PORT ANGELES, Wash.—Customers who show up at A Better Pawn Shop looking to buy a power tool or an electric guitar might just be looking for a good deal, but those who show up with a power tool, flat screen TV or heirloom watch in hand are often desperate for quick cash and a fair … Read more
AENEAS VALLEY, Wash.— The Aeneas Valley Country Store near milepost 11 is the only business along a remote 18-mile country road just south of the Canadian border that connects Highway 20 to the north and Highway 21 to the south. “We want to make that 18 miles feel like one block,” said Doug Isler, who … Read more
MOUNT VERNON, Wash.—For a dozen years, chocolatier Karen Neugebauerhas been perfecting her craft while running her own small business, Forte Chocolates. “Chocolate doesn’t back down,” she said from her production kitchen on Riverside Drive in Mount Vernon. That means chocolate is a fantastic medium for a self-described “control freak” who loves both science and art. … Read more
"He took everything I wrote and made it better. If I didn’t have (my SBDC business advisor), I don’t think the bank would have given me the loan. "
Tashauna Davis
OLYMPIA, Wash. — Ana Seidel had been experimenting with developing and selling nail care products since 2012. When her husband, Cory Seidel, got laid off from his IT job a few months after she started selling her homemade nail oil, the two decided their best opportunity for supporting themselves and their four children, then ages … Read more
OLYMPIA, Wash.—If only owning a day spa were as restful as being a patron at one. When clients walk into Ballaura Wellness Spa in Olympia, they are greeted by the warm, modern farmhouse look of whitewashed brick and shiplap walls, wood flooring, and blue and pink upholstered furniture. The peaceful, serene feeling created by the … Read more
Grandview, Wash.—David Ruelas was working in agricultural fields near his home in Sunnyside, following in the footsteps of his parents and older brother, when a door opened and he became an apprentice to a diesel mechanic in Yakima. Within a year, at age 21, he was a lead mechanic at the shop. The 45-minute drive … Read more
"“(My SBDC advisor) always took the panic out of the conversation." — Andi Vann "
Andi Vann
AUBURN, Wash. — Joshua Wilke had been a successful one-man tree removal service for more than a dozen years when he started working with a Washington Small Business Development Center (SBDC) business advisor at Highline College in 2016. Since then, he has transformed what was essentially self-employment into a business of value that supports not … Read more
EDMONDS, Wash. — Traveling abroad six years ago, Kris and Kali Kelnero encountered canned cocktails and thought, “we could do that.” After years of work and planning, the couple opened Kelnero cocktail bar in downtown Edmonds in February 2019 and, eight months later, contacted business advisor Janet Toth for help with their next step: Kelnero … Read more
FEDERAL WAY, Wash. — Running an adult family home in South King County is a long way from handling HR issues at the largest bank in Kenya, but Catherine Kamau says the StartZone program at Highline College helped her realize an opportunity of a lifetime: owning her own business. StartZone helps South King County residents … Read more
