Ann Audrey Eliades Kirk sees beauty and business as a winning combination. She recently turned a century-old building in downtown Hopewell into a center for local artisans to display and sell their work. With help from the Longwood SBDC, Artisan Alley is already headed for success.…
Crystal Peterson Barker’s career as a behavioral analyst began with an ad in the classified pages of a local newspaper.
“After high school I answered an ad to assist an FHA boy,” Crystal relates.
She interviewed for the job and learned that FHA stood for high-functioning autism.…
Mention a family business in Martinsville, and people know where to go — Sweet Heaven Candy Shop, owned and operated by Joe and Shalita Armstrong and their four children, ages nine to 24. When the Longwood SBDC joined the family team, it was a natural fit.…
Shatera Robertson, owner of Unique Styles & Designs Floral Boutique in Uptown Martinsville, built a successful business over the past year with facts and expert guidance. She credits the Longwood SBDC for providing the information that led to that success.
“The key to anything you do in life is wisdom and knowledge,” Shatera says.…
Ask Longwood SBDC Eastern Region Director Vandy Jones why he developed an interest in helping small business owners, and you’ll get an unexpected answer.
“You might say a tornado brought me to it,” Jones says with a smile.
On the surface, Jones’ resume doesn’t read like a whirlwind career.…
How do you switch industries, move to another state and open a coffee shop in the midst of a pandemic? Former Houston Exxon executive can tell you — he did just that. To get his business off the ground, Josh wisely made the Martinsville office of the Longwood SBDC one of his first stops.…
The Longwood Small Business Development Center (SBDC) is pleased to announce Vandy Jones has been named director of its Eastern Region. He will be based in Petersburg at the Crater SBDC of Longwood University office which operates under a cooperative agreement with the Crater Planning District Commission.…
Dalton Rudd has always loved woodworking and hoped to build a business around that passion someday. Assisted by two regional offices of the SBDC, his vision is now a viable business. WorkbenchRVA, a membership-based public woodworking facility, opened its doors in Richmond last November.…
Catherine Carter turned the page on a new career when she started a book club to help coworkers deal with the pandemic. Now, with help from the Longwood SBDC and Danville’s Dream Launch program, she has her own bookstore, The Dog-Eared Page.…
A Longwood SBDC internship was a perfect fit for Lindsey Hottinger. She’s a big supporter of small businesses.
“My parents own a garden center,” she says.
When an internship at SBDC became available, Lindsey didn’t hesitate.
“Finding an internship during COVID was really hard,” she relates.…