Ideas aren’t everything, execution matters greatly, but starting often requires an idea and so we asked folks to think back and tell us the story of how they came up with the idea for their businesses. We’ve highlighted some of our favorite stories below.

Chay Parker | Hemp Store Owner

My partner and I came up with the idea for this business as we watched the landscape of Hemp marketing and retail over the past number of years within the United States. With the 2018 Farm Bill, we took that opportunity to bring a whole world of amazing products ranging from Federally-Compliant Flower to Federally-Compliant Edibles and Oil Concentrates either in a disposable/cartridge or in a glass puck. We did this when we noticed that there was a large demand for these products, and the few stores that were selling them, were charging exorbitant prices and did not carry the most promising products. Read more>>

Ricky Zaborowski | Barber

I worked as a respiratory therapist when I graduated community college. After a while I felt like I settled for a career I didn’t truly enjoy and I needed something more creative. This had me thinking about what I actually wanted to do with my life career-wise. My wife and a couple friends work in the haircutting/salon business and it always seemed like something I’d like to do, so I decided I’d go to barber college with “High Hopes” of opening my own business one day. 8 years into becoming a barber, here I am owning a small business. Read more>>

Bob Waun | Placemaker

There is an amazing listening room in Lake Orion, Michigan, 20 Front Street that we frequently enjoy. Their business has changed the downtown in a positive life giving manner. Nearly every artists who plays there says “There needs to be more rooms like this in the world”. That inspired our mission, to simply make more great creative rooms for creative people to make magic in. Read more>>