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Owners of a Vermont trolley tour company are committed to the city that "accepted us"

Mar 12, 2024
"We want to add something good to Burlington, Vermont," says co-owner Hannington Kasagga.
"When we went to the manufacturer's warehouse and we saw our trolley, I think that was the happiest moment in my entire life," says Burlington Trolley Tours co-owner Hannington Kasagga.
Courtesy Hannington Kasagga.

For a performing arts teacher in Boise, work is steady, but it's a "constant hustle"

Feb 13, 2024
Spending on services is up, but Leta Harris Neustaedter says business at her Metamorphosis Performing Arts Studio has its ebbs and flows.
Leta Harris Neustaedter leads an acting camp, part of her Metamorphosis Performing Arts Studio.
Courtesy Leta Harris Neustaedter

Franchising is the next hurdle for this Native-owned design business in Alaska

Dec 28, 2023
Rico and Crystal Worl, the siblings behind Trickster Company, used to have a brick-and-mortar shop. They're looking to recapture that physical presence with partnerships.
Rico and Crystal Worl are looking to expand their design business, Trickster Company.
Konrad Frank/Courtesy Trickster Company

A South Dakota mother-daughter duo bring both business savvy and love to their quilting studio

Dec 27, 2023
"For me, quilting is about our relationship in a lot of ways," said co-owner Jacqueline Economo about her mother.
A quilting bundle at the Jacqueline Joyce Stitch Studio.
Courtesy Jacqueline Joyce Stitch Studio

For a Wyoming family, opening a distillery was about facing "uncertain financial times" head on

Dec 26, 2023
"There was a romantic ideal about being in control of your own destiny," says Backwards Distilling co-founder Amber Pollock.
Amber Pollock behind the bar at the distillery's tasting room in Casper, Wyoming.
Courtesy Pollock

From college friends to business partners, these stationers are celebrating 10 years in business together

Nov 30, 2023
Danielle McCarthy and Ellen Kelly run a luxury wedding stationery business in Newport, Rhode Island, where they specialize in letterpress printing.
Kelly and McCarthy met their freshman year of college at an art school in Beverly, Massachusetts. Now, they both live and run their stationery business in Newport, Rhode Island.
Erin McGinn Photography

Feeling burnt out from COVID-19, one nurse turned to chainsaw art

Nov 6, 2023
"I got that first chainsaw and, I don't know, I just felt right at home," says Taylor White, a chainsaw carver in Maine.
One of White's most recent projects was a 10-foot-tall grizzly bear carving.
Courtesy Taylor White

For public good, not for profit.

How this California business puts animals to work preventing wildfires

Oct 25, 2023
Shepherdess Land & Livestock offers prescribed grazing services with sheep and goats.
“We use our animals in a very special, targeted type of manner, very different to traditional ranching with grazing animals,” says Cole Bush, owner and operator of Shepherdess Land & Livestock in California’s Ojai Valley.
Paul Mirah Collins

How an urban hiker in Kansas City turned her side hustle full-time

Oct 9, 2023
"After having my urban hikes for about a year, I realized that if I wanted my business to grow, that I would need to focus full time on it, and that was a scary leap," said Lisa Peña, owner of Urban Hikes Kansas City.
Urban Hikes Kansas City owner Lisa Peña shows off a mural by artist Fem_nine on a hike.
Courtesy Lisa Peña, mural by artist Fem_nine

A Black arts center committed to preserving community

Sep 6, 2023
When the nonprofit system didn't seem to work for it, Seattle-based Wa Na Wari found another way.
Wa Na Wari was once the home of a family member of one of the gallery's founders. Making it into a Black art space was a way to return the home to the community.
Courtesy Inye Wokoma