Sarah & Jana Gutierrez & Hutmacher
We were sitting at our neighborhood bar after work and decided it was now or never! working together at a salon for 6 years it was time for us to follow our creative dreams and be in charge of the business decisions. We wanted a space that esthetically had an open feel so clients and stylist could all interact together like back in the day when you would hang at the beauty salon and talk shop. Creatively we wanted the freedom to try any idea we had and even if it failed it was okay because we tried something different. Read More>>
Nicole Rotto
Hair styling saved my happiness. 10 years ago I was working in accounting at a law firm and wildly unhappy. My hairstylist told me it takes one to know one and you’re simply in the wrong industry. 2 weeks later I jumped in and it’s been the best decision of my life. Fast forward 10 years and I own a studio salon. Read More>>
Natalie Rast
I was a former professional dancer that turned to teaching as a way to make a living while I was still dancing. Eventually when I semi-retired and had a child I needed to work full-time and was able to piece together a living by teaching at several Chicago dance studios. In 1993 I moved all my classes to a studio where I could rent space at $15 per hour and I was finally able to make a living and not have to work at 5 different dance studios. In 2006 the dance studio that I was renting space from made the decision to no longer offer adult classes. Read More>>
Katie (KT) Prendergast
I have been cutting hair since I was 5. No really, I started with Barbie dolls. Every doll had to have a different haircut. By 14 I graduated to friends and family. It was a no brainer when all my peers were running off to college that I should go to Beauty School. Read More>>
Meghana Prasad
I’ve always loved everything makeup, hair, and beauty. When I was in college, I worked in the cosmetics department in Macy’s for some extra cash. While working there, I learned about freelancing as a career and it piqued my interest. I knew I didn’t want to work in an office 9-5, and this sounded perfect for me! Read More>>
Allison Williams
After graduating with a BFA from Columbia College, I worked as a staff photojournalist for Sun-Times Media until I started my company in 2010. In the early days of the business I was photographing for newspapers, magazines, non-profits, and wedding clients. As the wedding portion of the business grew I switched my focus and now primarily shoot weddings. I still do occasional newspaper and magazine assignments as well as working on projects with several non-profits in Chicago. Read More>>
Carrie Ensign
I was a zookeeper at the Lincoln Park Zoo for 10 years, working mainly with large carnivores (seals, lions, and bears), I absolutely loved my zoo career, however my husband and I wanted to start a family so I needed a more flexible schedule but wanted to continue working with animals. The business was incorporated in October of 2006 so we just hit 10 years this past fall. The first 5 months was just me walking dogs, but the business grew rapidly due to a good website and my background working with animals. Now we have 13 walkers and our area has expanded from Roscoe Village (hence Roscoe Recess) to several surrounding neighborhoods. Read More>>
Daniel Cullen
After a couple of decades in construction and inspection related work I hired on with a home inspection company in 1997. After 3 years working for that company I went off on my own. Over the last 17 years Domicile Consulting has grown from one person to 12 or so. We’ve accomplished that growth by doing two things; performing extremely thorough inspections and writing highly detailed reports. Read More>>
John Oberman
Far more than just a luxury fishing charter, the success of DIAZEPAM tells a story of our city and beloved lake. Fifty years ago a charter service that takes anglers out of Montrose Harbor for a day of hooking Salmon, Lake trout, Brown trout and Steelhead would have been unthinkable. In terms of fishing , from about 1945 to 1967, the lake was pretty close to completely void of fish. When the large ocean going commercial vessels began to move through the Great Lakes, they dumped their ballast water, which contained invasive organisms. One of them was the alewife, an oily, herring like fish. Read More>>
Mirela & Megi Mecollari
My daughter always suffered from eczema. Being in the beauty industry for 20 years, I was aware of the chemicals most products on the market contain. Seeing the need to keep her safe especially during her developing years, I started to experiment with natural ingredients in my kitchen. These years of research became the hobby that we did together. Through this process we came up with various formulas that kept her eczema-free for years. Read More>>
David Blitz
BlitzLake was founded in 2009 by David Blitz and Jeff Lake. Mr. Blitz and Mr. Lake are life-long friends who began their professional careers separately before collaborating on deals together in the mid-2000s. Read More>>
Al Okyne
Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago (Schaumburg) in the 90’s, the DJ scene was evolving. I quickly started learning my craft as a “bedroom DJ” and threw many house parties where I was able to hone and display my skills. I quickly fell in love. My DJ-ing hobby took me to bars and clubs throughout the Chicagoland area. But it was strictly a hobby until 2004 when I left my systems analyst job at Hewitt Associates to take it full time. Read More>>
Sandy Alvarez
Hello Voyage Chicago readers! I’m Sandy Alvarez, owner and Certified Wedding Planner at Splendid Weddings & Events. I have been in the event and hospitality industry for about 13 years, my background as a corporate planner and catering manager is what introduced me to the world of events. While I enjoyed the fast-paced environment and organization of corporate events, I wasn’t able to fully exercise my creative and social personality, which is part of my essence. For this reason, I began to offer my services independently for other types of events including, social events, runway shows, and weddings. Read More>>
Jaymes Lombardi
In 2005 Jesse Dobbs opened the first IRIS Studio in Salt Lake City, Utah. He knew that IRIS was going to accomplish something special. But the degree to which the experience of IRIS would spread across the country wasn’t fully envisioned yet. Several years after opening in SLC, Jesse relocates to Denver, Colorado and that’s where the next establishment was opened. A few years after, two new members join the crew. Read More>>
Jennifer Bishop-Jenkins ICMG
Love Fur Dogs is a family-owned business opened in May 2014 to immediate rave reviews. By 2015 the Chicago Tribune had named owner/founder Jennifer Bishop-Jenkins Best Groomer in Chicagoland. Jennifer is one of the most experienced and few Certified Master Groomers in the nation, with 4 decades experience in showing, breeding, and grooming dogs and cats. Jennifer is a retired career high school social studies teacher and victim activist who started this business for the sheer joy of working full time with animals and the terrific people who are also animal lovers. Read More>>
Tina Smothers
I began my photography career in 2006 as an assistant to a Chicago commercial photographer. In 2009 I started my own freelance business as Tina Smothers Photography and quickly became one of Chicago’s top-rated actor headshot photographers. I went on to expand into commercial and corporate photography, amassing Fortune 500 clients such as Wells Fargo, Morgan Stanley, Deloitte, PR Weekly and the Walton Issacson Ad Agency. Read More>>
Leah Kim
When I first came to the States to study, my American friends were amazed and intrigued by my Korean skincare. For them, it was something they had never seen before as American beauty focus more on makeup than skincare. This experience just sat in my mind until my then-fiance, Steve, was looking for a new business idea. I immediately told him about my idea: to introduce Korean skincare to America. Read More>>
Marguerite Preston
As many people start off pursuing their passion, I too started at a young age embracing the beauty industry. It was always something that made me happy, even if I was applying makeup for Prom or just a night out for my girlfriends. However, I decided to take the college route. I graduated from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale with a major in Sociology and a minor in Psychology. Read More>>
Monica Jirak
As a lifelong resident of the Lincoln Square/Ravenswood community, I have been dedicated to preserving and maintaining German American culture. I served a 3 year term on the DANK Board of Directors where I chaired the programming committee which is responsible for all the events at the Haus. I organized new events and strengthened partnerships with the Lincoln Square Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce. I was extremely instrumental in the DANK Haus’ participation in Apple Fest and Small Business Saturday. Read More>>
Lacey Whitaker
Born and raised on the beautiful beaches of Michigan, Lacey knows she is very blessed for her up bringing. Her family is freakishly large and filled with a variety of talented performers, top-notch coaches and athletes ranging from the ball court to performing on the ever so glorious stage. Read More>>
Drew Swithin
After my time in the Illinois Army National Guard I finished college at SIU Carbondale and moved to Chicago. I bounced around some sales-oriented office jobs for a year and realized cubicle life wasn’t for me. I became a police officer for the Village of Wilmette and was there for almost 5 years before quitting and selling my house to open up my own personal training studio. Read More>>
Sam Rokoff
Obviously the story consists of many chapters. The abridged version is that I got recruited to help open up a hotel on the North Shore in Chicago and moved to Lakeview from the Boston area. While living in Lakeview, I would often frequent the local establishments. After all, many people in service, hospitality, and customer service unwind over drinks. Read More>>
Nicole / Ellegra Rios / Davis
We both started our nail art hobby in our teenage years, practicing our skill on ourselves and friends. Legs attended boarding school where her down room doubled as the schools nail salon. Where she would barter manicures for Cup Of Noodles. After College and realizing the nine to five office life was not the life for her, she turned to her nail art hobby and made it a career. Read More>>
Barb Lazarus
It all started back in grade school when the older boys on my block put a baseball cap on my head, turned it so it faced backwards, and taught me how to throw a ball. These boys truly nurtured my athletic talent and ignited a passion that lives on in my heart. Read More>>
Howard Wallach
“Creating memories, seizing eyeballs, and riveting attention is what We do.” As Founder and Top Dawg of A-Z Entertainment, Ltd. Howard Wallach has been building a steady following of happy clients near and far. “I love my job managing our group of musicologists, technicians, and interactive entertainers – I definitely know the coolest people”. He attends industry related conferences thru the year, not only as a teacher, but as a student, bringing back exciting ideas and tweaking them to fit his clients needs. Read More>>
Andrea Metcalf
As a health and fitness expert and vegetable watching late night TV, I saw an episode of Shark Tank. After realizing that the product “surfset Riptensity” boards had been around for 4 years, I was surprised to find that there was not one Surfset Only studio in Chicago. Although there were a few boards in the city, there was not a open floor studio with multiple boards for classes. Read More>>
Heather Johnston
I launched Veruca Chocolates in 2011, after leaving a decade-long career as a pediatrician. I felt the need to attend to the other half of my brain, which was brimming over with creativity. To start, I focused on creating craveable and beautiful chocolate, which is what I want to eat. Next, I set about creating designs that would be exciting to see as a box is opened. When those two ideas came together, it clicked. Read More>>
Scott Ward
In 2002, while COO of Bar Louie, I noticed the demand for draft/craft beer was on the rise. At Bar Louie we started installing 24 and 30 tap handle draft systems in the new locations, and while on the road doing all these openings, I saw first hand all the craft beer brewery’s & Brew pubs open and opening. It was blowing up. Read More>>
Hannah Saaydeh
Jaafer Sweets- a Middle Eastern Bakery , baking Baklava, knafeh & other middle eastern pastries was established in 1991. Hannah & Nabil (husband & wife team) bought the business in September 2008. Hannah had minimum business experience, however Nabil did have more from previous jobs. Hannah & Nabil have always had a sweet – creative thumb in the kitchen & had always known they would one day venture into the Food Industry. Read More>>
Michael Abt
I began working in our Warehouse in 1976. I would set up TVs and tune in the stations.
I began full time in 1989 after leaving medical school. I was on my way out west when I stopped off at Abt with my old girlfriend who understood computers and we helped install a computer system at the store . She did the work and I got the credit. I have been working at Abt full time since then. Read More>>
Ryan Alexander
I moved to Chicago to pursue cosmetology school a month after completing high school. After completing cosmetology school at the Aveda Institute Chicago I went back and received my Cosmetology Educators license. After absorbing all of the virtues and techniques Aveda had to offer I moved on to and educator and top stylist role at a Toni + Guy salon. Learning how to deconstruct hair cuts and hair color I found my passion in lived in, effortless hair and vibrant, unique street style. Read More>>
Noorjahan Bhojani
I first came to the United States from Pakistan in 1978. I had just gotten married at the age of 18, and my husband and I had absolutely no money. We started working retail and such to have a source of income, but two years later I got pregnant with my first child. I then decided to start my own home daycare so that I could continue providing for my family, and be able to stay home with my daughter. Read More>>
Maya Santa Cruz
From an early start, I always knew that I wanted to be my own boss. Since then and a variety of jobs later, I knew it was a matter of time before I created my own platform or business and ideas of how to launch myself. I am a big believer in timing, hard work and courage of seizing opportunity when it presents itself. Read More>>
Mary King and Katrina Lipe
A lot has changed since opening our doors in 1993. Hair fashion make up and even like your neighborhood! But one thing and stay consistent the commitment and passion to create better hairdressers, keeping up with modern trends, and to always maintain a more beautiful and contemporary space for a new and loyal clients. Read More>>
Dr Ashley Frer
Dr Ashley Frer has been one of Chicago’s top holistic medicine practitioner for over 15 years. Dr Frer utilizes both Eastern and Western Medicine techniques and philosophy, to achieve balance of the body, which creates optimal health and wellness, both internally and externally. Simply put, Wellness is a connection of paths, knowledge, and action. Read More>>
Monica Yearwood
I was always interested in spiritual studies as far as I can remember. By the time I was in high school I was meditating and experimenting with being a vegetarian. My freshman year in college I frequented meditation retreats and was a regular at the Hare Krishna temple on Sundays. But at the same time I experienced a great deal of sadness around life and in general felt a disconnect from any sense of real inner purpose. Read More>>
Lin Shook Schalek
Lin Shook, Founder and Artistic Director of Perceptual Motion, Inc., is recipient of the Independent Choreographer’s Award from the Metropolitan Dance Association in Washington, D. C., where she received her MA in dance. Lin’s work has been influenced by her studies with Hanya Holm, Eric Hawkins, Alwin Nikolais and Liz Lerman and in Chicago with Shirley Mordine, Nana Shineflug and Jan Erkert. Lin served on the Board of Directors of the Chicago Dance Coalition from 1984-90 and founded the Chicago Dance Coalition Newsletter. Lin has been on the dance panels for the Illinois Arts Council, CityArts and CAAP. She is a dance specialist in Chicagoland schools through Urban Gateways, Art Start and the Old Town School of Folk Music. Read More>>
Shannon Valko
Little Beans Lincoln Park opened a little under 7 years ago when myself and my bother (Rob) decided we wanted to open a larger facility for open imaginative play combined with good food/drinks and other programming. We came up with the concept and after finding funding we opened with a focus on making sure parents/caregivers enjoyed the space as much as the kids. After operating our Chicago store we decided we wanted our future stores to also include older kids so we started looking for our second store which landed in Evanston 2 years ago! Read More>>
Aaron Pietrykowski
Inspired by my travels to some of the great old world pharmacies in Europe and throughout the world, I have always been fascinated by that glamourous moment in history when a pharmacy was much more than a place to get medicine. Once upon a time, pharmacies served the public as pillars of their communities, and at the same time, they were the heart and soul of the beauty industry. Patrons flocked to their local drug stores for the latest lotions, potions, and perfumes. Featuring décor that would rival any great department store, these pharmacies were local businesses that gapped the bridge between the classes. Read More>>
George Boznos
Par-King originated in the late 1950′s in Morton Grove, Illinois at its founders golf range called 4G Fairways… George’s Gorgeous Golfing Garden. Soon thereafter, in 1965, it was branded by the country’s leading trade magazine as “Minigolf’s Taj Mahal” and noted to be the most elaborate 18-hole minigolf in the nation. Read More>>
Ramsay Marston
I started off by wanting to be a labor/delivery nurse actually. I had gone thru 2 years of general courses and decided it wasn’t for me. I enrolled in cosmetology school full time, 40hours a week. 10 months later i had graduated 2nd in my class. Read More>>
Lori Howell
Dr. Lori Howell, L.Ac., remembers the first time she personally encountered Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)–what most Americans think of as simply acupuncture, or perhaps herbs. Then a French teacher for Chiangmai International School in Thailand, she was traveling in Korea and needed some quick relief for a cold, with nary a pharmacy in sight, she stumbled upon a public health clinic where she received an herbal decoction and a cupping treatment and to her amazement returned to 100% within the hour. Returning to Thailand, Howell began to study TCM with a local doctor trained in China. Read More>>
Elizabeth Prewitt
My business, Silver Plum Personal Chef, is Chicago’s top luxury Personal Chef Service, making restaurant-quality food in clients’ homes since 2010. I was born and raised in New Orleans, where great food is a way of life. In 2005, I decided to pursue this love seriously, and signed up for the internationally-recognized Baking and Pastry Arts program at Sullivan University, in Louisville, Kentucky. Read More>>
Kai-Duc Luong
I started my professional career as a filmmaker/videographer/artist on January 1, 2008 after working a decade in Corporate America as an engineer for Motorola in the Northwestern suburbs of Chicago. Read More>>
