New Biz Spotlight: Hummingbird Candle Co.

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Hummingbird Candle Co. opened its doors in downtown Asheville in October 2020. We were curious to learn more about this new Asheville biz, so we sat down with the founder, Tianna Dean, to get all juicy the details.

What brought you to Asheville?

Opening our second location in the beautiful downtown of Asheville, NC feels like coming home.

I was born in Brevard and spent all of my summers with my Dad’s family in Asheville well before Asheville was ‘cool.’ I am so proud of the labor of love that these communities have put into these cities, and seeing them transform over the past 30 years. Like it says in the bible: “And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9).

I am thrilled to bring Hummingbird Candle Co. (my labor of love) to the city that raised me and inspired me to spread God’s grace and love through my candle company.

How did you come up with the concept for Hummingbird?

I laugh every time someone asks me this because it’s such a complex answer and loooong story. But I’ll give you guys the short version.

Picture it Sicily 1924…just kidding. I was a Labor and Delivery RN, knee-deep into Grad School to become a Certified Nurse Midwife…and very content to catch babies and empower women for the rest of my life. In 2017, my husband and best friend finished his 21-year career as a US Army Ranger and he decided to turn his hobby of woodworking into a full-blown business. We quickly realized that if the business was going to work we needed to do it together.

After a lot of thought and back and forth I decided to take a step back from my Nursing Career in 2018 to help my husband’s custom furniture business, Cornerstone Design Co. Being the strong, black, feminist [that I am], I quickly realized [my] own entrepreneurial passion and desire to build a brand that would bridge my passion of advocating for and supporting women with [my] love of luxury home goods in a sustainable and earth-friendly way.

After overcoming my doubts – and the doubts of others – I followed my curiosity and dug deep into the craft of candle making. I desired to make a high-quality product that was safe and unique, and to provide an experience that brought people together through this transformative sensory experience. Hummingbird Candle Co. launched in January of 2019 and with the love and support of our community. She is still flying high!

What have you noticed about the Asheville community that’s different compared to your other location in Fayetteville?   

One of the things I love so much about Asheville–outside of the great weather, that it’s a foodie and beer heaven, and of course, all the wonderful things the gorgeous Blue Ridge Mountains have to offer–is that Asheville is such a VIBE. I ADORE the people here. We felt so incredibly supported and welcome by the locals. Ashevillians (even local government officials) are some of the most woke people in the world. My activist heart was on cloud nine from my very first conversation.

I also love that you can be 100% yourself in Asheville. Take one stroll downtown and you will see every kind of person, dressed how they want, living their very best lives. Asheville is and its community is a living breathing work of art.

We saw on your website you’re using this business to support others. What are some organizations you’re supporting and how can we find them?

One of our core values is Activism. We love to give back to organizations locally and globally that support women and those who identify as women.

We have donated to global organizations like Girl Trek and Asheville for Justice.

GirlTrek is the largest public health nonprofit for African-American women and girls in the United States. With nearly 100,000 neighborhood walkers, GirlTrek encourages women to use walking as a practical first step to inspire healthy living, families, and communities. As women organize walking teams, they mobilize community members to support monthly advocacy efforts and lead a civil rights-inspired health movement.

Asheville for Justice is a collective of activists, inspired to organize around promoting local equitable solutions to racial injustice in response to the state-sponsored, violent destruction of a community-funded medical station. It’s one of our favorite organizations to donate to because they connect donors with real-life people with immediate needs. If you don’t follow them on Instagram, you should!

What is your favorite scent currently?

That’s a really hard question especially since we have over 65 scents to choose from. I would have to say my current favorite is Hygge in our Resilience Line Collection. It ooooozes coziness, but my all-time fave and go-to is 000 Cuffed in our Signature Line. It’s a sexy, androgynous blend of tobacco, oud, cacao, and vanilla.

The year is 2025. What does your vision of Hummingbird Candle Co. look like?

I hope by 2025 every single woman that works alongside me at Hummingbird is financially making more than their husbands or wives, that they have continued work-life balance and are living their best lives, that we have helped millions of people fall in love with earth-friendly coconut wax candles, and that we are supporting even more individuals and organizations that are doing the hard work of activism for the equality of woman.

Tianna Dean is the founder and CEO of Hummingbird Candle Company. At Humminbird, she strives to promote self-care by providing unique and fun experiences during their BYOB Candle Making Workshops, create fair wage jobs by hiring women to hand pour luxury eco-friendly coconut wax candles, and always be an activist by giving back to organizations that support women both locally and globally. Because she has so much spare time, she and her best friend who happens to be her husband decided six was a good number to shoot for when having children. Her greatest accomplishment has been raising and watching them blossom into world changers.
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The Four Superpowers of Successful Entrepreneurs

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What does it take to become a successful entrepreneur?

In Season 3, we interviewed Jeff Kaplan, the Director of Venture Asheville. One of the major themes of this episode was entrepreneurship, specifically what it takes to succeed as a business founder. Every year, Kaplan leads a handful of start-up founders through Venture Asheville’s mentorship and fundraising programs.  He’s observed dozens of entrepreneurs go through this program and has seen first-hand what it takes to succeed.

During the episode, we were curious to know if there were any trends he noticed in successful founders that have gone through the Venture Asheville Program. Turns out it’s not all luck! Kaplan says that while there are many facets of good entrepreneurs, he feels that there are really four main entrepreneurial competencies of successful founders.

The Four Competencies of Successful Entrepreneurs

Opportunity Recognition

Kaplan says this has less to do with the actual widget or product you’re making and more to do with seeing the opportunity to fill a need in the market. Successful business owners are able to quickly identify those opportunities and understand how their business fits in.

Tenacity

Grit. Persistency. “You gotta have thick skin,” says Kaplan. For him, entrepreneurs have to have a whole lot of grit and “be prepared to hear ‘no’ a lot.”

Ability to Inspire

Can you convey a compelling message and inspire others? Can you convince someone to quit their corporate job to come work for you for maybe no or less money? Jeff says he thinks Dan Radin, founder of the Asheville-based AuxBus (an easy to use podcasting tool)  is the perfect example of an entrepreneur that’s able to convey a compelling vision. “He built such an incredible team… because he knew how to inspire people to podcast through this incredible software.”

Creative Problem-Solving

“As a founder, you’re going to have to learn to do things and ask questions that you never thought you needed to know or ask,” says Kaplans. He says there are a lot of “unknown unknowns” out there that you have to be able to figure out in order to run a business. “You’re always going to be resource-strapped, low on cash, and low on time,” says Kaplan. “If you can’t solve problems creatively, I don’t think you’ll make it as a founder.”


Can you learn to be a successful entrepreneur?

That was our second question during our interview with Kaplan. We wanted to know whether or not someone can learn these entrepreneurial competencies or if they’re just born with them. It’s the classic nature vs. nurture dilemma, but Kaplan tends to think that we can indeed learn how to be a good entrepreneur.

He shared with us a story from his graduate research program. Kaplan studied entrepreneurship at the University of Florida. His thesis was all about developing entrepreneurial competencies in undergrad students.

In order to test how students develop these competencies, he ran a study where half the students participated in a lecture-only learning style, while the other half attended lectures and went through real-world entrepreneurial experiences. At the end of the study, he surveyed both groups on their fit for entrepreneurship. Those that had gone through the lecture-only learning scored far lower on their entrepreneurial skills than those who had both the lectures and hands-on practice.

As a result, Kaplan and his team concluded that entrepreneurship is indeed a learnable skill, but it’s the way that we learn it that matters.

We took this to mean that if you’re an entrepreneur, reading books, taking courses, and getting a mentor can all be helpful things. But ultimately, if you don’t put them into practice, you won’t ever hone your entrepreneur superpowers. It’s the combination of learning and doing that’s the secret sauce.

Want to learn more about these entrepreneurial competencies? Check out our podcast interview with Jeff Kaplan.

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058 – Sarajane Case on the Enneagram, Publishing a Book, and Building a Content Strategy that Works for You

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In this episode, we interview Sarajane Case, a coach, writer, and speaker.

Here’s What You’ll Learn in this Episode:

  • A basic breakdown of what the Enneagram is, what it’s not, and how it can help you better understand yourself and others
  • Sarajane shares what it was like to write and publish her first book, The Honest Enneagram
  • Tips for building a successful Instagram content strategy

We hope you enjoy this episode with Sara!

Enjoyed this interview? We think you might also dig this episode with digital marketing expert, Tyler J. McCall.

Show Notes

This episode is brought to you by Range Urgent Care an Asheville-based clinic that offers affordable healthcare, transparent pricing, and streamlined, friendly service. Learn more about Range Urgent Care.

*Enjoy your first month free of annual membership at Range Urgent Care. Use code ‘makingitinasheville’ at checkout. Offer valid for a limited time only.

About Sarajane Case

Based in Asheville, Sarajane Case is s coach, writer, and speaker. Using research and mindset shifts that she has compiled over the years, Sarajane help women find (and re-find) joy in their work and life. She is the author of The Honest Enneagram, as well as the founder of Enneagram and Coffee and @YourCoffeeatHome. Connect with her at sarajanecase.com

The Honest Enneagram

Written by Sarajane Case, The Honest Enneagram is a kinder, more down-to-earth approach to understanding the nine types. The book includes beautiful illustrations (done by Sarajanes husband!) mixed in with highly digestible writing.

If you’re interested in buying this book and you’re from Asheville, we recommend buying it from our local independent bookstore, Malaprops (click this link here). However if you must buy it on Amazon, please use this affiliate link to help support this podcast and project.

People

Sandra Matri is an artist, an author, an enneagram teacher
Tyler J. McCall is a digital marketing expert. He’s Sarajane’s former business partner—and current friend.

Coffee Things

Nespresso Aerroccino Milk Frother (affiliate link) – the milk frother Sarajane uses at home to make her favorite coffee drink: the cappuccino.
Aeropress – the coffee-making tool we use at home and travel with!
Finca El Puente coffee by Counter Culture – Sarajane’s favorite coffee blend right now

Books

The Artist’s Way is a book by Julia Camera about discovering and developing the artist within. View on Malaprop’s or view on Amazon (affiliate link).

Shrill is a memoir by Lindsey West. It’s the book Sarajane was reading at the time of this podcast recording. View on Malaprop’s or view on Amazon (affiliate link).

Places

High Five Coffee – Sarajane’s favorite local coffee shops (the one on Broadway)

Music by Commonwealth Choir

Curious to learn more about what we do?

Making It in Asheville is a podcast where we go behind the scenes with artists, creatives, and entrepreneurs in Asheville. We learn about what they’re making and how they’re making it in Asheville.

Making It in Asheville is powered by Making It Creative, our boutique marketing and business consulting agency. We help passionate small business owners build and improve their sales and communication strategies. Learn more here.

We appreciate your support!

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, like, review, and/or share. Each review means than you might think as they help this episode get discovered on podcast players.

To recommend an interviewee, visit MakingItInAsheville.com/podcast

 

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057 – Molly Dingledine, Jeweler and Founder of Sisters in Circles

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Here’s What You’ll Learn in this Episode:

  • The story of how and why Molly decided to dedicate her life designing and making jewelry by hand
  • How trusting her intuition and “going with the flow” has helped Molly find balance and happiness in her work
  • The inspiration for Sisters in Circles, a non-profit organization run by and for women all over the world
  • Molly shares insights on the differences between working as a sole entrepreneur and working with a small team

Enjoyed this interview? We think you might also dig this episode with Garnet Fisher, a local painter and graphic designer.

Show Notes

This episode is brought to you by Range Urgent Care an Asheville-based clinic that offers affordable healthcare, transparent pricing, and streamlined, friendly service. Learn more about Range Urgent Care.

*Enjoy your first month free of annual membership at Range Urgent Care. Use code ‘makingitinasheville’ at checkout. Offer valid for a limited time only.

About Molly Dingledine

Molly Dingledine is a jeweler, designer, and entrepreneur from Asheville, North Carolina. She has volunteered in Uganda since 2016 helping groups that are focused on girls’ and women’s health and hygiene, as well as working with craftswomen who produce baskets and jewelry. She has been making and designing jewelry for more than 10 years. In 2020, she founded the non-profit organization, Sisters in Circles.

About Sisters in Circles

Sisters in Circles is a global community of women who celebrate & support one another by encouraging creativity, collaborating on projects, and providing service to those in need. Their mission is to bring women and girls together to support their local communities and our shared global village through acts of service and encouragement.

Currently, Sisters in Circles is producing and selling colorful, African wax print face masks. Proceeds benefit relief efforts around the world.

Other Notes from this Episode

Savannah College of Art and Design is a private art school with locations in Savannah, Georgia; Atlanta; Hong Kong; and Lacoste, France.

Geoffrey Giles is an Asheville-based jeweler. His jewelry exemplifies a minimal industrial aesthetic; a combination of bold geometric forms, clean lines, and attention to surface detail.

Joanna Gollberg is an Ashveille-based jewelry maker, artist, and author.

Wine to Water is a non-profit organization that helps combat the world water crisis.

Music by Commonwealth Choir

 

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056 – Oby Morgan, Founder of Capital at Play, on Blind Ambition

In this episode, we interview Oby Morgan, the founder of Capital at Play.

Oby takes us back to the early days of starting Capital at Play and talks about how he got the idea for the magazine. We learn about the first steps he took to get it off the ground and running, from navigating the world of printing companies to selling magazine advertising.

We also discuss entrepreneurship and the characteristics of successful businesses. Oby has met and profiled hundreds of local entrepreneurs and small businesses, and so he was able to share with us his own insights and observations.

Here’s What You’ll Learn in this Episode:

  • The story of how and why Oby started a print magazine media company
  • Oby’s advice for telling better stories and creating better content
  • The three things you need to have in order to have a successful business, according to Oby
  • Why Oby believes that blind ambition and optimism are necessary as an entrepreneur
  • Oby’s approach to selling magazine advertising

Enjoyed this interview? We think you might also dig this episode with Kyle Brown, founder of Clawhammer Supply.

Show Notes

This episode is brought to you by Range Urgent Care an Asheville-based clinic that offers affordable healthcare, transparent pricing, and streamlined, friendly service. Learn more about Range Urgent Care.

*Enjoy your first month free of annual membership at Range Urgent Care. Use code ‘makingitinasheville’ at checkout. Offer valid for a limited time only.

About Oby Morgan

An Asheville native, Oby Morgan is the founder of Capital at Play magazine. Prior to establishing the magazine in 2010, Oby graduated with a degree in Marketing and International Business from Appalachian State University. In addition to managing the magazine, from 2018 to 2020, Oby worked as the VP of Marketing, Media, and Communications for Carofin, an investment banking firm located in Brevard, NC.

Oby lives in Asheville, NC with his wife and daughter. He continues to help companies teach, sell, communicate, and connect with people.

About Capital at Play

Capital at Play is a business lifestyle magazine based in Western North Carolina. A print publication, it embodies the idea that capitalism thrives with creativity—that work requires an element of play. In every edition, Capital at Play profiles those who take the risk, those who share that risk, and those who support them—telling the untold story of how capitalists are driven by their ideas and passions.

Other Notes from this Episode

Oscar Wong is the founder of Highland Brewing and was one of the first entrepreneurs that Capital at Play profiled.

VC: an American History (affiliate link) by Tom Nicholas is a book that explores the history of venture financing in the U.S.

Foothills Meats is a local butcher shop and restaurant. They have one of Oby’s favorite burgers in town

Hole Doughnuts is a local doughnut shop offering a limited selection of made-to-order, handmade doughnuts.

Music by Commonwealth Choir

 

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055 – Luke McLaughlin of Holistic Survival School on Relearning, Remembering, and Rewilding

Luke has spent hours upon hours surviving out in nature, even competing three times in the Discovery Channel show, Naked and Afraid. Prior to moving to Asheville and starting Holistic Survival School, he worked as a Wilderness Therapy instructor for teens in Utah, living most of the year outdoors in tarp structures.

Here’s What You’ll Learn in this Episode:

  • How Luke became interested in learning and teaching primitive skills
  • The story of Luke’s journey from teaching ninth-grade biology to appearing on Discovery Channel’s Naked and Afraid
  • Luke’s mission for holistic survival school and how it goes beyond simply learning primitive skills
  • Why Luke feels that knowing how to build a fire is less important than personal growth and trauma release
  • Tools and resources for those seeking to learn more about primitive skills!

Enjoyed this interview? We think you might also dig this episode with Zach Greenwald of Strength Ratio.

Show Notes

This episode is brought to you by Range Urgent Care an Asheville-based clinic that offers affordable healthcare, transparent pricing, and streamlined, friendly service. Learn more about Range Urgent Care.

*Enjoy your first month free of annual membership at Range Urgent Care. Use code ‘makingitinasheville’ at checkout. Offer valid for a limited time only.

About Luke McLaughlin

Luke is a naturalist, teacher, rewilder, mentor, survivalist, and founder of Holistic Survival School. His mission in life is to master and teach ancestral and indigenous living skills in order to help people find their balance and connection to the Natural World.

Prior to founding Holistic Survival School, Luke worked as a primitive wilderness therapy instructor in the West Desert of Utah. He also appeared on Discovery’s Channels Naked and Afraid three times, where he survived in the wild for 21-40 days.

About Holistic Survival School

Based just outside of Asheville in Wearverville, NC, Holistic Survival School (HoSS) is an educational primitive skills program that facilitates deep, Nature connection. By facilitating these connections to self, community and Nature, HoSS strives to change the hearts of people by re-establishing their lost connection with the Natural World.

Other Notes from this Episode

Naked and Afraid is a Discovery Channel reality TV show here two strangers, typically a man and a woman, work to survive together in the wilderness, completely naked. Luke appeared on the show three times.

Wilderness Therapy is a form of therapy that combines experiential education, individual and group therapy in a wilderness setting.

Outback Therapeutic Expeditions is a Wilderness Therapy program for teens based in Utah. Luke was an instructor here for a few years.

Earthskills Rendevous is one of the largest primitive skills gathering in the country (based in South Carolina). They offer two gatherings: River Cane Rendevous in the spring and Falling Cane Rendevous in the fall.

Seneca was a Roman stoic philosopher.

John Young – South African Writer

The Croods is a Dream Works animated movie about a pre-historic cave family that sets out explore a new landscape.

Braiding Sweetgrass (Affiliate Link) by Robin Wall Kimmerer is a book about plants and botany as seen through Native American traditions and Western scientific traditions.

Music by Commonwealth Choir

Curious to learn more about what we do?

Making It in Asheville is a podcast where we go behind the scenes with artists, creatives, and entrepreneurs in Asheville. We learn about what they’re making and how they’re making it in Asheville.

Making It in Asheville is powered by Making It Creative, our boutique marketing and business consulting agency. We help passionate small business owners build and improve their sales and communication strategies. Learn more here.

We appreciate your support!

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, like, review, and/or share. Each review means than you might think as they help this episode get discovered on podcast players.

To recommend an interviewee, visit MakingItInAsheville.com/podcast

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054 – Jeff Kaplan of Venture Asheville on What Research Says It Takes to Be a Successful Entrepreneur

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For as long as he can remember, Jeff has been fascinated by entrepreneurship. Prior to becoming the Director of Entrepreneurship at Venture Asheville, he graduated from the University of Florida with a Master’s degree in Entrepreneurship. He’s taught entrepreneurship, written a book about entrepreneurship, and is even an entrepreneur himself—selling one of his startups about two years ago.

Considering we’ve had a podcast about Asheville-based entrepreneurs for over a year, we’re about a year late in having Jeff on the show. We hope you’ll agree that the wait has been worth it.

Here’s What You’ll Learn in this Episode:

  • Jeff’s background story and many entrepreneurial endeavors
  • How Venture Asheville fits in Asheville’s Chamber of Commerce (ranked America’s top Chamber of Commerce this past year)
  • What Venture Asheville is, how it helps new businesses scale, and its three main programs, including mentorship, funding, and events
  • The core competencies of successful entrepreneurs based on real case studies that Jeff and his team have conducted
  • Resources for Asheville-based entrepreneurs and which ones are best for different stages of the business
  • What the goal of the Asheville Impact Micro-Grant program is and how to apply
  • Jeff also shares his pitches for three businesses he’s worked on in the past (and one he is currently working on now)

Enjoyed this interview? We think you might also dig this episode with Andrew Nehlig of Sauna House.

Show Notes

This episode is brought to you by Range Urgent Care an Asheville-based clinic that offers affordable healthcare, transparent pricing, and streamlined, friendly service. Learn more about Range Urgent Care.

*Enjoy your first month free of annual membership at Range Urgent Care. Use code ‘makingitinasheville’ at checkout. Offer valid for a limited time only.

About Jeff Kaplan

Jeff Kaplan is the Director of Venture Asheville (more on that below!).

Concurrently, Jeff is leading a startup of his own, JustKibbitz, a new kind of dating site where parents do the matchmaking. He’s also the local director of VentureSouth’s Angel Investment Group, the Asheville Angels.

Prior to leading Venture Asheville, Jeffrey earned his Master’s degree in Entrepreneurship and instructed in Entrepreneurship at the University of Florida. He is a published author in Entrepreneurship Pedagogy, launched and sold pet-tech startup Dogphrendly as an alumnus of the Groundwork Labs accelerator in Durham, and was Product Owner and Consultant in digital product development at Anthroware.

In the community, Jeffrey serves on the State of North Carolina’s Board of Science, Technology, and Innovation, Vice-Chairman on the Mountain Capital Community Fund, Board Member of the Hatch AVL Foundation, Board of Directors Member and Secretary of the Asheville JCC, and advisor to UNCA’s Center of Jewish Studies.

About Venture Asheville

Venture Asheville is the high-growth entrepreneurship initiative of the Economic Development Coalition for Asheville-Buncombe County and the Asheville Chamber of Commerce. The program’s work centers on catalyzing Asheville’s high-growth entrepreneurial ecosystem and connecting entrepreneurs with startup funding, mentors, and talent to scale their ventures.

Other Notes from this Episode

Venture Asheville Programs

Asheville Entrepreneurship Week is an annual, week-long celebration that highlights Asheville’s growing startups, innovative businesses, and entrepreneurs from every industry. The program is hosted by both Hatch AVL and Venture Asheville.

Elevate is a free mentorship program designed to help new businesses navigate the practical, day-to-day challenges of building great companies and develop their skills as effective managers, leaders, and CEOs.

Venture 15 Awards is an annual awards ceremony that honors Asheville’s 15 fastest growing startups and the people and organizations that make Asheville a place for startups to thrive.

Asheville Startup Road Trip helps a small group of Asheville-area startups fundraise for their businesses in surrounding cities such as Charlotte, Durham, and Winston Salem.

Asheville Impact Micro Grant provides $5,000 micro grants for early-stage startups in Buncombe and Haywood County.

Other Resources for Entrepreneurs
ScaleUp WNC provides intensive growth strategy development and implementation assistance to cohorts of 15 small businesses. Western North Carolina businesses with strong potential for growth and job creation have the opportunity to apply to participate in this highly competitive program. The program is hosted by Hatch and Mountain Biz Works.

Big Scary Fish Tank is a live pitch event in Asheville where local entrepreneurs compete to win a game-changing financial infusion from the city’s top investors.

One Million Cups of Coffee is a free, weekly pitch event that gathers downtown. Each week, one to two founders pitch their business to like-minded entrepreneurs, investors, professionals, and supporters of Asheville’s growing startup scene. And there’s free coffee!

Talent Jam is a one-of-a-kind pitch event that authentically connects job seekers with local opportunities and employers within their community, and beyond!

Dig South Tech Summit is where leading global brands connect with the South’s most innovative tech companies.

Businesses that Venture Asheville has worked with:

Moonlight Makers is a silly puns T-shirt and gift shop. We interviewed founders, Nicole and Claire, in episode 052.

French Broad Chocolates is an Asheville-based chocolate confectionery and bakery.

3 Mountains Tea sources and produces premium, organic, and fair-trade teas from Rwanda.

Other Local Businesses
Aux Bus is a simple & affordable podcast solution that lets you plan, record, and launch all in one place.

Asheville Rooftop Bar Tours is an award-winning rooftop bar tour featuring stunning sky views and fun bits of history.

Dogwood Health Trust s a North Carolina nonprofit corporation with the sole purpose of dramatically improving the health and well-being of all people and communities across Western North Carolina. Dogwood Health Trust is the successor foundation of the nonprofit Mission Health System.

Hatch AVL Foundation is a 501(c)3 uniquely supporting high growth startups with a proven Playbook, Programs, and Partnerships to grow the next $10M companies in Asheville.

Anthroware is a US-based team of brilliant strategists, developers, designers, and engineers who build software for humans.

Jeff’s Startups:
Chef Sleeves
Dogphrendly
Just Kibbitz is a new kind of dating site where parents do the matchmaking,

Principles & Concepts
Intrepreneur vs. Entrepreneur

Corridor Principle is, according to BPlans Glossary, “where an entrepreneurial venture may find that it has significantly changed its focus from the initial concept of the venture as it has continually responded and adapted to its market and the desire to optimize profitability potential.”

Kaleidoscope Thinking is a mindset or strategy that requires you to re-arrange what you see and imagine new arrangements, new patterns, new groupings.

People
Jon Jones is the President/CEO and Founder of Anthroware.
Josh Dorfman is former Director of Venture Asheville, now currently the CEO and Founder of Simbly.
Dan Radan is the founder of Auxbus.

Places
Roswell is a small town located in the north metropolitan suburbs of Atlanta, GA.
All Day Darling is is a cafe’ located in Montford that serves an all-day menu of market-focused food.

TV Shows & Movies
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is comedy/drama TV show about a 1950’s Jewish housewife who turns into a comedian after divorcing her husband.
Star Trek

Music by Commonwealth Choir

Curious to learn more about what we do?

Making It in Asheville is a podcast where we go behind the scenes with artists, creatives, and entrepreneurs in Asheville. We learn about what they’re making and how they’re making it in Asheville.

Making It in Asheville is powered by Making It Creative, our boutique marketing and business consulting agency. We help passionate small business owners build and improve their sales and communication strategies. Learn more here.

We appreciate your support!

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, like, review, and/or share. Each review means than you might think as they help this episode get discovered on podcast players.

To recommend an interviewee, visit MakingItInAsheville.com/podcast

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053 – Stephanie and Matt Trowbridge of Range Urgent Care on Reimagining Healthcare

Here’s What You’ll Learn in this Episode:

  • The story of how and why Matt and Stephanie started Range Urgent Care
  • The details of how they got started (Note: a walk-in clinic was NOT the original business idea!), including the steps they took to open the business (creating a business plan, getting funding, and “first principle” thinking)
  • The meaning behind basic healthcare terms, plus answers to questions like: “Do I still need health insurance if I go to a walk-in clinic?” or “What are affordable healthcare options for small businesses?”
  • How Stephanie and Matt work successfully together as a husband and wife team
  • Tips for motivating employees and aligning incentives

Enjoyed this interview? We think you might also dig this episode with Lisa and Dean Peteet of Atlas Branding.

Show Notes

This episode is brought to you by Range Urgent Care (yes, they’re also our guests in this episode!), an Asheville-based clinic that offers affordable healthcare, transparent pricing, and streamlined, friendly service. Learn more about Range Urgent Care.

*Enjoy your first month free of annual membership at Range Urgent Care. Use code ‘makingitinasheville’ at checkout. Offer valid for a limited time only.

About Stephanie Trowbridge

Stephanie is the Medical Director and Co-Founder of Range Urgent Care. She grew up in Virginia Beach and North Myrtle Beach and graduated with a degree in Biology from Clemson University in 2007, followed by a MD from the University of South Carolina. She has more than six years of experience working in Emergency Medical Services.

About Matt Trowbridge

Matt is the CEO and Co-Founder of Range Urgent Care. He grew up in Houston, TX and graduated with a degree in Civil Engineering from Clemson University in 2008. After graduating, he spent several years working in Construction, Project Management, and Land Development Design across the southeast. In 2015, Matt started a professional MBA program at the University of South Carolina. He graduated in 2017, the same year Range UC opened its doors. Matt is passionate about innovation, technology, and improving the healthcare experience.

About Range Urgent Care

Range Urgent Care is an Asheville-based walk-in clinic that offers a simplified healthcare experience, transparent pricing, and an open, friendly environment.

Other Notes from this Episode

Score Mentorship Program is the nation’s largest network of volunteer, expert business mentors. We have helped more than 11 million small business owners since 1964.

https://www.score.org/find-mentor

First Principle Thinking is the practice of questioning every assumption you think you ‘know’ about a given topic, problem, or scenario and then building new knowledge and solutions from scratch. Aristotle was the first to define this first principle as “the first basis from which a thing is known.”

Elon Musk is the co-founder and CEO of Tesla. He’s known as one of the world’s most innovative thinkers and is famous for his “first principle” way of thinking.

A Health Savings Account (HSA) is a type of savings account that lets you set aside money on a pre-tax basis to pay for qualified medical expenses.

Daniel Pink is an award-winning author that writes about business, work, creativity, and behavior. We reference his book, Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, during this episode.

Bold Rock: Mills River Cidery is a cider house and taproom located in Mills River, about 15 minutes outside of downtown Asheville.

Sierra Nevada is a craft brewery with a taproom located in Mills River, about 15 minutes outside of downtown Asheville.

The Rise of Asheville by Marilyn Ball is a non-fiction book that outlines the history of Asheville over the last 50 years, tracing the bonds of community that gave rise to Asheville today.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doeer is a historical war novel about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II.

Music by Commonwealth Choir

Curious to learn more about what we do?

Making It in Asheville is a podcast where we go behind the scenes with artists, creatives, and entrepreneurs in Asheville. We learn about what they’re making and how they’re making it in Asheville.

Making It in Asheville is powered by Making It Creative, our boutique marketing and business consulting agency. We help passionate small business owners build and improve their sales and communication strategies. Learn more here.

We appreciate your support!

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, like, review, and/or share. Each review means than you might think as they help this episode get discovered on podcast players.

To recommend an interviewee, visit MakingItInAsheville.com/podcast

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052 – The Founders of Moonlight Makers on Testing, Trusting, and T-Shirts

During this episode, Nicole and Claire tell us all about how and why they started this business and the steps they took to get it where it is today.

Here’s What You’ll Learn in this Episode:

  • The story of how Moonlight Makers began (hint: the business looks VERY different from when it first started)
  • How Nicole and Claire knew it was time to start hiring employees
  • What Nicole and Claire do when they disagree about something
  • Why they decided NOT to outsource their production overseas
  • And many other hilarious (and serendipitous) stories from their journey

Enjoyed this interview? We think you might also dig this episode with Gillie Roberts, founder of Ware.

Show Notes

This episode is brought to you by Range Urgent Care, an Asheville-based clinic that offers affordable healthcare, transparent pricing, and streamlined, friendly service. Learn more about Range Urgent Care.

*Enjoy your first month free of annual membership at Range Urgent Care. Use code ‘makingitinasheville’ at checkout. Offer valid for a limited time only.

Moonlight Makers a T-shirt and gift shop based in Asheville, North Carolina. They make silly, often punny T-shirts, totes, dish towels, mugs, and more. In addition to their brick and mortar store located in downtown Asheville, Moonlight Makers is an Amazon Handmade member.

Salvage Station is an outdoor venue featuring live music, a bar, and small bites. During festivals, Moonlight Makers used to park their bus here and sell products.

Leaf Festival is an annual community arts festival that takes place on the site of the old Historic Black Mountain College. This is one of the many festivals that Moonlight Makers attends.

Tag Gun = the one tool that changed Moonlight Makers forever. For a long time, Nicole and Claire were tagging their T-Shirts by hand using safety pins. When they discovered this tag gun, it drastically improved their production time!

Venture Asheville grows Asheville’s startup community and connects high-growth entrepreneurs to talent, mentors, and investors through unique programming and events. Moonlight Makers if a part of the Elevate Mentorship program. They also ranked #13 in the Venture 15 awards for the fastest-growing startups in Asheville.

Jeff Kaplan is the Director of Venture Asheville and a mentor to Moonlight Makers.

Taco Billy was mentioned during this episode because Claire has a small collection of their taco stickers.

The accounting and finance software, QuickBooks, featured Moonlight Makers is in a special series of video commercials featuring small business. You can watch their episode with Moonlight Makers here.

Amazon Handmade is a brand of Amazon that features unique, genuinely handcrafted products created by artisans around the world. Moonlight Makers is a member.

Derren Brown is an English illusionist and author. During this episode, we talk about his experiment on “The Secret of Luck“

Music by Commonwealth Choir

Curious to learn more about what we do?

Making It in Asheville is a podcast where we go behind the scenes with artists, creatives, and entrepreneurs in Asheville. We learn about what they’re making and how they’re making it in Asheville.

Making It in Asheville is powered by Making It Creative, our boutique marketing and business consulting agency. We help passionate small business owners build and improve their sales and communication strategies. Learn more here.

We appreciate your support!

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, like, review, and/or share. Each review means than you might think as they help this episode get discovered on podcast players.

To recommend an interviewee, visit MakingItInAsheville.com/podcast

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051 – Marilyn Ball of Speaking of Travel on The Rise of Asheville

It’s hard to express just how much Marilyn knows about Asheville and it’s history.

We first got to know her over lunch at the Stony Knob Cafe. Between bites, we discussed the podcasting landscape (a shared interest), marketing and advertising industry (a shared profession), and Asheville (a shared community).

When it comes to all three of these topics, Marilyn is a fountain of knowledge. She’s lived here in Asheville for more than 30 years and throughout the decades, she’s carefully observed how Asheville has evolved and used this knowledge to distill important lessons on community development.

Here’s What You’ll Learn in this Episode:

  • The eerie similarities between what Asheville was like 30 years ago and today
  • Marilyn shares highlights of her career, including spearheading major tourism advertising campaigns for Asheville to becoming a podcast radio host
  • Marilyn’s brilliant approach to building effective advertising campaigns (you’ll want to use this in your world)

Enjoyed this interview? We think you might also dig this episode with Kaye Bentley, founder of Asheville Rooftop Bar Tours.

Show Notes

This episode is brought to you by Range Urgent Care, an Asheville-based clinic that offers affordable healthcare, transparent pricing, and streamlined, friendly service. Learn more about Range Urgent Care.

*Enjoy your first month free of annual membership at Range Urgent Care. Use code ‘makingitinasheville’ at checkout. Offer valid for a limited time only.

Speaking of Travel is an iHeart Radio radio show/podcast hosted by Marilyn Ball featuring uplifting and enriching stories about how travel changes you.

12 Marketing is Marilyn’s marketing agency. She offers one-on-one consulting and mentoring programs for business owners, nonprofits and people that would like to begin or grow a business. She helps you brainstorm new ideas to increase your profit and revenues.

The Rise of Asheville is a non-fiction book written by Marilyn Ball about the history of Asheville’s community over the last fifty years. Ball traces the bonds of community that gave rise to the vibrant community that Asheville is today. You can buy a the book online from our local bookstore, Malaprops, or on Amazon.

The Paris Photo is the book Marilyn was reading at the time this podcast was recorded. The book conveys the story of an American soldier and his relationship with a young mother and her son just after the Liberation of Paris in August 1944.

All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten: Uncommon Thoughts on Common Things is a fantastic series of essays by Robert Fulghum.

Kelso Advertising is the marketing and advertising agency that Marilyn worked for about a decade.

Brené Brown is a research professor at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work, author, and storyteller. She has spent more than a decade studying vulnerability, courage, authenticity, and shame.

Buzz Sprout is a podcasting hosting platform (and so much more). It offers an easy way for people to host, track, and promote their podcasts. Marilyn uses Buzz Sprout for some of her podcast projects.

Malaprops is a locally-owned, independent bookshop here in Asheville.

Music by Commonwealth Choir

Curious to learn more about what we do?

Making It in Asheville is a podcast where we go behind the scenes with artists, creatives, and entrepreneurs in Asheville. We learn about what they’re making and how they’re making it in Asheville.

Making It in Asheville is powered by Making It Creative, our boutique marketing and business consulting agency. We help passionate small business owners build and improve their sales and communication strategies. Learn more here.

We appreciate your support!

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, like, review, and/or share. Each review means than you might think as they help this episode get discovered on podcast players.

To recommend an interviewee, visit MakingItInAsheville.com/podcast

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