Our city is home to so many incredible businesses and so we asked the founders how they came up with the ideas for their businesses and have shared their responses below.

Aily & Zedrick Martin | Fresh Start Supportive Housing- Founders

It has been a dream of mine for over 15 years to open a sober living home that was dignified, and safe, sober, a place where the client can grow & thrive. I started dating Zedrick Martin, & would share with him my ideas, after 2 years of telling him the dream he said lets go find a house. We started to look for a home that would be suitable to provide housing in a shared living space. Each and every property owner, property manager, would say “No, we can’t use this house for that,” No, this is my family home & they wouldn’t want those kinds of people living here.” Until we met Jim Plummer, an angel, he allowed us to rent his home in the College area (after some negations) which launched our first 10 male bed residence Oct 2020. Zedrick, was our first & only investor, pouring everything he had into our first residence. We were determined to go through the process of certification with the Recovery Residence Association. Which gives our housing component an extra layer of legitimacy. We won Operator of the Year for 2024 & was honnered at a luncheon. Read more>>

Meeka Brown | Intuitive Guide & Speaker

Honestly? The idea came out of nowhere while I was writing a rap song! I don’t usually rap, but there I was, rhyming away, and suddenly it hit me—winning isn’t just about achieving goals; it’s a mindset. That’s when I realized I could turn the energy and message of the song into something bigger to help others. As I wrote the lyrics, I felt this spark of inspiration. ‘What if this song could be more than just music? What if it could be a movement to help people win at life?’ And just like that, I Came to Win was born! It’s funny how inspiration finds you in the most unexpected ways! Read more>>

Jennifer Levine | Physician assistant and consultant

I think you have a business when you see there is a need in the market place, and you are able to supply that need. By far, prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer in the field of urology. I believe men are being wheeled into the operating room getting this life saving surgery but are not prepared to deal with the emotional and physical aspects that some of the secondary side effects surgery can bring. My company aims to educate, support and provide community for those dealing with prostate cancer and various other urological issues via the online space. Read more>>