Flying Leap Vineyards is a remarkable success story of a veteran-owned small business taking flight in the Arizona wine industry. Founded in 2010 by three lifelong friends from the U.S. Air Force Academy – Mark Beres, Marc Moeller, and Tom Kitchens – the company has grown from a small-scale wine grape farming operation to a thriving winery and distillery, thanks in large part to the support of the local Small Business Development Center (SBDC).
Wepa Commercial Cleaning, a veteran-owned and -operated janitorial and disinfecting company, is celebrating a major milestone. The San Diego-based business has secured a $1 million one-year contract with the Port of San Diego.
Wepa was founded by Francisco Rivera, a U.S. military veteran, who has built the company into a top-rated business with coverage in major publications. Wepa provides a full range of commercial cleaning and disinfecting services, employing skilled workers and utilizing advanced procedures to ensure healthy environments for organizations’ employees, customers, and guests.
For nearly 35 years, Robert Paul Galleries has been at the heart of Stowe’s thriving community of artists and art lovers alike. So when the original owners retired in May of 2023, young entrepreneurs and longtime residents Jack H. Morris and Alexandra B. Weathers embraced the opportunity to purchase the business, building upon a legacy of connecting artists from around the world to Vermont’s largest town.
At only 22 and 23 years old, Jack and Alex set out to operate this creative establishment with three specific goals in mind: to bring people together through art; to have a strong presence in Vermont’s developing art scene; and to create an experiential gallery featuring both emerging and seasoned artists.
By Hope Tinney, Washington SBDC
ELLENSBURG, Wash.—Being named the SBA Seattle 2020 Rural Small Business of the Year not only put Wheel Line Cider on the map, it opened up a world of export possibilities for this small, family-owned cidery.
Wheel Line Cider owner Susie Jensen says she recently shipped 63 cases of cider to one of the largest adult beverage distributors in South Korea, and it wouldn’t have happened without the support and assistance of numerous state or federal agencies, including the Washington Export Outreach Team, the Washington State Department of Agriculture, the Western United States Agricultural Trade Association and the Washington Small Business Development Center (SBDC).
“They are my guardian angels,” Jensen said. “I think the whole process has been amazing, it’s just been amazing.”
Connor Vanderholm began working in the hotel industry as soon as he finished his business degree at BYUI in 2016. His BYUI mentor helped him discover he wanted to be a revenue manager, but he had to start in operations, learning the business basics first.
His first job was working at the front office for the Marriott conference center in Norman, OK. After a year in Oklahoma, he became a revenue management trainee at Hilton in Dallas, TX. Although it was exhausting work, he was prepared to continue until he got laid off at the start of COVID in March 2020. He and several newly-unemployed colleagues started Topline in May 2020.