Small Business Profiles
Member Highlight: Peninsula Party Rentals
As Feliciano Zavala writes in the San Francisco Chronicle, he is amazed that his Palo Alto-based party rental business is going so strong nearly a year after COVID-19 almost knocked it out. Following a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and loan and a revised focus on smaller events, Peninsula Party Rentals is finally getting back to…
Member Highlight: Akorbi
Akorbi helps organizations connect with employees, vendors, and customers in over 170 languages. Digital tools have long been critical to the success of this translation, workforce solutions, and technology business. “It’s what allowed us to compete with the big boys,” CEO Claudia Mirza says. Akorbi utilized social platforms such as Facebook and Twitter and marketing…
Member Highlight: Goodr
Millions of Americans suffer from the effects of food scarcity every year. At the same time, huge amounts of edible food are dumped in landfills. Jasmine Crowe knew that was wrong. It made her angry. And so, she decided to do something about it. Today, she leads a digitally-driven food-management company that has successfully diverted…
Celebrating Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) Small Businesses
Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) businesses represent a robust sector of the small business community. According to the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development, there are nearly 2 million Asian-owned small businesses in the U.S., with almost half having fewer than 20 employees and 19% in the accommodations and food services industry.…
Member Highlight: CareAcademy
The U.S. has long suffered from a shortage of qualified direct care workers. Nigerian-immigrant Helen Adeosun, a former practicing caregiver, thought someone should do something about that. Her solution was to build CareAcademy, a digital-first business that empowers senior home care professionals to build businesses of their own in the home care industry, pairing online…
Member Highlight: NAME GLO
In 2014, actress Sas Simon and visual artist Lena Inamura teamed up to form NAME GLO: a company producing custom-made neon pieces. It didn’t take long for NAME GLO to evolve from passion project to profitable venture. Sas and Lena were feeling great about the business as 2020 dawned. Yet, right when things seemed to…
Small Business Resilience: The Tiny Tassel
Mimi Striplin always seems happy, no matter the circumstance. It’s a good thing she decided to start a company dedicated to bringing a similar sense of joy to others. Mimi’s business, The Tiny Tassel, started as an Etsy shop, and has since grown a lot bigger. Today, The Tiny Tassel offers handmade tassel jewelry, clothing, and a full line of party decor. It h
Member Highlight: Sunrise Coffee
Juanny Romeo opened her first coffee shop during the Great Recession and over the years added several Las Vegas-based Sunrise Coffee cafes to the flagship—along with a deepening passion for both the product she sold and the customers who came in to try it. “The community we have is so important to me,” Juanny says,…
Member Highlight: Okabashi Brands
Okabashi CEO Sara Irvani is a third-generation shoemaker. The company she leads has been manufacturing shoes in Georgia since it was founded by her grandfather, an Iranian expatriate, in 1984. Sara is proud of Okabashi’s tradition of not only making shoes in the U.S. but doing so in an environmentally and socially conscious way. Sara…
Sign up to get the latest news and resources for your small business
Featured
Op-Ed by Melissa Horvath of Sweet Water Decor: Why is Pennsylvania’s Attorney General suing one of small businesses’ best partners?
Just the Facts: Debunking the FTC’s Case Against Amazon
Maine Small Business Owners Express Frustration Over Data Privacy and Protection Act
