Small businesses in Illinois are still struggling to hire and retain a ready workforce, persistent challenges in the wake of the pandemic.
Vanessa Avalos noticed a need for bilingual education for young children in her community, and she immediately decided to execute on it. She launched Luna y Cielo, a play café and Spanish learning center to aid Latino and Hispanic mothers in raising bilingual, bicultural and biliterate children.
Our Illinois Small Business Council consists of small business owners from various industries across the state. Council members volunteer their time and entrepreneurial expertise at board meetings, public events and in the media to help Small Business Majority identify and address the biggest issues facing small businesses today.
Chrishon Lampley is a negociant, wine enthusiast and founder of LCS Entertainment, LLC, which features Love Cork Screw wines. Love Cork Screw is a lifestyle brand that launched six varieties in 2013. Since its inception, the LCS brand has been acquired by over 1,800 retailers including Target, Jewel-Osco, Walmart, World Market, Mariano’s, Binny’s, Whole Foods, Miejers, Total Wines and more. Lampley leverages her platform to mentor young women and budding entrepreneurs who can benefit from her lessons and her success.
Johnathon is a passionate entrepreneur with over 10 years of experience running and managing a business. At the age of 13, Johnathon Bush started his Chicago-based business Not Just Cookies (NJC). As a young entrepreneur and passionate baker, he's focused on providing delicious, quality baked goods the right way. This spirit of “baking hustle” carries on today and is what makes Not Just Cookies Wholesale Bakery a different kind of bakery.
Rachel Bernier-Green is a recovering public accountant turned serial social entrepreneur, economic justice advocate, educator, and speaker. Rachel has devoted the past decade to building for-profit businesses that drive catalytic social and environmental change, including 'Laine's Bake Shop and EJConsortium. Much of her work focuses on directly addressing the issue of wealth inequality through more equitable ownership structures.
Lisa Weiss is the founder of Storybeat Studio. As a 3x Emmy Award-winning producer and journalist who worked for Oprah Winfrey and CBS News, Lisa harnesses deep industry knowledge and expertise to help organizations and leaders tell compelling stories. She was named a Forbes Next1000 entrepreneur (December 2021) and a Tory Burch Fellow (2021-2022). Through her 20+ year career, Lisa has created and supervised content viewed and streamed by mass audiences.
Evera Ivy of Ivy League Farms LLC works with her family to grow various organic vegetables in Kankakee County. Throughout its time in operation, the farm has grown produce ranging from string beans, okra and watermelon–to eggplant, corn and greens, among others. Additionally, the team has been learning about industrial hemp and growing this versatile crop.
Rogers Park Business Alliance (RPBA) is a 501c3 non-profit organization. Established in 1993,
Defy Ventures is a national nonprofit with a vision to cut recidivism in half by leveraging entrepreneurship to increase economic opportunity and transform lives. Defy's programs are helping currently and formerly incarcerated people across the country defy the odds by providing pathways to employment, entrepreneurship, and a successful reentry.
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