Success Stories

How to reinvent an essential, nearly century-old product

Wife and husband Samantha Rudolph and Jared Miller of Babyation, a firm born in Branford, Connecticut, now headquartered in St. Louis, had the sort of brainstorm serial entrepreneurs have while vacationing in Vermont. She was reading a New York Times blog about a clunky, noisy, inelegant but absolutely necessary product essentially unchanged for nearly a century.

Somewhere between three to more than five million, depending on the source, of these items are sold annually in the U.S. alone. And users, many highly productive members of the workforce, need this item so badly they will pay up to $400 for a higher-end model.

She is an experienced business development and strategic planning expert who worked for ESPN for more than eight years, he an electronics wizard who can and has built almost anything, even supervising the commentary center for the Olympics for 14 years. They asked themselves, “Why can’t this truly essential product be as smart and functional as a smartphone, quiet as a luxury car? Wouldn’t that sell? Why can’t women have an improved version of something so badly needed to juggle work and family?”  (more…)

Success Story: Missouri

• University of Missouri-Columbia SBTDC, Missouri SBTDC
• SBTDC Consultant: Virginia Wilson (Center Director)
• Client: Pulse Medical Staffing, LLC – SBTDC client since 2011

“When I met Virginia, she encouraged me, saying, ‘You can do this! You can run a business by yourself!’ She helped me see this was a feasible business.” – Dan Latham, owner and founder of Pulse Medical Staffing, LLC, in Columbia, Missouri

Impact of working with the University of Missouri-Columbia SBTDC:

• 2011 – fewer than 10 employees; 2016 – close to 200 employees
• 2012 revenues – $231,000; Nov. 16, 2015 revenues – $942,870

Read the whole story, and learn more about the Missouri SBTDC and Pulse Medical Staffing, LLC .

Success Story: Oklahoma

Dorothy Robinson, owner of DCR Pathfinder, LLC, used the professional services of the Oklahoma SBDC to help start her small business. Ms. Robinson is a motivational speaker and advocate for the visually impaired.

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1 Day to the Showcase!

Zeigler Brothers
Gardners, Pennsylvania
www.zeiglerfeed.com

Zeigler Brothers Wins National, State and Regional Export Awards

Zeigler Brothers Inc. is a third-generation, family-owned business specializing in the formulation and manufacture of specialty feeds. A Kutztown University Small Business Development Center (SBDC) client for more than 15 years, Zeigler has seen several years of remarkable growth and is proud to announce that the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), and the State of Pennsylvania have extended awards to the company for its export achievements.

The company was awarded Exporter of the Year from the SBA for both Eastern Pennsylvania and the entire Mid-Atlantic region. As one of ten regional finalists, Zeigler then was selected as SBA’s National Exporter of the Year during World Trade Day in Denver. (more…)

2 Days to the Showcase!

EatsPlace
Washington, DC
www.eatsplace.com

The District of Columbia Small Business Development Center (DCSBDC) Network at the at Howard University School of Business has worked with Katy Chang for the past three years on her community food incubator, EatsPlace – from its inception to a thriving business. Katy is a leader in the local business community, as evidenced by her selection as one of 40 CEOs participating in the SBA Emerging Leaders Program along with her other awards and accolades.

Ms. Chang has built a business that welcomes new people with new ideas by reducing the barriers to entry into the food, beverage and hospitality industries. EatsPlace hosts events that educate and inspire, including new business start-up open houses and classes for aspiring restauranteurs.

Moreover, EatsPlace has contributed to local economic development of the Georgia Avenue/Petworth area in Washington, DC, thru the countless patrons arriving from all over the region to experience EatsPlace as a destination of new and diverse cuisines. This demand to experience EatsPlace has spawned numerous businesses out of EatsPlace, and created jobs (indirectly) by businesses born out of EatsPlace and (directly) by EatsPlace itself.  (more…)