Many books on startups and business talk about how there are right and wrong reasons for starting a business. So, we asked a handful of successful founders about their reasons and the thought-process behind starting their business.

Jermaine Williams | DJ & Business Owner

My thought process is to always make sure that my career and business I put out into the world is something that I’m truly 100% behind. If its a event I’m dj’in or a piece of clothing I’m selling I make sure I’m true to the product. Read more>>

Admire Dimoh | Pro & Licensed Hair Stylist

I wanted women to “Admire” their beauty and what better way to do this than giving them an experience of beautifying their crowns. Each woman that sits in my chair is transformed through my gift of braiding. Proverbs 18:16 says that my gift will make room for me and I knew that God had a greater purpose for me to inspire, empower, and transform women through my versatile braiding techniques. I am a proud west African woman and braiding is a cultural expression of my people. I wanted to find a way to merge my culture and expand my brand beyond. I love doing protective styles as this is my area of expertise that I have perfected when it comes to utilizing the hair, the texture, how I braid, and finishing touches. While my passion is braiding, I don’t want to limit the many variations of beauty and have goals to expand my brand by teaching classes on the foundations of braiding, become an advocate to speak on topics that affect African woman and birthing my foundation to help young girls in my country that come from disadvantaged backgrounds that braiding has afforded me the opportunity. Read more>>

Brandy Hinds-Boone | Chef & Owner

Chef Brandy has been preparing meals since she was 9 years old! While Cooking in the kitchen alongside her mother, Gloria Carter she learned how to cater to your appetite at an early age!! Chef Brandy spent a great deal of time in the kitchen with her mother who was a great cook as well. Her mother taught her about diverse recipes and cooking with your heart and soul. Her passion for cooking was instilled in her as a child. In 2010 her mother passed away and that was the driving force for her to carry on her love for cooking in memory of her mother. Read more>>

Nina Canete | Chef & Business Owner

6 years ago before I started my business here in Houston. I’ve been in the Hospitality industry for almost 7 years now, unfortunately I got laid off my job due to pandemic, but a great thing came out of it and started my small business. I am new to running my own business, but I know I want to cook and be part of the movement to share the Filipino cuisine. Houston is a very diverse city and rich in culture, but I always wondered why the rest of the state have a representation of Filipino food but not so much here in our city. My goal for Aleng Nina’s is to share culture through the food we make, and that’s what I’m here for. I know a lot of cuisines, but why not represent where you came from. I’ve always wanted to have my own brick and mortar. This is the start of my journey to make it come true. Someday, when I’m fully ready and prepared I will have a home for my small business. Read more>>

Yvette Pearson | Consultant & Podcast Host

I launched my business in response to a need. An administrator at a university who knew of my background in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education research, and more specifically, in proposal development, contacted me to ask if I could help some of his faculty members with proposals they were writing. This was not a new request; others had asked before. But this request, along with another one I’d received several months before for project evaluation, was the one that prompted me to establish The Pearson Evaluation and Education Research Group (The PEER Group). My podcast, Engineering Change, started in much the same way. A dear friend pointed out how frequently attendees follow up with me after speaking engagements to ask questions or email me for further insights, stating there’s a need for the information I share, and insisting that a podcast would be a great venue for getting it out. Read more>>

Laura Rodriguez-Johnson | Esthetician, PMU Artist, Master Lash Artist & Esthetic Adviser For New ESTHETICIANS

When I started I knew this is my purpose. From social work to esthetics I knew I could really help others feel better, find their skin identity. And love themselves. Then I had Children. My dream went on the back burner and my babies were number one. I worked a full time job and would take private clients on weekends ALL WHILE raising my babies and being a wife. There came a point where I felt that my quality in life was just not where I wanted. Work demanding me to crush sales, increase retention, my babies needed mommy time and I felt like I was not getting more than 4 hours with them between both jobs. One morning missed my alarm for work, which I never did before in my 4 years with this spa. The next day we shut down due to Covid and I must of slept 2 weeks from exhaustion!! I prayed a lot and spent time in my affirmation book and REALIZED…. I have to go full time on my own. Read more>>

Yara Baba | Makeup Artist

When I was younger, I would have never thought of becoming a make up artist. At the age of 12 I started doing light make up to school, basically just mascara and lip gloss. As I got older, I started watching make up influencers and Youtubers, trying to perfect my skill. My first semester of college, I had a bit of extra time on my hands, so I decided to start practicing make up looks and trying new products. I was doing my own make up for about a year and a half until I decided to start up my make up page. It wasn’t until two years after that korma that I decided to begin taking clients and doing makeovers. When I decided to become a make up artist, I wanted to make sure that all of my clients felt comfortable and beautiful in their own skin. I wanted to make sure that I was honest with my clients as well as future clients. I made sure to never filter any of my work, for the simple fact of “what you see is what you get.” Also, coming from a small town in Houston, I always felt like I wouldn’t be able to succeed or do well in this industry. Read more>>

Latasha Green | Hair Artist & Entrepreneur

I’ve always loved helping women feel their best. So at a young age styling hair was always more than a hobby. My goal was to provide the best services and truly listen to my clients needs and provide services that truly represents each person and fits their style. My thought process when creating hair product collection was to make sure my clients were able to take home salon quality to help maintain the health of their hair at home. Read more>>

Sherice Woodson | Beauty Entrepreneur & Herbal Skin Curator

I have always struggled on and off with my skin. Going through phases where my skin would be pretty clear then boom a huge breakout. Sometimes it would last for a couple of weeks to a month. Being a makeup artist and working for a big beauty retail company I had access to an abundance of top skincare products. Of course I would try them in hopes of getting my skin under control, sadly realizing it wasn’t getting me any results and even making it worse! I had a conversation with my grandmother one day who’s 85, as she talked about how she’d use shea butter and certain herbs to not only heal but to keep her skin glowing and youthful. Of course I believed her because her skin looks absolutely amazing with NO wrinkles! Yes I said NO wrinkles! Smooth as butter! Okay! So I said to myself why am I using all of this “genetically modified” so to speak skincare. I went back to the roots of why God even put certain herbs, fruits and vegetables on this earth! After doing countless research on benefits and uses of certain herbs and natural ingredients I found so much information. Read more>>

MISTA Jones | FLAMEHOUSE RECORDS Founder , C.E.O, Engineer , Producer,Singer, Songwriter, Rapper & Artist Developer

My thought process about creating my business was solely based upon creating generational wealth , being a Provider and at the same Time doing what I love ! OWNERSHIP IS WHAT’S NECESSARY. Read more>>

Rebecca Berens | Family Physician

I never thought I would become a business owner- if someone had told me that I would own my own medical practice one day when I was in college or medical school I would have thought they were crazy! I graduated from residency in family medicine in 2016, and by early 2019 I was completely burned out at my job in the traditional healthcare system. I was constantly overbooked and never felt like I had enough time to spend with my patients and take care of their needs. In between all these appointments I had to fit in lots of administrative work as well as reviewing lab results and responding to messages from patients, There just were not enough hours in the day to get everything done and I felt like the care I was able to give patients was suffering. Spending only 5-10 minutes with each patient meant visits felt very rushed and there often was not time to address all of their concerns. On top of that, I had just returned to work after having my son. Read more>>

Tiana Goode | Owner | Designer

I wanted to design and create from from discarded and repurposed materials. I envisioned creating with less waste, allowing for more imaginative designs. So, my designs consist of upcycled, vintage and new materials. Read more>>

De’Vonte Hughes | Accountant & Financial Advisor

My thought process might be different than most. I didn’t sit down one day like, “okay I’m going to start a business, let me brainstorm on what I want to do and how to do it.” I kinda just jumped right into it. When I first moved to Houston, a lot of old college friends would reach out for advice on how to handle their money, eventually a light just clicked for me to start my business. The first thing I did was text my group chat of friends and see what they thought about me starting a business. After getting nothing but positive responses, I kind of just threw myself in head first. First thing I did was develop a logo, picked the name, colors, the services I would provide, and the prices. I’m more of a learn as you go kind of person so by the next day I launched my business. There have been some rough patches here and there trying to navigate starting and maintaining a business but I’m glad I did it. Read more>>

Uwaila Osemwota-Oronsaye | Product Formulator & Pharmacist

I started my own business as a creative outlet for myself. I have a demanding full-time job so having something to stimulate my creative mind was a necessity! I have always been into skin and body care since I can remember. It really started from me struggling with acne and the hyper-pigmentation that it would leave behind. I was in and out of different dermatologist office just trying to find something that would work and give me long-term results. I soon realized that there were not too many options for me to go to when it came to my melanin rich skin. Out of frustration, I started googling and reading books on natural skincare and how to care for your skin with more simple ingredients. I also learned more about what we put in our mouth also played a major role in our skin health. I later became a pharmacist and learned to incorporate more evidence based ingredients into my skin and body health routine. Read more>>

Jeff Ejekam | Pro Athlete, Brand Ambassador, & U.S. Army Officer

My entire life I always knew my calling from God was to help others. Whether it be something has small as homework, or something as big as introducing two businesses for partnership, I knew it was my purpose to help others grow. I along with my best friends have had platforms that people gravitated towards and we knew that if we really wanted to make a difference we had to make it a business. This business idea dated all the way back to when I was 13 years old but through many years of name changes and niches, The Grandeur Society officially was made in November 10, 2019. The Grandeur Society is an organization that looks to help others innovate and influence through networking, lifestyle tips, event hosting and brand promotion. Anyone who works with or associates with The Grandeur Society can attest to the work we put forward in all pillars of the brand. Read more>>

Leah Jordan | Artist & Teacher

When I was in the 6th grade, I took a beginners art class. I fell in love with art. By 7th grade, I was in the advanced class. I continued to pursue art through high school, however my senior year, I really started to develop my individual style as an artist. After one of my friends posted a piece of my artwork on her Instagram, people began to reach out asking where they could see more. I remember a fellow artist, a photographer, from Instagram helped convince me to start an art page. Once I had my art Instagram page up, I started to get lots of questions about selling my artwork. At that point, I started to think about starting a business, but I always chickened out when considering the logistics behind it. My sister came to me in April of 2020 with the idea of starting a business together. My sister went to business school. She is incredible when it comes to entrepreneurial instincts and skills. Read more>>

Gina Taylor | Master Hairstylist

I wanted to be in control of what type of environment I wanted to give my clients. I wanted to make my own rules and not Be under anyone. Read more>>

Josh Dorrell | Executive Director | Galveston Urban Ministries

We wanted to develop a new way of serving that changed the way individuals being “served” were a part of the process and the solution. Many times we see those in need and make them recipients, instead of mutual partners. We knew that starting programs that developed relationships allow both parties involved to grow, learn, cultivate change and have a larger and longer term impact. Read more>>

Marisol Herrera | Entrepreneur

My thought process behind starting my own business started at the young age of 9. Growing up in an apartment complex, I saw someone selling some sort of snacks to kids. I paid close attention and figured out quickly I could do the same but with a twist. Ms. Tootie sold “cool-cups” of different flavors. I thought to myself, “what if you drop a candy at the bottom and then freeze it.” So I did. I tried it, ate one in front of the kids. They all wanted to know where they could buy one and proudly I said, “I sell them!” I quickly loved the idea of having a business and making my own money and I knew then when I became an adult, I would become an entrepreneur. Read more>>