What exactly is your business?
My business, Holistic Lakewood, is a holistic health business. What exactly that is continues to expand and change over the years. Our biggest focus is on massage therapy and various kinds of bodywork but we also offer things such as energy healing, manual lymph drainage, essential oil therapies, ionic detox foot baths, and more.

How did you come up with your business idea?
Maybe it isn’t what other aspiring business owners want to hear, but it sort of found me. I bought (a version of) my business from another woman who was a Naturopath and was trying to make a go of it. After two years she had enough and I stepped in and took over her business but made it my own. I’ve now owned it for 4 years and it has changed and grown a lot.

What has been your biggest accomplishment with your business so far?
After I went through the Aviatra course, I decided it was time to try to expand.  I went from zero employees and 2 independent contractors in 2016 to 4 independent contractors and 4 employees today.  That has been a challenge, but it’s been worth it.

What was the most valuable thing you gained from your experience with Aviatra?
Hearing people tell me that I could do it.  And meeting people who had been in my shoes and knew what I was going through.

What was the biggest challenge you faced when starting your business?
Learning a lot, very quickly.  And it was a LOT.  It was overwhelming for the first two years, at least.  But someone once told me to invest in the help I need and that changed things for me.  Once I did that, I could breathe again.

Where do you hope to be in 5 years?
This is a hard one for me.  Part of me is a planner and part of me likes to let things unfold as they are meant to unfold.  I guess those two things can go hand in hand.  I’d like to continue to grow my business (or maybe start another, gasp!) and eventually sell to someone else.

Any advice for future Aviatras?
Two things:  1) I’ll give you the advice I mentioned above:  Invest in the help you need… whether that is staff, or a piece of equipment or maybe just someone to clean your house. 2) Trust yourself and your vision.

 

 

What exactly is your business?
I own a vintage resale business called Wizard of Oddz. I specialize in finding, repairing and refinishing all kinds of vintage household items, primarily from the 1950s-1970s.  Some of my favorite finds include vintage Halloween and Christmas decorations, Pyrex, lamps and lighting, artwork, mirrors, glassware, barware, collectibles, sports and pop culture memorabilia, and children’s books and toys.

How did you come up with your business idea?
For most of my life, I spent weekends at the flea market alongside my dad, the proverbial treasure hunter, searching for hidden gems. I’ve always had a quirky sense of style and have been drawn to the often bold and bizarre design and story behind mid-century pieces. After I bought my first house, I spent a few years hunting down the perfect pieces to fill every wall, corner, nook and cranny. It was shortly after that that I decided to take my passion and turn it into a business. I knew the amount of time required to hunt through countless flea markets, estates, garages, barns, auctions and tree lawns to find pieces that were worth saving. Most people simply don’t have the time or eye for it. I think of what I do as more of a service than a product. I dig through all these places to find pieces that I believe can have a new life and that someone will enjoy. I then bring it all together and stage it in a way that they can see all the best pieces without having to spend the time of sorting through the “junk.”

How did you find out about Aviatra?
I found out about Aviatra when I met a few other female business owners through a variety of networking groups I got involved with. They all had great things to say about it and so I decided to give it a shot.

What is your inspiration?
Following my personal passion is what inspires me to keep going with my business, even on days when I’m exhausted, frustrated or just want to stay in bed. Knowing that I get to do something that I love makes it all worth it. Seeing the smile on someone’s face when they connect with a piece that I’ve found is so rewarding. Maybe it’s something that reminds them of their childhood or something that reminds them of a family member, friend, a place, or a memory. Whatever it is, watching them make that connection and knowing that that piece will become part of a new story for someone inspires me to keep going every day.

What has been your biggest accomplishment with your business so far?
When I first started my business, it was part time and I set my sights on making it full time as soon as possible. I was able to transition to full time within about a year and then spent two years after that working on it full time. After a while, I realized that while I loved what I was doing, there were other things I loved doing, too. I made the decision to take my business back to part time which at first, felt like a failure. However, one of my mentors from Aviatra helped me realize that this is my business and I can do what I want with it. If you love what you do and want to do it all day every day, that’s great. But if you love what you do and want to do it along with other things, that’s okay too. Coming to that understanding with myself was one of my biggest personal accomplishments with my business so far. Accepting that it can be whatever I want it to be and whatever I make of it has helped me feel free to enjoy it, feel less stressed, and reminds me not to take it for granted.

What was the most valuable thing you gained from your experience with Aviatra?
I am a procrastinator by nature and unless given a deadline, will typically never get around to things. Aviatra provided a structured program that forced me to dedicate time toward putting together a solid business plan. That is something I most likely never would have done on my own. And, of course, I made many invaluable connections with other female business owners, many of whom are now friends.

What was the biggest challenge you faced when starting your business?
Running a small business requires a lot of skills – marketing, accounting, web design, social media management, product knowledge and industry knowledge, just to name a few. Since not every person can be good at every single thing that is required by a business owner, it was tough when I was first starting out. I hated keeping accounting records and had no idea how to put a website together. While I’ve been able to improve on the areas where I was less proficient with time and experience, I have also come to the point where I know when to bring in help. Many of the people I use to help with my business (accounting, marketing, etc.) are other women who I met through the Aviatra program.

Where do you hope to be in 5 years?
If I am in the same place with my business in five years as I am now, I would be happy with that. Part of owning a business is always striving to make it better, but the other part is to realize when you’ve made it exactly what you want and enjoying the ride once you get there.

Any advice for future Aviatras? 
Take the time to invest in yourself and to learn. Aviatra is a great way to do that. At the end of the day, your business is all about you so if you invest in yourself, you are investing in your business. As you learn and grow, so will your business. Don’t be afraid of trial and error and take the time to enjoy the moments along the way. Your business can be whatever you want it to be and when you get it to that point, be sure to enjoy it.

Cheryl Coy Stamm has been with Aviatra Accelerators since the very beginning. She served as Board Chair of Aviatra for 5 years and currently serves as the Corporate Advisory Board Chair. I sat down with Cheryl to learn a little bit and to share her story.

How/when did you first get involved with Aviatra?
I have been involved since the very first class.  I met the founder  in 2009 through a software colleague when she first had the concept for the organization.

How do you contribute to our organization? What attracted you to our organization?
I was transitioning from the corporate world to start my own consulting firm to help small businesses with their sales strategies and business development.  At that time I met the founder and was asked to attend a meeting.  I was hooked from then.  The passion the local community had to support this effort to help women entrepreneurs was contagious.

The first loan fund was put together from local individuals committed with money, time and connections.  I then helped put together the first formal board for the organization.  I was board chair for 5 years,  emeritus board member for one year, and now chair of the advisory board.  I contribute through my time, talent, money and connections brought to the organization.

Why does Aviatra matter to you? What motivates you to stay involved?
Aviatra matters to me because it is the only female-focused incubator that supports women across all industries; whether B2B or B2C.  I am motivated to stay because these women are making a difference with over $110M in combined revenues in 2016/17 and the many jobs they are creating.  The satisfaction is overwhelming.  I plan to stay involved for the foreseeable future and to see the organization go nationwide.

What do you hope the organization will achieve in the near future? In the long term?
Financial stability in the near term and a national partner in the long term.

Do you have an anecdote about our organization that really moved you?
One of our funders used an organic drink for his wife who has brain cancer.  He attributes her still being alive to this formula created by one of our Graduate winners – Robin Gentry, CEO of Functional Formularies.  He then went on to invest in her company and sits on her board.

Who is your favorite female role model? 
Sheryl Sandberg and Sara Blakely

Any advice to give to female entrepreneurs or a final message to share?
Ask for help all along the way.  Those that take advantage of our networks and programs have a better chance of success.  No one can do it alone.

More about Cheryl Stamm:
In 2010 Cheryl left the corporate world to focus on helping small businesses gain access to capital through her work as Board Chair of Aviatra Accelerators.  She continues with her efforts to democratize access to capital for women owned businesses and access to capital markets for investors through consulting and investing in these businesses.   Cheryl also consults with small businesses to assist in building sales plans, sales processes and business development.

Cheryl is a professional sales executive with 30+ years of successful sales management and direct sales experience in the software industry.  Cheryl’s skills include executive level solution selling to Fortune 500 companies, strategic planning, building sales plans, forecasting,  and P&L responsibility in  both sales and presales activities.  In her roles she has managed and mentored sales managers and sales representatives to achieve their goals by selling to the C level executives, focusing on the salient business issues, working in a team environment and executing on the business plan.

Cheryl was VP of Sales for Balanced Insight, Inc., (a Cincy Tech portfolio company) focused on Agile Business Intelligence delivery software.  Prior to that Cheryl spent 6 years at SAS Institute as Sr. Sales Director managing a $45M division selling Business Intelligence solutions to the Fortune 500 companies in discrete manufacturing, automotive and commercial services; (GM, Chrysler, Toyota, Whirlpool, TransUnion, LexisNexis, Nielsen, Cardinal Health, Hertz, Enterprise).  In this role she managed a team of 20 individuals made up of 3 sales managers and 17 account executives.  In her last year at SAS the business grew 12% which was made up of $10M in new sales and recurring revenue of $35M.

Prior to SAS, Cheryl was with startup company, Synchrony Systems, as VP Sales.  At Synchrony Cheryl worked with Balanced Insight CEO, Tom Hammergren, and along with Synchrony CEO, Mark Richey, grew the company and sold to Divine.  Synchrony developed and sold eCRM software for the call center space..

Cheryl is on the development committee at the Cincinnati Art Museum and enjoys the arts.  The arts and love of travel are key hobbies.

What exactly is your business?
OKOTA is a wedding design and photography company. Brides trust OKOTA with all the aesthetic aspects of their wedding day, such as photography, floral design, dessert bar design, invitation design, and day of coordination to help everything come together on the big day.

How did you come up with your business idea?
After earning degrees in graphic design and photography from Xavier University, as well as a certification as a wedding planner, I created OKOTA. It became the perfect way to combine all of my passions. Since then, OKOTA has grown to offer even more wedding design services, making it one place brides feel they can really trust to bring their vision to life across multiple aspects of their wedding day.

How did you find out about Aviatra?
I learned about Aviatra through Cincinnati’s chapter of SCORE business education and mentoring.

What is your inspiration?
I’m inspired by meeting each engaged couple and hearing about their wedding day dreams. Every couple, every love story, every wedding day is different and special in its own way. Seeing the wedding details come together from our first consultation brainstorming to a gorgeous wedding day is so rewarding. The look on the couples’ faces is enough inspiration and motivation to keep me designing weddings for a very very long time.

What has been your biggest accomplishment with your business so far?
I have an overwhelming sense of accomplishment after I hear from each couple after their wedding day. Hearing how their day was the happiest day of their lives, and how they felt that OKOTA was there for them throughout the entire day and process is so rewarding. My goal has always been to provide brides with more than just wedding services, but piece of mind that someone who truly cares is taking care of things for them on their wedding day. Testimonials of how they felt OKOTA was really invested in their happiness makes me feel like my team and I have delivered on our promises of dedication and love for each and every one of our couples.

What was the most valuable thing you gained from your experience with Aviatra?
The most valuable things I’ve gained from my experience with Aviatra are the wonderful relationships I’ve developed with other female entrepreneurs in the tri-state area. It’s awesome to be part of such an encouraging community with never-ending resources and support.

What was the biggest challenge you faced when starting your business?
Making the jump to owning my own business full time was a bit scary at first. I knew it was what I really needed to do to be able to give 110% to each and every one of OKOTA’s wonderful couples. Thankfully I have an outstanding support system that made the jump possible, and I could not be happier with my career. I’m doing what I love to do every day.

Where do you hope to be in 5 years?
I hope the OKOTA brand grows to reach even more engaged couples, providing even more wedding design services, and making lots of wedding dreams come true every weekend.

Any advice for future Aviatras?
Work hard so that you can love what you do. Owning your own business is really really hard, but the pay off is immeasurable. You just have to stay dedicated and never give up.

What exactly is your business?
Fear’s Confections Gourmet Brownies and Sweets. We hand-make 23 flavors of brownies and a wide variety of chocolates and candies, as well as carry local coffees and teas and local art.

How did you come up with your business idea?
I was laid off from my engineering job in 2009 and due to the economy, was out of work for a year and a half. I am a food network junkie and was inspired by a business featured on one of the competition shows and started experimenting with brownie recipes the next day.

How did you find out about Aviatra?
My Business Mentor and owner of Pope’s Kitchen, Clark Pope.

What is your inspiration?
I’m inspired by many famous chefs and small biz friends of mine, but I love daring to be different. Certain products and flavors and concepts are so oversaturated so we try to stay relevant and fresh.

What has been your biggest accomplishment with your business so far?
Alton Brown from the Food Network came in in 2014 and named us one of the top 8 snack places he went in the country that year. Other than that, on a day to day basis, it’s bringing joy and fun to people through my quirky shop and delicious nerdy treats.

What was the most valuable thing you gained from your experience with Aviatra?
Not having come from a business background, the contacts and information I gained have been invaluable.

What was the biggest challenge you faced when starting your business?
Seeing as how I started as a home business (while eventually going back to work), my initial investment was small and product was easy to keep up with. Once moving into a storefront, I didn’t have my legal ducks in a row and 3 months after our grand opening, my former business partner and fellow local business owner went to the shop one night and stole all of the equipment and money. 4 years later, I am still struggling to catch back up after that financial hit, but I learned a lot of hard lessons!

Where do you hope to be in 5 years?
I hope to be in a position to upgrade my equipment and have more staff so that I can focus more on the “business end” of things and less on day to day product manufacturing.

Any advice for future Aviatras?
Pay attention to the legal session. Pay attention to the legal session. Pay attention to the legal session. (To be fair I was in Aviatra after my legal incident… if I knew then what I know now…)