Founders

Jamie Begin dropped out of the workforce and created his own company, RightBrian Networks because, "I refused to try to talk someone into letting me make money for them. It was just ridiculous."

Questions with Jamie Begin on refusing to talk someone into letting him make money for them

Amy Swift launched Building Hugger a few years ago with an idea or two of what to do with it. Several ideas later the Detroiter is figuring out what her business is all about and where it's going.

Questions with Amy Swift on evolving a company's business plan and focus

Bhushan Kulkarni is a serial entrepreneur building his fourth tech startup, InfoReady. He knows what to do and where to turn when launching a startup from scratch.

Questions with Bhushan Kulkarni on what it takes to build a succesful startup

Adrian Fortino knows a thing or two about investing in local tech startups, and the new partner with the Mercury Fund knows why Michigan-based VCs don't necessarily have the inside track on the best deals.

Questions with Adrian Fortino on outside VCs investing in Michigan startups

Hans Steiner can remember when Caelynx didn't sell software. Now half of the engineering firm's revenue comes from software sales, and Steiner knows how to make that happen.

Questions with Hans Steiner knows the secret to growing multiple revenue streams

Sarah Nicoli started her own day planner line, DotMine Day Planners, in the late 20th Century. She stopped production last year only to meet a vocal demand for the return of her day planners. She relaunched the firm over the last year.

Questions with Sarah Nicoli, relaunching a 20th Century business in the 21st Century

Carcode SMS went from meeting its future parent company to acquisition within a few months. Co-founder Steve Schwartz explains what made that process happen.

Questions with Steve Schwartz explains guiding a startup to acquisition

Slows restaurant in Detroit caught lightning in a bottle when it opened in 2005. It has slowly grown since then despite numerous offers to open around the world. Co-founder Brian Perrone explains why.

Questions with Brian Perrone on slowly growing the Slows footprint

Noah Kaplan knows a growing company is only as good as its culture and it's why he is always working to comprehensively improve the culture at Leon Speakers.

Questions with Noah Kaplan on evolving a company to match its culture

Andy Kopietz spent the better part of a decade working for someone, until he started to work for himself when he launched Good Done Daily. The Detroiter explains why making that leap made sense.

Questions with Andy Kopietz explains making the leap from employee to employer

Lindsey Walenga is the co-founder of Siren PR, helping build a client list from nothing. Today she and her partner have the Royal Oak-based boutique public relations agency growing quickly thanks to new customers.

Questions with Lindsey Walenga on building a client list from scratch

Jim Renberg's firm, Brush Park Studio, is creating a successful business where too many people don't see value: preserving historic architecture in Detroit. Renberg explains why it works for him and his partner.

Questions with Jim Renberg on preserving Detroit's historic architecture

Savorfull originally got its start selling healthy boxed meals and moved to providing healthy-eating consulting services. Stacy Goldberg, Savorfull's CEO, explains why that switch made sense.

Questions with Stacy Goldberg on evolving the best path forward for your business

VernDale Products is a family business employing its third generation of descendants, and executing a big growth plan. The Detroit-based firm's CEO Dale Johnson explains how building trust over time provided the basis to get everyone on board with the plan.

Questions with Dale Johnson on getting everyone in a family business on board with a growth plan

Sandy Kronenberg is a tech entrepreneur who already has a few exits under his belt, and it's a big reason why he is eschewing angel investment for his new startup, Locqus.

Questions with Sandy Kronenberg on growing a startup alone