Small Business Profiles
A Family Doctor Becomes a Family Business Woman Through Digital Tools
When Wei-Shin Lai created SleepPhone®s headphones in the early 2000s, she didn’t plan on leaving her successful family medicine practice. She just wanted a good night’s sleep. Uncomfortable laying down in traditional headphones and unable to sleep without them, Wei-Shin and her husband Jason invented the bed-friendly headband and ultra-thin speakers out of necessity. Wei-Shin’s…
Small Business Profile: Beddy’s
Betsy Mikesell and Angie White used to be jogging partners. Today, they run one of Utah’s fastest-growing small companies. The path that took them there is anything but typical—which of course, for most small businesses, is typical. Here’s the Beddy’s story: Betsy was desperate for a way to motivate her twin boys to do a…
Small Business Profile: 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…
Small Business Profile: 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…
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.…
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
The Spice House: Supporting Small Businesses While Staying Tastefully Safe
The Spice House is as much a community as it is an expert spice business. The 60-year-old business has a steady customer base of restaurants, chefs, and foodies, as well as a close-knit network of suppliers (with some so secret, even CEO Charlie Mayer doesn’t know them). Mayer calls The Spice House stores “a sensory…
Name Glo: From Producing Neon to Protecting New York’s Health Care Workers
Name Glo co-owners Sas Simon and Lena Imamura are no strangers to finding innovative ways to fulfill a need – whether that need is custom neon signs or protective gear during a pandemic. The New York-based company’s story began in 2014 when Simon was scouring New York for someone to produce a neon sign of…
“British Invasion: How A California-Based British Pub Is Rockin’ and Rollin’ Digital Transformation”
The Cat & Fiddle Los Angeles, California Ashlee Gardner comes from a family of entrepreneurs. Having been born the very same month her parents opened The Cat & Fiddle in 1982, Ashlee and her sisters are no strangers to the restaurant life. The Cat & Fiddle is a British pub and restaurant that has a…
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