Meet Risa B | Creative and founder of Paddle for Peace

We had the good fortune of connecting with Risa B and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Risa, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
It always starts with an idea and from there, I turn that idea into a plan. I am a creative and I am always thinking of ways to improve something or make something new. When starting a business, it’s important to identify the “why” aside from making money. If anyone starts a business for a quick buck, its not likely to last. You have to ask questions like, am I going to start this business because I’ve identified a gap somewhere? Or do I need a product and its not on the market so I created my own? Or do I have this talent I want to share with the world and a for service business could help others. Etc. Or was it something I was passionate about and there was no obvious why. My non profit was started because I wanted to make a difference. I wanted to do something that was impactful and would inspire others to do the same. You have to be ready to put in the work and also be ready to make sacrifices. You also have to be okay with failure because that is a part of entrepreneurship.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would start by taking them to the taco shop. San Diego has the best taco’s and burritos in my opinion. California Burritos in Serra Mesa is my favorite place to get burritos. We would go on a drive around San Diego and I would show them different neighborhoods. During the week, I would take them on a walk to sea port village and fly kits with them. We would grab coffee and walk along the water and check out all of the boats. Another day, we would pack a picnic and go sit at Kate sessions park and play cards something. After, we would go down to Tourmaline Surfers beach, which is my favorite place to surf and catch some waves for sunset. I would take them to The Yasai on Convoy for dinner which is my favorite Vegan Japanese cuisine. Everyday would involve surfing or the beach, id take them on hikes at Torrey Pines for a scenic view or Cowles for a nature workout. We live in such a beautiful city with perfect weather, it would be hard not to spend most of our time outside. Id take them for lunch in Little Italy, followed by ice cream at salt and straw. We would spend time snorkeling or watching sea lions at La Jolla cove and then make it to sunset cliffs one evening for sunset. For weekend evenings, I would take them to Gaslamp and have drinks at barley mash or volcano rabbit. I would show them all of the buildings that are protected and preserved and tell them stories I’ve heard about the Gaslamp Quarter. I would probably plan a staycation at a hotel with a rooftop pool so that we can enjoy drinks by the pool. For their last night, I would take them to dinner at Lumi which is a chic Japanese restaurant.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I dedicate my shout out to my sister Ri, the strongest person I know. She is my biggest cheerleader and supporter in my success.

Website: paddleforpeace.org

Instagram: risababy

Yelp: Risa T

Image Credits
Nationalcitysurf, Sydney Smith, Nathan French and Daina Buchner