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.

Brianne Calabrese | Plus Size Boutique

I have always been the “big” girl in my group growing up and even present day. I love to support small business, I think it’s so so important to support those with ideas and entrepreneurship. I love to go to pop up events and shop, however one day I came across a cute dress(think 90s clueless vibes) and I asked if they had it in a 2x and of course the answer was NO, it’s been NO my entire life. That day I went home and Google how to start my own boutique and that’s how the process started. I wanted to bring more options to those with curves, and more fashionable pieces that make you feel confident in your skin! Read more>>

Ruth Young-Loaeza | Inventor | Entrepreneur | CEO | Founder

The idea was a work of years in progress, I would say that I didn’t know exactly what I was going to do but some desire to create and to make household products better was one hidden passion of mine. I used to clean houses for about 23 years and I would get frustrated with some products that in my opinion were obsolete. One day I suffered a car accident that left me unable to work, and consequently I end up homeless after exhausting my savings.. Read more>>

Katy Strang | Entrepreneur, mental health advocate, community builder, survivor. Responsible for raising good humans and converting trauma into comedy.

They say necessity is the mother of invention. Turns out, I had to become a mother to bring this truth to life. After falling in love and being plucked from life in the city, I began to plant roots in the sticks aka the suburbs. What I call, the WAY outer limits, or what my Southern California friends have coined Northern California. After moving to a small town where I knew no one but my partner, I found myself never really leaving my LA/OC life. I was driving down there at least twice a week and trying to maintain via the commute. Once I became pregnant, it was my OBGYN who said, “Katy, Read more>>