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Chef Sunflower Cooks Up Success with SBDC Support

December 10, 2025

Temple University SBDC – Chef Shon Emanuel, affectionately known as Chef Sunflower, is a self-taught vegan chef with a passion for creating plant-based proteins that are simple, nutritious, and delicious. Operating from her family’s restaurant in West Philadelphia, she developed “Thaw-Heat-and-Eat” vegan offerings to make healthy eating more accessible.

Shondia’s entrepreneurial journey began when her family restaurant saw increased demand for health options during the pandemic, but she noticed their food suppliers only offered vegan burgers and nuggets. Determined to meet their customer’s demand at her family’s high standards, Chef Sunflower decided to focus on plant-based food innovation.

At one point, structural issues with their building forced the family to close their restaurant, leaving Shondia searching for a way to keep her culinary dreams alive. While the restaurant was closed, she dove into a completely new venture: consumer packaged goods. Without prior business experience, she faced obstacles in creating a business plan, getting her production processed properly licensed, securing funding, and crafting a compelling pitch to attract investment.

In May 2024, Shon reached out to the Temple University Small Business Development Center (SBDC) for help. She worked closely with consultant Isabel Krome to refine her vision. Over the summer, the SBDC guided her in completing a business plan and preparing for Drexel University’s B Smart program, where participants develop financial projections and pitches. Shondia practiced her pitch with SBDC consultants and gained critical insights into presenting her business idea confidently and effectively.

“Working with the Temple SBDC has been an incredible experience. I was perfectly matched with my advisor, who has been instrumental in guiding me through the challenges of launching a new food business venture.”

Chef Sunflower, Founder, BTW, It’s Vegan

With SBDC support, Chef Sunflower achieved key milestones, including completing her business plan and perfecting her pitch. Her hard work paid off at the B Smart pitch day, where she secured a $5,000 grant from Citizens Bank. This funding has positioned her to officially launch her business in January 2025, turning her dream into reality.

Chef Sunflower’s resilience and determination, combined with the Temple University SBDC’s resources and expertise, have set heron a path to success. Her story is an inspiring example of overcoming adversity, leveraging community resources, and building abusiness that not only supports her but promotes healthy eating in her community.

Learn more about BTW, It’s Vegan on their website and Instagram.

To learn more about Pennsylvania SBDC, visit: https://www.pasbdc.org/

Hand In Hand Secures Nearly $3M Grant to Expand Childcare Access Across Lewis County

December 3, 2025

Jenniffer Bleakley and her Hand In Hand Early Childhood Center applied for a NYS Office of Children and Family Services state grant, which was awarded to expand her childcare center. After receiving the grant award, it was rescinded and taken back after a technicality. At this time, she and her team had already started planning her business expansion and were working towards offering more childcare to Lewis County residents.

AnywhereCam Inc. From Pitch to Growth: A Success Story

November 12, 2025

Mike Blecha grew up and lives in a small rural area in northeastern Colorado. Most of his family, friends, customers and neighbors are hard-working people, many with property and belongings spread around the region. During the pandemic, theft and robbery exponentially increased, and Mike, known in his local community as the ‘tech guy’, was the go-to person for a surveillance solution.

After unsuccessfully trying to implement almost every option currently on the market, Mike decided to build a surveillance camera that anyone could use anywhere, regardless of their access to high-speed internet or power. He created AnywhereCam as a reliable and durable solution to help the people of rural communities have a sense of security regardless of circumstances.

When Mike Blecha launched AnywhereCam, he faced the classic startup dilemma: limited funds and limited reach. Marketing efforts generated brief spikes in sales, but without a steady budget, the momentum quickly faded. At the same time, raising a seed round proved equally difficult—few investors resonated with the vision or the scalability of AnywhereCam’s technology.

Medical Equipment Supplier Reaches Global Markets

October 15, 2025

Aydin Bilgutay, a second-generation owner of the company Infinium Medical, a leading patient monitor manufacturer and medical equipment supplier based in Pinellas County, has continued to grow the business alongside his brothers ever since his father started it over 30 years ago. Since taking over the business, the team knew they wanted to keep up with their exporting success and reach global markets. That’s when they decided to reach out to the Florida Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at the University of South Florida (USF) for professional advice and guidance.

nTechQuity: How an Intergenerational Program is Closing the Digital Divide

October 8, 2025

In her former information technology roles, Todd Rennae Boone witnessed a wide digital divide. “I worked with young people in marginalized communities,” she explained. “What struck me was that the only difference in learning wasn’t their ability, but the resources to which they had access.”

Fueled by a desire to bridge this gap, Todd launched nTechQuity Community Learning, a unique initiative fostering intergenerational learning. At nTechQuity, she matches tech-savvy kids up with not-so-tech-savvy seniors, and the knowledge shared and the relationships forged are transformative.

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