By Kayla Sosa Calvin Pimpleton is a 16-year-old student at Innovation Central High School with a passion for business. Last winter, he saw a need in his neighborhood for shoveling services and he wanted a little extra cash in his…
Category: In the Community
Malamiah Juice Bar, Royal Jelly Foods take home funds in Business Bootcamp Pitch Competition
By Kayla Sosa In September, owners of Malamiah Juice Bar and Royal Jelly Foods participated in the Grand Rapids Business Boot Camp Pitch Competition. This endeavor is lead by Michigan Good Food Fund, a “thirty million dollar loan fund created to provide…
Lessons from a local coffee company
Doomed to Fail Even those who are unfamiliar with business may know the old adage that coffee shops are “doomed to fail." Trevor Corlett, owner of Madcap of Coffee Company in downtown Grand Rapids, suggests that many people who open…
5×5 at LINC Gallery
Voting closed on Wednesday for the top five 5x5 ideas, and those that emerged on top will be presenting at the return of the monthly pitch competition on August 24 at 5:00 p.m. at the LINC Gallery, located at 1167…
Socks and Social Enterprise
This is the first in an ongoing series highlighting the stories of Grand Rapids' growing small business community. Bold Socks is a recent addition to the Avenue for the Arts retail sector. The Bold Socks store at 17 Division Ave…
Introducing Entrepreneur in Residence Matt Larson
Matt Larson has always been a self-starter. One afternoon when he was 3 years old, he told his mother he was going to play in the front yard. Instead, he walked eight blocks to downtown Ludington to go to work.…
Social Enterprise: New City Urban Farm
16-year-old Brennan Persenaire Hogeter is more than familiar with the effects of farming; he spent 11 years traveling around Africa with his family teaching new farming techniques to agricultural communities. “I have seen the impact of farms and the impact…
Design Briefs: Diversity in Tech
On Thursday evening, designers, entrepreneurs and community members will gather at the Grand Rapids Art Museum (GRAM) to connect, share ideas and explore what it means for industries to be diverse for Design Breifs: Diversity in Tech. Kimberly Wolting heads the…
Social Enterprise: Ambrose at WMCAT
This is the first in an ongoing series about community leaders in West Michigan implementing entrepreneurial skills in youth education. Like any business, commercial screen printer Ambrose strives to provide their customers with a quality product at competitive pricing in…
5×5 Night Follow Up: Melanie Koops of Werth Rack
The Werth Rack was the winner of 5x5 Night in November 2015. “The worst thing is that you could look back and say, ‘oh, I wish I had tried, at least I could know if it would have been successful…
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