even worse. The sport has no culture developed in the country just yet and businesses take advantage of parents lack of knowledge regarding the sport development. Why not creating something legit, right? Read more>>

Shruti Tewari | Screenwriter, Filmmaker & Actor

If not me, then who? This is the question that expanded my playing field as an actor and I became a storyteller in my own right. I am an immigrant from India and have spent the last three decades in America. For all the changes I have witnessed in my time here, the slowest to change was the representation of immigrant women from South Asia in our media. While it is fun to resort to a Shakespearean framework and build stock characters around the protagonist, South Asian immigrant women continue to be presented as limited, and limiting, stereotypes – either they are loud-mouthed, opinionated gossip mongers who live to disavow the American dreams of the protagonist, or they are inconsequential weaklings, meekly following the commands of the men around them. Read more>>

Johnny Jiasheng Chen | Designer & Studio Founder

I am determined to achieve one of my life goals, which is to launch my own business. Through this venture, I will have an opportunity to showcase my potential and talents through a self-actualization process. After working in various organizations, I have come to realize that some projects are difficult to execute within a corporate environment. However, I am confident in my ability to succeed in this endeavor, even though I acknowledge that I have much to learn. I am committed to lifelong learning and will continue to push myself to achieve greater heights. Read more>>

eli james | business owner | investor | dad | fashion designer | int. drummer

Interesting enough, I never really thought of starting my own business, at least not right away.. it all happen to just fall into place. It was all just so random.. I was a touring musician forever and always altered my own clothes (mainly because I didn’t have the money to hire someone to help get me cool stuff to wear). So one day I randomly decided to make my own pair of drop crotch pants and a dope shirt that I could wear everywhere.. to the gym, meetings, red carpets, rehearsals and stage. Read more>>

Londyn Nikole | Creative Director/ Editor In Chef/ Beautyprenur

The thought process behind starting my own business, specifically Glamour Boss Magazine, was driven by a combination of factors and aspirations. Passion and Expertise: I had a deep passion for the beauty and fashion industry, and I had developed expertise and experience through my work as an Editorial and Celebrity Make-Up Artist. I wanted to channel that passion into a venture that would allow me to make a broader impact and create a platform for sharing insights and knowledge with a wider audience. Read more>>

Ann Kono | Founder & Entrepreneur & Activist

TeachAAPI was founded by a group of passionate parents who were deeply concerned about the well-being of their children during the pandemic. Many of our children faced microaggressions and discrimination due to COVID and Anti-Asian sentiment. We came together with the determination to make a difference and find a solution that would prevent such experiences for future generations. Read more>>

Savi Win | Founder and Fitness Professional

Embarking on the journey to start my own business was a decision deeply rooted in personal experience and a profound desire to make a difference. Over several years, I meticulously refined my nutrition and fitness regimen to align with my personal goals and achieve the results I sought. Yet, throughout this process, I came to recognize that the real value extended far beyond mere physical transformation. Read more>>

Daniel Dooreck | Potter

I first moved to Los Angeles beginning of 2021. I grew up in Santa Barbara where my parents live now, but really had no connections or idea of what LA like, only the tourist idea of Santa Monica and Venice. I have an entire history in working in restaurants and focusing in wine – I started it mid way through University in Montreal and stuck with it for almost a decade. Eventually I opened a small restaurant in toronto, but through Covid and classic partnership issues I split my ties and did strategic retreat to LA. Read more>>

Lily Monge | Esthetician

I always had the desire to start a business, but I had no idea what I wanted it to be. I worked all types of different jobs before starting my business, but nothing sparked a fire inside of me. I also felt very constrained in the types of jobs I worked because I had no room to be a creative person. I knew then I needed to find my passion and from that I would start my business. The desire for independence, creativity and knowing the sky was my limit were the key factors behind the thought process of starting my own business. Read more>>

Minnie BAD | Hairstylist & Aesthetician

It was the only way i seen myself being successful at being able to really support myself finacially. Not everyone is born to be a follower some people are born to lead. Every retail job or any job where i was employed by someone else always started out good but never end up working out. Aside from it not working out the pay wasnt enough. Minimum wage is not for me. Read more>>

Abby Barroll Brown | Founder/Creative Director

Once becoming vegetarian,, it really took me down a thought process of “ I spend so much time thinking about what I put in my body, but shouldn’t I also think about what I put ON my body whether it be my cosmetic or my clothes. I started really deep diving into finding more sustainable brands and the one thing I couldn’t find to my liking was shoes. Read more>>

Shivani Desai | Actor & Business Mentor for Actors

Honestly, just pure desperation. As an artist, when you live in a culture and economy that doesn’t prioritize the arts, there’s an inevitable sense of resentment that festers underneath the surface over the years. This is something I identified in myself as an actor and over time, Read more>>

Wally Stryk | owner of Asian Art Imports

I have a varied vocational background. I’d played music professionally for years (still play) but just wasn’t earning steady enough of an income. I’ve also had jobs working for others but never found a rewarding position. Starting Asian Art Imports in 1998 gave me satisfaction in being in control of my circumstances and allowed my to travel extensively with I appreciated. Read more>>

Erin Fitzgerald | Solo Traveler & Adventurer Guide | Digital Content Creator

I have been living on my own in Los Angeles for almost 20 years, and in those past two decades I have done so much as a solo traveler and adventurer! I love going places and exploring with my friends, but I also really know how to do it by myself and I know how much joy and self worth I derive from doing things and going to places on my own. I wanted to start a brand that would be able to showcase my adventures but also one that would hopefully inspire others to go out there and do it on their own as well! Read more>>