Success Stories

Success Story, Vermont –

Ask Brian Mooney what he does for a living and he says, with a very big smile on his face, “I make boxes of Yes!” It always stops people in their tracks and then he gets to explain what he does. “At least that’s how I like to think of it, anyway. The Storymatic is a family of card-based creative writing prompts and games. There are ten thousand stories in every box,” Mooney says.

Brian came up with the idea when he was teaching creative writing to high school and college students, and they told him the writing prompts he created for them were a whole lot of fun to use as a game to play with friends outside of class. From there the Classic Storymatic Game was born.

Now, Brian’s unstoppable, creative mind has created several more games, including Storymatic Kids, The Storymatic Colonial History Edition and Rememory. They are sold worldwide via The Storymatic website, bookstores, toy stores and museum shops. A perfect gift for a family game night, an aspiring writer, or a writer in need of some inspiration, The Daily Beast calls them “super, super fun!,” and the Chicago Tribune says the games are “perfect for just about anybody who loves a good story at a party.”  (more…)

Success Story: Idaho

College of Southern Idaho alums Ivan and Jose Casiano graduated with certifications in automotive repair. When they inquired about starting their own business, instructors directed them to the Idaho SBDC.

They attended the center’s business planning course and developed a draft business plan with a target market of the Hispanic population in the Mini-Cassia Area. One of the most valuable pieces of advice from the SDBC was to develop key relationships with the banker, accountant, and attorney.

In 2014, when financing was secured, Casiano’s Auto Repair began operations in a leased facility. In 2016, they decided to purchase the building and land as well as the adjacent lot for future development. By 2017, they had added the sale and support of tires and rims. (more…)

Success Story: San Antonio, Texas

Packaging crushed ice into 40 lb. paper bags was the earliest stage of a business that would grow to serve clients across Central and South Texas. Located in San Antonio and opened by Jesus “Jesse” Mireles III in 2001, Mireles Party Ice is the culmination of a family business that has evolved from early roots.

In 1974, with the help of his father, Jesse and his wife Melinda Mireles opened a grocery store that catered to various events, with a high volume of requests for kegs and ice. Although the store became the largest keg distributor in San Antonio, Jesse found greater value in focusing the business on ice manufacturing. Through the 1980’s, the couple purchased ice blocks from local ice companies and packaged crushed ice in paper bags. By the 1990’s, Jesse had acquired two 2,400 lb. ice makers, and in 2001 he built his first ice plant.

With plans to leave the family business to his son, Jesse Mireles IV, Jesse IV assumed the role of vice president and contacted the San Antonio Small Business Development Center for assistance. Since working on the company’s business plan, loan preparation, distribution forecasts and projections, Mireles Party Ice has seen great progress.  (more…)

Success Story: Vermont

Karen Thompson loves to help people. That has always been a strength of hers and something she wanted to turn into a life-long venture for some time. She recently accomplished her wish in the spring of 2017, when she opened the doors of Welcome Home Mature Adult Assisted Living in Lyndonville, Vermont.

The 24-hour elder care facility is already proving to be a great place for Thompson and other staff members to do what they love — helping people. But it has also proven a viable new Northeast Kingdom small business.

While Thompson always knew she was passionate about caring for people, she wasn’t sure how that would translate into a viable business. She needed banking advice and other tips on starting a business and quickly enlisted the help of Vermont Small Business Development Center Area Advisor Ross Hart.

The pair quickly went to work on budgeting and projections for the first year of operation, Thompson said. Hart also helped Thompson establish reasonable financial expectations and identified many helpful local business resources, she said. Thompson described working with Hart as an “educational, insightful, perfect” experience.  (more…)

Success Story: Idaho

When speech therapist Michelle Lance starting working with the Idaho SBDC in Pocatello, she was working full-time as a speech therapist for a clinic. As she watched management struggle with employee relationships and effective service delivery, she saw ways to better run a clinic.

She had a hunch the market could support a new speech therapy clinic, and her specialties were in demand. Over the next year, Lance worked with the Idaho SBDC to develop a business plan and secure an SBA loan. She also worked with a group of Idaho State University students on market research. (more…)