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.

Alyssa Petersel Landsberger, LMSW | Award Winning Author, Therapist, and Forbes 30 Under 30

As a trained therapist, I am firm believer in the intersection between nature and nurture. From a young age, I both believed that I would be my own boss, and my father reinforced that belief in nearly every conversation I had with him. Read more>>

Sasha Gutiérrez | Opera Singer & Impresaria

I wish I could say I thought about it thoroughly and that I knew exactly what I was doing, but that’s not the case. Believe it or not, I never meant to create an opera company. It started out as a project to fill in a gap that was left in the opera world when theaters and other venues were shut down due to the pandemic. I am an opera singer, and as an artist I needed to find spaces where I could create my art. Read more>>

JoWhim | American Fashion Designer

From a young age, I’ve been mesmerized by the incredible power of art and design – to create something extraordinary that elicits emotion from others. Visiting the Met’s “Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty” exhibit for the first time left me in awe. I felt my imagination blossom to levels that were previously limited, and it forever changed how I viewed the world around me. Little did I know that the experience would be a stepping stone on my journey to developing JoWhim – the boldest range of unisex ready-to-wear and accessories. Read more>>

Asia Arnett | Intuitive Brand Strategist, Holistic Wealth Coach & Light worker

When I started my entrepreneurial journey 10 years ago, I didn’t have anyone to guide me or help me create a brand identity or assist with business structure. I also had to self find my own business ventures from my full time job, which ultimately limited my growth. The services I currently offer would have saved me time, money and scaling much sooner if I had the correct guidance and resources. Read more>>

Alex Baird | Jazz Vocalist & Songwriter

I honestly never really thought about it – it was an automatic yes for me. I grew up with my father as a professional musician for most of my life, and music was always my first priority growing up, so it was a natural progression for me to pursue my dreams full-time. I’ve always been very business-minded about it: I remember thinking about how to get more views on my YouTube channel as a 12 year old. Read more>>

Jennifer Roach | Founder & CEO, Organization Fabulous

So, whenever people ask me about my career, I am always astonished at how all of the, seemingly random jobs I’ve had have been leading me to starting my own business. I started in retail in Texas, specifically selling wedding gowns, and continued to grow my book of business until plateauing (after 20+ years) on Rodeo Dr. Read more>>

Stephen Prouty | Makeup Effects Artist

I had worked for many years at other makeup effects shops in Los Angeles. During that period I would work on my own shows in my off time. Working on the side like that was often referred to as having a “garage shop”. Essentially using a home space or less permanent facilities to complete projects in. Read more>>

Anna Botanica | Natural Dyer & Artist

I had started experimenting and making things for fun. One year, I gave my friends and family naturally dyed scarves for Christmas. Everyone was so excited and said they would buy things like this, so I started making more and selling them. Read more>>

Val Sklar Robinson | Studio Owner, Instructor and Executive Dir of OHYA (Original Hot Yoga Association)

After 8 years in a career I loved (Retail and wholesale for shoes) I started having hip issues (from a broken hip at age 13). Once I started practicing this style of therapeutic Hot Yoga, and experienced the benefits of creating strength and healing, I knew I had to share it with others. I quit my job in January 1998 and took the 6th Bikram Yoga Teacher Training In March 1998, graduated in May 1998, and in Nov 1998 I moved from LA to Pasadena to open Hot Yoga Pasadena. (formerly, Bikram Yoga Pasadena) Read more>>

Taylor Bamgbose | Visual Artist

For me, and perhaps for other creatives, starting a business was not a conscious decision; it sort of snuck up on me. I didn’t start with a “business idea,” or a business plan, or anything like that. I started with a skill and a passion. Read more>>

Daniel Messinger | Owner & Baker at Daniel’s Bagels

I’ve always loved cooking and baking and made homemade bagels for my family and friends on several occasions. They were so popular that when the pandemic caused me to be home from college and I started making bagels more often, people began asking to try them, and thus, Daniel’s Bagels was born! Read more>>

Anthony Canapi | California’s Gay Matchmaker and Love Expert

Born and raised in one of the best Metropolitan cities in the world, Los Angeles, I understand how hard dating as Gay Man in the city can be because I had to face it head on myself; being single for a number of years, dealing with the constant, endless swiping of the dating apps, growing more frustrated in my dating life, it affected my everyday life. Read more>>

Tedi Tinnille | Wardrobe Stylist & Image Consultant

Like every other person, I have a particular skill/talent that is uniquely my own. I saw a need that I knew I could meet. I started my own business because I knew my skills would be useful to everyday people just like it is for celebs and artists. I asked myself “why continue to work toward someone else’s dreams while pushing my own to the side?” Read more>>

Thea Harris | CEO & Esthetician

Ultimately my thought process was that I have to just START. I know what i want success to look like in my life and the only way to get that is to start. Not tomorrow, not later, now. Even when things are scary and I’m not sure how or if it will work out, I know I have to keep pushing to get where I want to be. Read more>>

McKinley Wiley | Photographer/Videographer

I began pursuing photography seriously in the summer of 2004 right after I finished undergrad at Baldwin-Wallace University. All I really knew at that time was that portrait photography felt really good to me and that I absolutely would not go to my grave without pursuing it professionally. I legit remember sitting in the computer lab on a late night/early morning saying to myself that “I could die that much happier knowing that I tried….” Read more>>

Nathaniel Semsen | Musician & Content Creator

I originally never aspired to build a career around content creation, that was until I joined Lyon Bros. Lyon Bros was a semi-viral YouTube band my friends and I were a part of where we recreated popular meme songs and fortnite dances as a six piece band. I loved the positive impact I felt we were having on this online “band kid” community we had built and I started to gain more of a following on my personal YouTube in the peak fame of Lyon Bros. Read more>>

Taylor Emily | Taylor Leonard & Emily Adams | Sister Duo & Makers of Apothecary Products

Our business was born out of our passion for health and candles. After learning of the toxic ingredients that are contained in candles that you can find in stores, we dove deep into the concept of creating non-toxic products. What started as a hobby to create for our friends and family, quickly grew into a full-fledged business with their encouragement. Read more>>

Leora Robles | Business Owner and Board Certified Lactation Consultant

Coming from a family of entrepreneurs, having my own business has always been a dream of mine. However, I never wanted to start a business just for the sake of it. Rather, I knew starting a business had to be driven by a passion along with a calling to help others. Becoming a mother and navigating the challenges of feeding my own babies sparked that passion I was longing for. Read more>>

Keyonna Monroe | Certified NLP counselor and EQ coach.

So the thought process behind me starting my organization is realizing how important it is to create something that solves a much needed problem in my community, that can live on as a solution long after I’m gone. Being born and raised in South Central LA, sexually abused majority of my childhood through incest and trafficking, and being surrounded by so many who have succumbed to a bad dealt hand and conditioning, Read more>>

Crystal Bond-Eskander | Interior Designer

I loved the idea of being in charge of my own destiny and starting something that I could call my own. Being in charge of what sort of designer I wanted to be not what I was told I had to be like. Read more>>

Sharon Gomez | Lash technician & Small business owner

My thought process behind starting my own business was me wanting to work for myself and be able to run my business how I wanted to. I loved the idea of being able to make my own schedule, and be my own boss. Read more>>

Ernie Bannister | Founder, Artistic Director, M.O.R.E. Fashion x Art brand

The thought process behind starting my fashion brand began in October of 2016 while I was walking from work and thinking of alternative ways to support my family and an epiphany of man or person wearing a hat with the word “MORE” on it flashed in my mind. I instantly knew I was going to start a clothing brand but did not know what the “MORE” meant or what it was going to stand for because all I saw as a flash of a person wearing a hat with the word “MORE” on it. Read more>>

Gabrielle Hurwitz | Bridal Fashion Stylist

I honestly never thought I would start my own business but in 2018, the media company I was working at nearly went under and in the process, let go of most of the staff. At the time, I was overseeing the brand’s editorial content and social media. I had studied journalism and college and always thought I would work in magazines or digital media. I even wrote my college application on how I wanted to be the nice version of Miranda Priestly in “The Devil Wears Prada.” Read more>>

Shannon Kassoff | Reiki Master Healer, Breathwork Practitioner, Yoga & Meditation Teacher

I would say it was more of a calling. I had a steady career for over 2 decades as a licensed veterinary nurse, and at the time, I was the lead nurse of a multi doctor practice but everything in me was screaming that it was time to leave. It was not easy to listen to this inner voice because I had so much fear of leaving a steady paycheck, but when the opportunity presented itself, I took the leap and stepped out on my own as a yoga and meditation teacher. Read more>>

Deb Kramer | Founder and Executive Director

Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful was born out of a need to expand the community efforts to connect people to Coyote Creek, a 64-mile long creek and the largest watershed in the southern end of San Francisco Bay. Starting a nonprofit organization is not a solitary enterprise for it takes a variety of supporters to make it come to fruition, starting with a vision and mission. Read more>>