www-launchchattanooga-org

Cocoa Asante Desserts

Mon, 30 Oct 2023 16:21:09 GMT

Ella Livingston

FB: @cocoaasante IG: @cocoaasante

Cocoa Asante is a luxury chocolate company that handcrafts artisan chocolates that are literally almost too pretty to eat. The cacao used in our chocolate is sourced from our home country Ghana, and it’s made in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Wings Top Tots Food Truck

Mon, 30 Oct 2023 16:05:47 GMT

Mahogany Hudgins

FB: @wingstop.tots IG: @_viiivmcm

With her food truck, Mahogany provides delicious, never frozen chicken wings tossed in different homemade sauces and rubs. She also has tater tots with toppings like chili, cheese, bacon & more.

(423) 298-3252

hudginsmahogany@yahoo.com

Adorned By Jill Beauty

Mon, 16 Oct 2023 14:36:45 GMT

Adorned By Jill

Entrepreneur: Jillian Sandefur

Licensed Esthetician, Pro Makeup Artist, Eyelash Extensions Specialist, Paul Mitchell Alumni, Lover of all things beauty...

Contact Information:
423-400-3362

Website

on Facebook

Entrepreneur Spotlight: Yanetta Bowman

Thu, 14 Sep 2023 15:12:27 GMT

“Even though I had already started my business before enrolling in the Business Entrepreneurship Academy, LAUNCH played, and continues to play, a fundamental part of how I am managing my business.”

After years of wanting to start her own business, Yanetta Bowman began Grand Finale Events and Decor in January of 2014. After stepping into her new role as business owner, she quickly realized there was more she could do to help her business grow.

Originally, she heard about LAUNCH through the High School Entrepreneurship Program, but it wasn’t until she volunteered for I Believe, a teen mom empowerment conference in July of 2014 that she considered the Business Entrepreneurship Program for herself. After speaking with LAUNCH entrepreneur Linda Murray Bullard at the conference, Yanetta says,

“My mind started thinking about my own business and how I could benefit from the LAUNCH business academy.”

Filled with excitement, she signed up and was ready to soak in all that she would learn in the following 10 weeks in order grow her business further.

Yanetta shares, "During the course, I learned valuable information on how to take my business to the next level, how to identify my ideal customer, how to write a business plan, how to calculate my break even point, how to craft my pitch, how to structure my business and so much more.”

With Grand Finale Events and Decor, Yanetta has set herself apart from other event planners, designers and decorators by receiving certification in Event Design from the Institute of Wedding and Event Design (IWED), an accredited event design academy. The goal for all of her clients? Leaving them and their guests “with a feeling of WOW,” something she compares to a spectacular closing scene or the finale episode of a television show.

Yanetta focuses on exceptional quality of service, professionalism, value and flexibility. She works with clients one-on-one, from the initial meeting through the entire planning process, to ensure that Grand Finale Events and Decor understands their vision and transforms it into a reality.

As her business continues to grow, Yanetta credits LAUNCH for helping her along the way. “Even though I had already started my business before enrolling in the Business Entrepreneurship Academy, LAUNCH played, and continues to play, a fundamental part of how I am managing my business.”

Help LAUNCH support more entrepreneurs like Yanetta!

THE BITTER BOTTLE

KALEENA@THEBITTERBOTTLE.COM

Entrepreneur Spotlight: Kaleena Goldsworthy

Thu, 14 Sep 2023 15:06:03 GMT

"LAUNCH was an incredibly helpful resource for me. It reminded me why I wanted to do this business in the first place."

An aha moment for people can be as simple as remembering where you put your keys or something bigger, like a business idea. The latter is exactly what happened for The Bitter Bottle owner Kaleena Goldsworthy.

Kaleena’s journey to entrepreneurship began as a thirst for knowledge. New to bartending, she felt far behind in the craft and began reading, taking classes and traveling to different distilleries to learn everything she could. While a manager at The Flying Squirrel, she was driven to utilize more local products into their bar program and began studying herbalism and volunteering at Crabtree Farms. Kaleena then proceeded to make allergy tonics and was reminded of the importance of using local botanicals and honey for this. She noticed the world was flocking to California, Oregon, and other states for allergy remedies and thought, “ Well this won’t work...we need something from HERE.” In realizing these herbal remedies mirrored cocktail bitters and no one in Tennessee was making them, Kaleena had her aha moment, “I realized that no one was making bitters, which meant no one was working with local Tennessee products to create something authentic to our region and manufacturing it on a large scale. I decided I would do it.”

Kaleena’s company, The Bitter Bottle is a cocktail solutions company that creates herbal-based products using the techniques of modern herbalism but curated for the palates of the food and beverage industry. With a BA in music business and voice, Kaleena says she never would have considered herself someone that would get into this industry, let alone own her own business. Although she admits, “I think I've always had a characteristic deep within myself that craved the sort of independence and leadership that entrepreneurship has to offer.

Along her journey to making The Bitter Bottle a reality, she heard about LAUNCH through the startup community, and more specifically Ella Livingston of Cocoa Asante, a LAUNCH alumni. Ella recommended the program and with the belief that when you start a business you need all of the help and guidance you can get, she signed up for the Business Entrepreneurship Academy.

Although Kaleena found LAUNCH after working on her business for almost 2 years, she says the program was what she needed. “LAUNCH was an incredibly helpful resource for me. It reminded me why I wanted to do this business in the first place. It's really the community that is created within that experience that does something to you. I still talk to people from that class and it means so much when they check in on you and see how you're doing. It's almost an accountability thing - while there is no pressure, it's a great driving force to think about others in the trenches with you when you fight the good fight to make your dreams come true.”

With the full launch of the company set for fall, Kaleena has two main goals. “First, I want to get The Bitter Bottle to a point where it is sustainable in a very methodical, thoughtful way. I want to use this company to be able to go out and inspire other people to follow their dreams - and help them achieve them with our services. On the product side, I have big goals that include taking our ideas to different cities all over the world and working with local farmers, bartenders, and distillers to create products that speak to their communities. At the end of the day, I want to find The Bitter Bottle at the best bars in the world - I think that is the ultimate dream.”

In addition to offering bitters and tinctures, The Bitter Bottle has done work with startup bars, restaurants, and distilleries on beverage consulting, menu development, staff education, etc. Kaleena also teaches educational cocktail classes for the community - for enthusiasts and professionals. “Whatever it is the community is looking for, we have a solution, a person, or an idea to help.” Looking for any of these services? Reach out to them below!

Help LAUNCH support more entrepreneurs like Kaleena!

THE BITTER BOTTLE

KALEENA@THEBITTERBOTTLE.COM

Entrepreneur Spotlight: Terence Locke

Thu, 14 Sep 2023 15:02:49 GMT

"LAUNCH is very important, and It’s a great opportunity for brand new businesses"

- Terence Locke

Terence Locke has always had a love of food and a passion for inspiring others to find their creativity. In 2015, he began his entrepreneurial journey with Chef Express by feeding his friends and family. His success helped him build an incredible team and partner with other entrepreneurs to create "A Nibble in The Night," a full course tasting event. Chef Express helped host 3 of these delicious evenings of entertainment and fun!

By early 2018, Chef Express became a full-time job and expanded to include bartending services! In the spring of that same year, Terence came across a Facebook post encouraging him to enroll in the LAUNCH CHA Program. He joined the Spring cohort and has been a part of the LAUNCH family since. Terence believes, “LAUNCH is very important, and It’s a great opportunity for brand new businesses.”

Terence has a talent for food and a passion for sharing his gift with the world. Last year he released his first book, “Daddy, What You Cooking.” This dual story and recipe book is based on Terence’s relationship with his son. The pair walk through a chicken alfredo recipe that is perfect for you and your family! Terence is an advocate, encouraging kids in creative and useful skills. In addition to his book, he teaches Pots and Tots, a culinary class for 8-12-year-olds after school.

This year’s pandemic has brought about adjustments on all fronts for business owners. The Chef Express team immediately started meeting the needs of our community when schools shut down and families were given an extra hurdle to feed their children. Woodmore Elementary School and Chef Express delivered more than 500 meals over 6 weeks to families in the North Brainerd Area. Shortly thereafter, Terence joined the Kitchen Incubator of Chattanooga staff as 1 of 5 entrepreneurs preparing over 27,000 meals for the LAUNCH Provisions Project this summer. In addition, Terence and the KIC team have helped deliver another 9,000 meals in the last 2 months and hundreds of meal boxes every week.

The trials of 2020 completely halted Chef Express, as it did for most food-centric businesses, but as the world starts opening back up, business is revitalizing. Chef Express exemplifies how to rise above in the COVID-19 crisis. Follow Chef Express on social media @_chefexpress & @_daddywhatyoucooking to hear more about the exciting things he has coming this fall!

Help LAUNCH support more entrepreneurs like Terence!

CHEF EXPRESS

(423) 355-2045

CHEFEXPRESS4.0@GMAIL.COM

Entrepreneur Spotlight: Ella Livingston

Thu, 14 Sep 2023 13:43:14 GMT

“I have seen LAUNCH offer a lot of great opportunities to a lot of entrepreneurs, providing resources and providing a circle of people they can go to”

- Ella Livingston

It is not commonplace for consumers to pay attention to where their food is from; sure, we can all generalize, but do we definitively know its true origin? Oftentimes not. Bring into the picture Cocoa Asante, a premier chocolate company founded in 2018 by Ghanaian-American, Ella Livingston. Within each bonbon and chocolate bar produced, you can find cocoa beans harvested from Ghana, where her family is, connecting her product to a place with a name, culture, and its sense of novelty.

Ella got her inspiration for Cocoa Asante from a type of Japanese chocolate called nama. The idea behind chocolate also holds familial relevance to Ella – her family are cocoa farmers in Ghana and have been for multiple generations. Cocoa, as an industry, harbors deep-rooted inequities exposed in child labor and imbalanced pricing structures. “We're not just trying to bring you a delicious product that is from my country, but we're also trying to make change in the cocoa industry by paying a higher premium to our cocoa farmers so they can make a comfortable income.”

With this initial inspiration, Ella began developing various iterations of her product evolving to resemble bonbons that have a hard outer shell and a sweet filler inside. Ella defines her business's growth as being, “steady but sustainable.” Ella mentioned that “we didn’t have an influx of capital, and I also needed to keep a daytime job. We are a two-income household and have a kid.” She attributes the ability for Cocoa Asante to scale how it has to her intentionality to reinvest the revenue generated from sales directly back into the business cycle. Cocoa Asantes' steady growth has offered Ella “the time to learn all the aspects of this business.” Whether that aspect is the production process or product development behind each recipe – “when you try to do too much too fast, things can fall through the cracks.” Cocoa Asante seeks to create a personal customer experience when it comes to their enjoyment of her chocolate. She mentioned, “we have taken the long road growing steadily to achieve that.”

LAUNCH has been privileged to be a part of Ella’s entrepreneurial journey since the beginning. Ella took part in the 10-week LAUNCH CHA course where “they gave me the confidence to start.” She mentioned that the support didn’t just stop after the course finished – “some of the funding I have had access to is because I am a LAUNCH graduate.” The LAUNCHepreneur network she has gone to for support like Stephanie Steiman from Cheiman Tea, as well as non-profit partners like CO.LAB, has helped broaden the support ecosystem that plays a significant role in every entrepreneur's journey. “The network of entrepreneurs I am with, like Stephanie from Cheiman Tea… and the encouragement from LAUNCH has been instrumental… they [LAUNCH] were the breakthrough point into the ecosystem of entrepreneurship in Chattanooga.”

The pandemic had little impact on Cocoa Asante. For one, Ella was focused on her pregnancy! Notwithstanding, Cocoa Asante has maintained a strong e-commerce presence where handling online sales and transactions was commonplace before the pandemic already.“If anything, the pandemic shifted my focus toward my online presence.” The pandemic also gave Ella time to research the extension of her vision to be more present in Ghana for sourcing purposes and dealing directly with the farmers that produce the cocoa used in her product. Having the time to execute research and imagine the future of Cocoa Asante has helped Ella to ambitiously refine her product.

Coming up in the spring, Cocoa Asante is excited to host a Kickstarter event to raise funds for bean-to-bar equipment – subscribe to her newsletter, which can be found on her website , to stay up-to-date on this campaign! Ella's goal for this next iteration of Cocoa Asante is to cut the middle man out of the production process completely “and go directly to the source.” This will ensure Cocoa Asante can have a direct impact on the livelihoods of farmers and bypass the, at times, blurry production and trade process. Ella foresees Cocoa Asante supplying directly from her family's farm, as well as neighboring farms. There are a few steps that must be taken first before accomplishing that. Additionally, Cocoa Asante is developing a permanent menu that will be available on February first for valentines day!

Support small business owners like Ella Livingston by partnering with LAUNCH.

Where to find Cocoa Asante:

FB: @cocoaasante

IG: @cocoaasante

To learn more about the role of Ghana in the Global cocoa trade, we recommend reading this article: The African cocoa farmers who are taking on Big Chocolate .

COCOA ASANTE

CONTACT@COCOAASANTE.COM

Entrepreneur Spotlight: Maria Noel

Thu, 14 Sep 2023 13:38:16 GMT

"LAUNCH gave me the confidence to value and ask for my worth"

Maria Noel

Entrepreneurship isn’t always about fitting the conventional model of owning a business. Maria Noel, an Alton Park resident, is committed to using her entrepreneurial giftings to serve her community in various ways.

During her professional career, she worked for the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, The Enterprise Center, Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise, and The Chattanooga Times, to name a few. These experiences, in addition to being a professional storyteller and writer by trade, helped her to cultivate marketable skills.

Following Maria’s participation in a 2018 LAUNCH CHA cohort, she spent time building her initial business idea, Christmas tree decorating. Due to the pandemic, however, it was significantly affected. “We go in thinking this is the business we should do; however, sometimes the market demands something different, and we have to adjust.” That was the case for Maria, who pivoted and began spending more time on projects that entailed marketing, writing, public relations, and grant writing.

Maria grew up around entrepreneurs. Her father, the City's Equal Employment Opportunity and Fair Housing director - also owned a shoe repair shop on M.L.K Boulevard and taught shoe repair at Howard High School. Her exposure, growing up around her father and other African American business owners in Alton Park, ignited her desire to use her skills in the marketplace.

Her reputation, skills, confidence, and understanding of her value and worth landed her a contract with The Trust for Public Land’s Alton Park Connector greenway project, where she wrote a history of the Alton Park community (read story here) . “It took me from just being an entrepreneur and focusing on myself and my business to being an entrepreneur focusing on the importance of community.”

Maria recognized that, with this project, she could reclaim her community's narrative. “Oftentimes, other people tell our story for us,” she said. “Growing up in the 1960s during the Civil Rights Movement and living through the environmental challenges in Alton Park … helped me understand how what we went through then impacts how we see ourselves today.” Her work on this project served as a springboard to working with various local firms and nonprofit organizations.

In addition to her consulting work, Maria is the president of the South Chattanooga Community Association. Her participation gets to the heart of why she primarily focuses her consulting efforts on place-based, community-centered projects. She feels the more she can mobilize her neighbors and encourage young people to become stakeholders and active participants in the community, the better the chances for transformation.

Leveraging her talents, investing in her community, and doing what she loves in writing, marketing, and consulting shows us all that there is an intersection between our passions, doing good work, and giving back.

Entrepreneur Spotlight: Joel Tippens

alexis@liftmediagroup.com (Alexis Grass) — Thu, 14 Sep 2023 13:35:11 GMT

"LAUNCH forced me to ask myself questions I had never really considered"

- Joel Tippens

Joel Tippens, a longtime urban farmer, has worked on numerous urban farming projects between Chattanooga, TN, and Daytona Beach, Florida. These projects range from small school-yard projects to micro-farm development and community farm projects. Why urban farming, you might ask? Joel believes that urban agriculture bisects the various factors that result in poverty, “they are just so dynamically interfaced,” Joel says. He believes that urban farming is instrumental in developing self-reliance. After working with various organizations supporting numerous projects, Joel had yet to take the step to officially create his vision which consisted of linking urban agriculture and education to serve underserved resource-constrained communities.

In 2017, Joel had the opportunity to participate in two LAUNCH CHA cohorts. During the classes, Joel began to address the complexities of doing urban food justice work in Chattanooga - Joel mentions that “I was forced to ask myself questions I had never really considered.” In this incubation process, Joel connected with like-minded visionaries in the cohort; their reflections and ideas significantly contributed to the structure of his early-stage vision. This experience emphasized that partnerships provide tremendous value in achieving impact and clarity. Still desiring more guidance, Joel enrolled in a causeway class and soon following incorporated City Farms Grower Coalition in February of 2019.

Joel was encouraged to “really drill down the educational component of the program so that, in a strategic sense, City Farms can be an organization that trains the trainer.” This advice resulted in Joel incorporating City Farms Grower Coalition as an educational entity. The intentionality of creating this organizational model rooted in hands-on personal investment became one of the central pillars of City Farms.

The second pillar undergirding City Farms Grower Coalition is partnership. Under Joel's leadership, City Farms has established sustainable partnerships with various organizations, including UTCs Environmental Studies department, The Howard School, and numerous non-profit organizations across Chattanooga, including Hope for the Inner City and The Bethlehem Center. Upon establishing these partnerships, Joel uses his knowledge of sustainable urban farming alongside his teaching abilities to cultivate the urban farm and conduct hands-on workshops.

Farming, in general, might invoke images of expansive rural pastures with a tractor plowing an endless amount of land. To clarify, that is traditional farming. Urban farming is much different - it is considered non-traditional since it concentrates on using whatever space is available in urban settings to grow food, no matter how unconventional or bizarre it is. Envision a vacant parking lot, a small balcony, or even a spare tire! These often overlooked spaces for an urban farmer are exceptional pieces of real estate to begin the urban farm journey. Again, the concept City Farms Grower Coalition strives to infuse into the communities it works within is this idea of sovereignty; to help communities "move beyond charity to what I call self-reliance," Joel says. The ability of small-scale urban farming to create access to healthy foods where they otherwise might not exist is central to this notion. City Farms intentionally targets its efforts in low-access communities - with some neighborhoods characterized as a food desert or an area with limited access to affordable healthy food. Joel believes that resiliency and authority over food production are the roots of establishing a sense of communal ownership and unity.

To broadcast the far-reaching implications of this mission, City Farms Grower Coalition is excited to announce the release of a series of seasonal webinars intended to educate the community on urban farming, its history, and the role it plays in bringing communities together. The first episode is titled Race, Class, and Collard Greens. Joel wants to explore and offer insight into the topics surrounding “the story of urban agriculture and how we got to where we are.” Also, beginning late April, the Alton Park Community Market will begin. Grow Hope Urban Farm, the Howard Roots Youth Farm, and Neema Community Garden (located on East Main St), all committed partners to the urban farm coalition, are participating vendors in this weekly market. Stay up-to-date on the work Joel is doing through City Farms Grower Coalition at the links below!

Support entrepreneurs like Joel by partnering with LAUNCH.

IG: cityfarmsgrowercoalition

FB: cityfarmsgrowercoalition

Website: http://www.wedigcityfarms.org/

Email: hello@wedigcityfarms

Entrepreneur Spotlight: Tanqueray Harper

Thu, 14 Sep 2023 13:32:29 GMT

"I see art as the manifestation of the human experience and creative expression as a tool to communicate how we perceive, internalize, and engage with the world around us on our own terms."

The life of an artist embarking on the entrepreneurial journey can be treacherous. The market frequently communicates that artists are discovered - and that an artist who lives at the studio working on creative projects might (eventually) be uncovered by an interested investor, buyer, or curator. However, this popular notion can’t be further from the truth. More often than not, that rare encounter with an interested customer doesn’t happen. Therefore artists are encouraged instead to view each creative piece of art as their product, doing the entrepreneurial work of marketing, branding, budgeting, and ultimately rewriting this inaccurate narrative.

Tanqueray Harper is the owner and founder of True Capture Studios. Tanqueray’s artistic journey is unique in that she hasn’t focused on one singular medium of art throughout her career. Coming into college as a performing artist in theater and flow art (this concept still undergirds much of her work), Tanqueray took a liking to filmmaking. However, as a result of the harsh competition and stress associated with the film industry, she stepped away to focus more on performance art opportunities. After graduating college in 2014, she picked up a part-time job working for a photography company documenting newborns 24-36 hours old and continued pursuing opportunities for her performance art. Tanqueray referred to herself as "a newborn photographer by day and a traveling circus performer by night.” The exposure offered through this employment opportunity resulted in Tanqueray reflecting on the concept of ‘Legacy Art’ - which resembles a form of interdisciplinary mediums incorporating video and photo to capture community engagement, collaboration, and harmony; this can also be called documentarian art.

Fast forward to 2019 - Tanqueray accepted a management job with the hopes of saving money to invest in building her business. Despite her increased workplace responsibilities, she still went on tour a few weeks out of the year for performance opportunities. In March 2020, Tanqueray was a few days away from beginning a long performance tour when venues suddenly began canceling. Suddenly the entire tour was abruptly canceled as a direct result of increasing concern for the pandemic. A month later, Tanqueray’s full-time job at the hospital went on furlough and she decided to “take full advantage of the break and finally start a business.” It just so happened the first free virtual LAUNCH CHA cohort was scheduled for that summer. In response to this uncanny chain of events, Tanqueray moved to a permanent part-time position to devote more time to her business, True Capture Studios, and prepare for the upcoming LAUNCH CHA cohort.

At this point, Tanqueray had given shape to her vision but had not leaped into full-fledged business ownership yet. In the LAUNCH CHA cohort, she remembers walking away with a thorough overview of the numerous concepts pivotal to owning a business, including an influential network of local entrepreneurs. Upon graduation, however, Tanqueray quickly discovered learning these concepts in the LAUNCH CHA cohort is one thing - experiencing their practical application is an entirely different undertaking. This revelation ushered in the prototyping of various iterations of her business model. In addition to these takeaways from the LAUNCH CHA program, Tanqueray's exposure during two artistic residencies: AAW (Artists At Work) - part of a residency working with Dalton Creative Arts Guild addressing matters of climate change, and the Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts affiliate based on a collaboration with UTC resulted in True Capture Studios gaining traction with prospective clients and ultimately developing a structure around the services Tanqueray offers through her business. With the long-term desire to incorporate an educational and mentorship offering into her business geared toward kids on the spectrum, these residencies have helped Tanqueray conceptualize future goals for True Capture Studios.

Following an exciting vending experience during the Rock The Riverfront event last month, Tanqueray has released an exclusive program for individuals, families, or businesses who have signed up to her mailing list. Subscribers will receive updates for exclusive opportunities to book a “Legacy Art” video or photo session with True Capture Studios. If you are interested in joining this opportunity, email a smiley face (yes, literally a smiley emoji) to truecapturestudios@gmail.com to be added to the mailing list to receive exclusive package offers!

Artists are a pivotal aspect of a community - small business ownership dually reflects the health of a local economy; Tanqueray's blending of the two in the creation of True Capture Studios is as inspiring as it is essential for the Chattanooga community. Follow the journey of this business at the following social media handles!

Support small business owners like Tanqueray Harper by partnering with LAUNCH.

Where to find True Capture Studios:

FB: TrueCapture423

IG: truecapture423

TRUE CAPTURE STUDIO

TRUECAPTURESTUDIOS@GMAIL.COM

Entrepreneur Spotlight: Ricardo Moris

Thu, 14 Sep 2023 13:26:40 GMT

"What was invaluable about [LAUNCH] was the community of peoplecoming together"

Bringing about change in your own community is no easy feat. The instruments incorporated to achieve this end are diverse and can range from grassroots involvement to running for public office. Choosing a mechanism is one thing - it’s an entirely different feat to generate communal support for your vision. These are just a few of the reflections Ricardo Morris, known by friends and colleagues as Ric and long-time Chattanooga native and founder of the Chattanooga Neighborhood Arts Partnership had to consider. Ricardo is a proud Alton Park Junior High School and Howard High School graduate. At the core of Ric’s passion is the belief that the “arts can heal the ills of society. When everything else is gone, what you are left as a reminder of that culture is the arts,” he says.

It was clear from an early age that Ric was fascinated with the arts; in high school, for example, he unconventionally opted for dance over playing football. Following graduation from Howard High School, Ric attended Tennessee State University and returned to Chattanooga to teach at Hixson High School and use his talents to spark the next generation's creative imagination. After spending a few years at Hixson, Ricardo attended Yale for graduate school and received a Master's Degree in Arts Administration. It was during his time at Yale that he began thinking outside of the box concerning the role of art in the public sphere. After graduation, Ricardo furthered his experience working as the Director of Arts in Education at Allied Arts (now Arts Build) of Greater Chattanooga and subsequently transitioned into the Executive Director role for the Jazz Hall of Fame Museum in Alabama. These diverse experiences with managing and operating art-centered organizations resulted in Ric reflecting on how to leverage the arts to bring unity to a City that appeared divided. They also illuminated the novelty of Ricardo's unique visionary ideas. He found entrepreneurship through necessity after realizing where his creative limits were in conventional spaces.

The themes central to Ricardo’s vision for his organization incorporate proximity and the power of exchanging ideas with one another, “using the arts for the betterment of all citizens regardless of education and socioeconomic status.” Fast forward to 2017 - Ricardo’s ideas were slowly formulating around an organization that would offer communities the tools needed to incorporate the arts into their neighborhoods. Around this same time, Ric participated in a LAUNCH CHA cohort. He mentions that “the people around the table” sparked his interest in LAUNCH. He expresses that “what was invaluable [from LAUNCH] was the community of people coming together.” Ric found that having a diverse group of professionals, like-minded entrepreneurs, and visionaries helped him think beyond his own experiences. Having a community of folks to constantly bounce ideas off of and receive regular feedback on the development of his vision was invaluable, in addition to receiving "continuous support.”

As a result, Ricardo launched the Chattanooga Neighborhood Arts Partnership (ChattaNAP), which strives to improve the quality of life for all residents of Chattanooga and Hamilton County, one neighborhood at a time. “The goal was to provide neighborhoods that want to put on performances or put on an exhibit the tools to do that,” Ric mentions, “whether those tools are the physical means to do that in stage lighting and sound to administrative tools like how to write and apply for a grant.”

Following the launch of ChattaNAP, Ric established the first-of-its-kind festival in 2018 titled the Chattanooga Festival of Black Arts and Ideas, a multi-day festival celebrating Black arts and Juneteenth Independence Day. Inspired by Ricardo’s experience working with the International Festival of Arts and Ideas, the Chattanooga Festival of Black Arts and Ideas was a catalyst to spark conversations and discussion around who we are and how we interact with one another, “festivals bring people together, willingly or unwillingly.” It is on this common ground that Ricardo believes there can be an understanding of other cultures and people around us.

June 4th kicks off the fifth anniversary of the Festival of Black Arts and Ideas! The festival spans the entire month of June and will feature artist talks, writer's workshops, poetry sessions, and a Juneteenth Commemoration Ceremony and Concert on June 19th. Stay up-to-date on the various events featured during this multi-week festival at the link below!

See event schedule here: https://www.blackartsandideasfest.com/festival-events-schedule

Entrepreneur Spotlight: Shey Jordan

Thu, 14 Sep 2023 13:19:43 GMT

"LAUNCH really helped my business get to the next level. I was able to pinpoint areas that needed my attention and LAUNCH was able to help me with that in a manageable way. I think LAUNCH is so beneficial for our community because it’s a reachable resource for small business owners to invest in their growth & start their businesses the right way!”

Shey Jordan has a passion for people, health, and wellness. Born in Cuba and raised in the Cayman Islands, Shey was a track and field athlete, representing her country in international competitions from the ages of 6 to 21. She also competed in flag football tournaments on the Cayman Islands national team, and was part of the first international flag football team to win a US tournament. After meeting her future husband at a flag football tournament, Shey moved to the US in 2016, and is now the mother of three beautiful children.

The idea for Shey’s Natural Smoothies began in the middle of the pandemic. At the time, she was hosting a workout group and would often make healthy smoothies as a post-workout snack. They were a huge hit, and her husband suggested turning her passion for healthy living into a business. That same year, Shey’s Natural Smoothies was born, offering natural immune boosting remedies at a time when they were needed the most. Shey quickly started growing her business, selling smoothies at flag football games and other sporting events. Although her product and social media marketing were already very successful, Shey signed up for the LAUNCH class hoping to establish a better foundation for the business. Through the class, she learned about the legal, tax, bookkeeping, and other backend aspects of running a successful business.

Shey’s Naturals is more than just a smoothie business. Her vision is to provide nutritional knowledge, and holistic health alternatives for the community and be a fundamental part of every health & fitness journey. She is dedicated to delivering the best natural experience, by providing fresh organic ingredients that enhance each customer’s way of living. Building on her vibrant cultural background, Shey loves to bring a fun, natural island vibe to her customers. Even the names of the smoothies - like Royal Palms and Island Ting - evoke the peaceful feeling of the islands.

Her current products include organic smoothies, fresh pressed juices, immune booster shots, alkaline water, herbal teas, enhancements, whipped body butter, and others! Over the past year, the business has expanded exponentially, with products being retailed in several area gyms and stores such as Nothing But Net, Menlow Park Grocery, and will soon be in Hotworx. She also travels to sporting events, and sets up at local vendor events, LAUNCH pop-ups, school events, and even private parties. You can also find her product on her website, where she just launched a new Health Bar, which provides different avenues of holistic wellness through services & products.

Shey plans to continue growing the business, and is currently in the process of renovating a food trailer, which will allow her to setup at more and bigger events, and serve more people.

Shey truly embodies the spirit of a successful entrepreneur with her work ethic, growth mindset, and perseverance.

Follow @sheynaturalsmoothies on social media to stay up to date on her holistic, hand crafted health products!

SHEY'S NATURAL SMOOTHIES

727-537-9741

SHEYNATURAL@SHEYNATURALSMOOTHIES.COM