Kevin Hwang
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I have always had an interest in adventure travel. I’m not sure where this yearning came from since being born and raised in Chicago, I had little exposure to the rugged outdoors. So, despite my attraction to the wilderness, I did what I thought I was supposed to do. Read More>>
Katlyn DePace
Myself and Kevin, the other co-owner, were working in corporate America, typical 9-5 jobs. We wanted to do something that was impactful for people’s lives. Being big into health and fitness we decided to open a cycling gym. Us teaching might be a small part of their day but we want it to be a good part. Read More>>
Davenda Thompson
I’ve been in the beauty industry for over 10 years now. I got my start in the industry while I was an art major at Illinois Institute of Art. I was looking for a part time job to cover schooling costs and was told I should try out for a makeup artist position. Read More>>
Samara and Bozena Guerra and Haluch
My partner and I decided to open our spa after 4 years of working together. We had each been in the nail care industry for 5 years. We wanted to create a place where customers would be able to come for nail services but also relax and not feel rushed through. Read More>>
Pooja Naik
I was born in India and lived there until my teens. Even as a child, I liked my toys organized and tried to help other kids organize their dolls. This carried into my adult life, so one could say I always had an innate ability for organizing. Read More>>
Nancie King Mertz
Attended undergrad and grad school downstate (BFA in Painting from U of IL and MA in Painting EIU) and began the framing company while a painting student. That grew into a gallery of my work incl. approx. 100 area artists and craftspeople. I sold that business in 1987, retaining the framing portion, and moved with my husband to Chicago. Read More>>
Paul Matthews
As a former athlete, I suffered from a series of football injuries that led to two spine surgeries that forever changed my life and instilled a passion in me to help others dealing with injury and pain. My passion to live an active pain free life not only drove me to make a full recovery when I was told it was otherwise impossible, but it inspired me to immerse myself into understanding the most cutting-edge advancements in sports medicine, recovery technologies, rehabilitation and soft tissue techniques. Read more>>
Matt Gentle
My story started with my Mother, who runs a massage school and taught me very early on the power that the body has to heal itself and that there are ways to help people unlock their body’s fullest potential. Since then, I have been getting training and certifications in every healing and fitness modality I have come across to give a very unique, natural healing and sports therapy experience to my clients through my business. Read more>>
Chris Brady
I started my own fitness and nutrition business designed for my clients to experience complete body balance by making strategic and manageable adjustments to their personal routines. When I got connected with the existing owners at Elite, my business was the last piece to completion for the offerings on the practitioner side of the business. My training in nutrition counseling and corrective exercise and success in managing weight loss and fitness goals was the perfect complement to what Dr. Pullukat, Paul Matthews and Matt Gentle were offering and, together, we brought in some of the most amazing wellness and recovery technologies available on the market today. Read more>>
John Hall
A childhood entrenched in athletics; a family abounding in the fitness industry, and deep-seeded aspirations to help others shaped the man, John Hall, creator and owner of John Hall Studios. From Pop-Warner football at age 9, to star running back in high school, to a college football scholarship; John Hall’s youth athletic career was full of newspaper clippings and record breaking.During and after college, John began working as a personal trainer at a Gold’s Gym owned by his uncle. Read More>>
Zoe Rain
I was born in Seattle, WA. There was always an interest in art, from drawing and painting to pottery, but I never thought it could be a career path. In high school I took the photography class in order to get certain credits needed to graduate. Read More>>
Patricia Anderson
I started my photography journey after my oldest daughter was born. I’m mostly self taught, but once I decided to go into photography professionally, I mentored under some of the top newborn and family photographers in the industry. I wanted to make sure that the quality, professionalism, and style of my photography business stood out from the rest. Read More>>
Vivian Arpino
I was trained by Charles Ifergan and began my career at his Oak Street salon. In 1990, I was offered the opportunity to style hair for guests on The Oprah Winfrey Show during my days off, and the next year, I began doing the same for anchors at CBS New Chicago. Eventually, I became the lead hairstylist for the show and continued there until the end of its run. Read More>>
Bridget Trainer
My fitness career started out much like a sitcom. I was literally THROWN up on stage with a mic and a mix-tape to teach a beginner aerobics class. In college, I was broke and wanted a free gym membership to keep me in shape and sane. Read More>>
Rich Labriola
I started Labriola Baking in the early 1990’s and became one of the first artisan bakers in Chicago. I entered the restaurant business in 2008 with the opening of Labriola Bakery & Cafe. A few years ago, I learned about Stan Berman, owner of the legendary Stan’s Donuts shop in Los Angeles. I reached out to Stan and we hit it off. Read More>>
Antonette White
My 1st job as Makeup Artist was as a resident makeup artist for Estee Lauder, back in the day at Marshall Fields. I didn’t have any prior experience. This is how that happened- I was working for Donna Karen as a fragrance model at the time. Read More>>
Emily Pinas
Growing up in the Chicago suburbs, I had two great passions: musical theater and babies. By the time I started high school, I had my future career path narrowed down to two options. I either wanted to become a neonatologist or an actress. Read More>>
Daniel Bentz
I will keep it brief. In 2004, I moved from La Crosse, WI with a BS in Exercise and Sports Science to Chicago, where I began my Personal Training career at Fitness Formula Clubs – UnionStation. In the beginning, I also took on part time work at XSport Fitness and The Trump Hotel fitness center. Read More>>
Michael Shymerlyuk
Ever since I was a kid in Ukraine, I’d always help out my father and my grandfather with various building projects around the house. When we moved to Chicago, I spent the first few months helping my dad with various construction projects he’d been working on. Unfortunately, I got to witness the bad side of the industry; more often than not my father would be fixing some else’s sloppy job or flat out finishing a project someone had abandoned. Read More>>
Holly Grannan
Creative partners Catherine Dunton & Holly Grannan established FELT after a chance meeting on a Saturday at Satine Boutique in Venice, California. Catherine sold Holly a pair of purple Jenni Kane D’Orsay flats. Over the next two years, a client relationship built through personalized service blossomed into a business partnership. Read More>>
Albert Borokhim
Albert Borokhim was born of Iranian decent from a family with a deep and honorable history in the Rug business in Iran. He immigrated to the U.S. over 50 years ago to go to school at the University of Wisconsin in Madison for Engineering. Read More>>
Marc J. Sievers
No matter the paths taken or the turn of events in my life, the kitchen has always been the place where I have felt the most comfortable. In the kitchen I can create a soothing and warm feel-good meal to help brush off a bad day. I can put on my thinking cap to experiment with, and explore, new ideas. Read More>>
Dominique Graves
Born & raised on the south side of chicago, I was the oldest of 5 children with a busy mom so I started cooking early as little as 8 years old. It was one of the things I was naturally great at with help from my aunt (who is no longer with me) who taught me alot in the kitchen as well. About a year after dropping out of high school I was working at a local grocery store when one of my loyal customers suggested I should start my own catering company since I loved to cook so much. Read More>>
Simeon Nikolov
As one of the most trusted moving companies in Chicago, IL, we strive to provide you with everything you need so the process of moving is free of stress. The process is clear and we can help you with everything – from packing to transporting. Our staff is specially trained and we believe that professional and friendly attitude is what makes a company great. Read More>>
Anastasia Nicole Flevaris
Salon Lashe, a salon decdicated to all things eyelashes and brows was founded in 2011. It’s parent company The Lashe was founded in 2007. When the lash extension industry was in it’s infancy, the products and adhesives were inferior in quality and hold. Knowing that there had to be something better out there we embarked in formulating our own adhesive. Read More>>
Melinda Hurley
Nothing says kids like Oreos, Jell-O and Mac & Cheese and that is the world I came from – Kraft Heinz knows the value of providing products that are delicious, reliable, easy and safe. My job was to make sure that Kraft stayed in touch with the folks who used Kraft products on a daily basis with a special eye on developing new products or new ways that families could enjoy existing products. Read More>>
Elizabeth Adam
The eighties were a scary and exciting time in Poland. The war of freedom from Russian “influences”, to say softly, was in full bloom. The Solidarity Movement drew young Elizabeth. Read More>>
Shilan Fine
One summer I was invited to a party at a trout farm in Wisconsin, This is where my path crossed with the owner of Younghi and Associates, a boutique accessories sales agency here in Chicago. A few weeks later, I was offered a job to manage her showroom at the Apparel Center. This was the first time I was offered a job from a party. Read More>>
Lexi Nielsen
I opened my own design studio in 2009 after the birth of my daughter. Starting your own design company during a housing crisis was a challenge! But a challenge I embraced because it taught me how to be a better designer. Today I am privileged to have clients in Chicago, the Midwest, New England, even Hawaii. Read More>>
Edyta Grazman
I’ve always been a creative and a transition to portrait photography came naturally to me. After my first child was born, I was desperate to have the most beautiful portraits of her but after hiring few professional photographers, I realized their vision was different from mine. And so I picked up a camera and my photography journey began. Read More>>
Michael J. Camodeca
I founded SkyView Technology, Inc. in 2002 to serve the unique needs of Chicago land’s small to medium-sized business communities. Creating a customer-focused business model emphasizing on clear communication and prompt, outstanding service, I started SkyView Technology, Inc. as lead engineer, with a small client base and a few referrals. Since then, we have expanded to service operations of every size, but continue to maintain our strong commitment to customer service. Read More>>
Diksha Gandhi, Antonio Martinez, Prashanth Rama Reddy
Struggle brings out the best in us. We were at a point where our personal and artistic lives felt like they were at a standstill. We were broke and we had to support ourselves financially. We thought that we could sell paintings and pay our bills At first, we started selling paintings on vinyl records and on canvas. Read More>>
Laura Barnett
While completing my design degree, I worked with my husband in his family retail business. Even after graduation, he insisted that I forego design and continue working at the stores, which was very frustrating and not at all fulfilling for me. Finally, in 1981, I left him and his successful business to start my own and moved to Evanston with my three-year old daughter. Read More>>
Gary Lucido
For years Gary Lucido had been perplexed by the residential real estate brokerage business. Many of the agents he had encountered over the years just weren’t that impressive and the commissions were exorbitant. It just didn’t seem right to have to pay 6% to an agent who was little more than an order taker and didn’t do that much to sell your house. Read More>>
Chelsea Mazur
I first started shooting back in high school, on an old, second-hand 35mm Pentax camera. Film was great, but it wasn’t so easy to do without a darkroom of my own. Then, for my college graduation, my mom bought me my first DSLR and the rest is history! Read More>>
Caroline DeVillo
Undergrad – University of Illinois Urbana-Champagne – BA Marketing of Textiles and Apparel
FIDM (Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising – AA in Fashion Design I started in costume design for film and stylist for tv. Moved back to Chicago to start a bridal line. Had a store in Bucktown for almost 10 years. Read More>>
Avi Sengupta
I love music…but am completely tone deaf and have no musical ability – this is my outlet. With a computer science and electrical engineering background, I came across a position several years ago for a company in this industry as a programmer and quickly fell in love with the industry. Read More>>
Paco Lebron
When I am asked this question I always pause in reflection. There are many ways to tell my story. The Puerto Rican kid from Humboldt Park who by perseverance escaped the gangs, the drugs and violence of the tough streets at the time or the man through personal life experiences of love, betrayal, and malice continues to strive for what he believes. Read More>>
Jerry Bern
Under the leadership of Jerry E. Bern Jr., a sixth generation jeweler, The Bern family has been serving Chicago since 1897 with the family purchasing the well-established Chicago jewelry store, Marshall Pierce & Company, in 1967. The legacy has been strengthened with Jerry’s son, Evan Bern, joining the Marshall Pierce team in 2009. Read More>>
John Pinto Vince Pinto
It all started back in 2012, when Vince decided to hop on a train and head to Chicago. His intentions were to just go and explore the city and shoot videos off his new DSLR camera. Meanwhile, John decided to join for the journey with his acoustic guitar. At the time, John was a musician under the name of, “The Young Gentleman”. Read More>>
Michael Walker
Blue Crates was born out of personal necessity. Matt, my brother and C0-Founder of Blue Crates had been living in New York after graduating from school. While there to accommodate all of his things while living in a cramped space he elected to rent a public storage unit. It was really the only way that he could live in Manhattan and deal with such a lack of closet space. Read More>>
Dara Levy
I owned a high end med spa in Chicago, and decided before opening my doors, that dermaplaning was going to be our signature treatment. As an avid dermaplaner myself, I was addicted to the benefits of the treatment. The universe obviously had a plan in mind, because before opening my doors I trademarked DERMAFLASH and that is what we called our treatment. Read More>>
Njeri Kairo
Funny thing, I needed an extra class in college and nothing was open except photography. So I went with it. My first photography class in collage, Photography 101 Black & White photography class, I had no idea what I got myself into. Read More>>
Kelly Tase
It started 11 years ago, when a friend was getting married and asked if I would come to her hotel and do her hair as well as the rest of her girls. I had already planned on taking off at the salon that day to attend the wedding. I happily showed up and did everyone’s hair. Read More>>
Becky Brown
Photography has always been my job, even before people paid me to do it. I was always the one with the camera, I was the yearbook editor, I was the one capturing moments. I turned that into a career in shooting weddings several years ago when I started my photography business (Becky Brown Photography) while I was living in Indiana. Read More>>
Ge Wang
I founded ESQ in 2012 during my practice as an attorney. I struggled daily with finding the perfect fitting suit and was not satisfied with what was available on the market, so I figured I would try to start my own brand. To this day, we’ve evolved to only do the finest bespoke menswear – suiting, shirting and footwear. Read More>>
Alison Blecker
For the past 10 years I have been practicing deep tissue massage for business travelers in hotels, events and in the concert touring industry. The backstage massage was just a part time gig but was fun to be involved in when I was just starting my career. I have really worked with so many people and numerous hours of work that I know massage therapy is needed to decrease stress for all walks of life. Read More>>
Stephanie Hjelte Fumanelli
I started Chicago Urban Pets 9 months after graduating with a Bachelors in Architecture from the Illinois Institute of Technology. I knew I didn’t want to work an 8am-5pm job and I definitely enjoyed a lifestyle where I could be my own boss. Architecture & Design is a big part of my life and together with my design partner we started to enter architecture & design competitions. Read More>>
Nancy Leflar
Majestic Paws is a family run business owned and operated by Nancy & Owen. Nancy is the founder of Majestic Paws having started the company in 2008 while still in college. Having grown up around all kinds of animals, she always knew that she wanted a career in animal care, so owning Majestic Paws really is her dream come true. Read More>>
Nick Dumitru
I started back in 2010, and together with my former business partner of that time, I had the idea of opening a ski shop that is specialized mostly on servicing ski and snowboard equipment. We creted a website and worked out of a garage. The best part was that we introduced a new concept into this industry by providing free pick up and delivery of the equipment for the city of Chicago. Read More>>
Susan and Keven Brown
Keven and I met romantically, began dating and then as the relationship evolved, we moved to Chicago. The business was created as a way to blend both of our passions for health and fitness into on mission. Keven and I have over 25 years in combined experience, but we came from two very different backgrounds and two very different perspectives when we decided to create Bodimatrix. As different as they were, they just seemed to be a natural fit. Read More>>
Nancy Epstein
I began my career in the luxury stone and tile industry in 1986, when I worked with a cabinet showroom to create custom cabinets for my young son’s bedroom. The showroom owner hated my cabinet design, but was impressed with my business ideas. After he made the furniture, he asked me to come work for him and I did – I brought in all sorts of lighting and furniture to his facility – until I was approached by someone to sell decorative plumbing and I took an interest. Read More>>
Pamela Mueller
We are a fourth generation family owned business specializing in home furnishings. Mueller Interiors, Inc. is a premier home decorating and furnishing establishment in Chicagoland. As an award-winning business, we’ve been satisfying clients for over 100 years with our custom draperies, expert re-upholstery, and new “mart-style” custom furniture at value prices. Read More>>
A. Finney
Andrea and Me and Me Too Apparel and Lifestyle, was founded in 1999 as an e-commerce online boutique selling an eclectic assortment of products and styles. The business was named after my daughter, Andrea, who passed away in 1997 due to complications of Asthma. Read More>>
Marilyn D’Andrea
As Owner of Sana Vita Studio, I am passionate about working with individuals of all ages and fitness levels to help you reach your potential. My Master’s degree in Exercise Science and my knowledge base in anatomy and biomechanics assist me in assessing clients I work with. I believe it is essential for my clients to aspire for consistent progress, not perfection. Read More>>
Betty Hruska
We Believe in Entrepreneurship. InStyle Salon & Spa Suites leases upscale, fully-furnished salon suites to independent beauty & wellness professionals. Our most successful tenants have previously been in the industry, built a client base or have owned a salon in the past. Read More>>
