We asked the community what factors they felt were responsible for their success and we’ve highlighted some of those responses below.

Naomi Dawson | Cake Artist

Originally and quality. My brand has created a following of its own solely based of taste and presentation. Using quality ingredients has not taking shortcuts when creating new flavors has brought me lots of success. Read more>>

Jovi Champ | Content Creator & Entrepreneur

Authenticity! As a digital content creator, branding yourself is no easy feat. Otherwise, anyone and everyone could become a successful content creator/influencer. I’ve learned that I struggled the most with my brand because I was trying to become something that I’m not, such as jumping on the latest trends just to gain a newer, wider audience. However, I’ve discovered that by creating content around solely things that I’m passionate about and also inspire me has helped me grow the most – not by just the number of followers, but also with real engagement. I believe having a smaller audience that engages with my content is far better than a bigger audience that has little to no interest in me. Read more>>

Adrian Santos | Barbershop Owner

The most important factor behind my success and that of my brand is being relatable! Being relatable, from what I have noticed, is probably by far the most important factor behind not just my success but should be that of everyone else’s. As a barber at one of Houston’s #1 spots and being the most sought after LGBTQ barbershop owners in Houston I have found that being relatable is very important to the success of any business. Read more>>

Natalia Hernandez | Photographer & Business Owner

I think the most important factor for success in any area is motivation. If you don’t feel motivated to do something, you won’t do it as well. Surrounding yourself with people that motivate you is part of it too. It’s important to be passionate for what you do, because it’s visible when you aren’t. There’s been times I do things without motivation and you can tell there isn’t any passion behind it. For the success of my brand I had to give my all and stay motivated and passionate. Read more>>

Sarah Gulish | Co-Founder and CEO of F-flat Books

I think the success of our brand can be boiled down to community. We’re in an industry dominated by a few massive commercial publishing houses. We can’t compete with them on the product level, but we can compete on the community level. Once we launched our business, we realized that so many folks wanted to spend according to their values and had no idea that there were so many inequities within the publishing industry. Read more>>

Deandrea Shantele | Image Consultant & Personal Stylist

The most important factor behind my success and the success of my brand would be my faith in God. I’ve experienced so many challenges that could’ve literally taken me out physically, mentally and emotionally, but my faith gave me the strength I needed to keep going. Read more>>