Just Talking Business with Stephanie van Vark
Hard knock small business owner Stephanie van Vark learned entrepreneurship on the job. For thirteen years, through hail, hurricane, persistence and pandemic, she's survived using wit, grit and Southern Charm as her weapons of choice. Listen as Stephanie and a few friends (old, new and fellow entrepreneurs) share stories of pivot, perseverance, survival and redemption in the small business landscape.
Episodes
100 episodes
What does it take to turn artistic passion into a profitable design business? Kenzie Perry tells us.
Kenzie Perry, shares the business, and the challenges, that lie behind beauty. Kenzie reveals the real challenges of scaling a creative company — from navigating supply chains and client demands to standing out in a saturated market...
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36:29
How Dr. Saliha Nelson Made Her Small Business Grow Fast!
Dr. Saliha Nelson is redefining education by fusing youth development with enterprise and innovation. As CEO of URGENT, Inc. and founder of Urgent Academy, a new micro middle school, she has built a mission-driven educational ecosystem that lev...
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45:39
Brother Lyle Muhammad’s Community Model: Safer Streets, Stronger Bottom Lines
Brother Lyle Muhammad, Executive Director of The Circle of Brotherhood, is a visionary strategist and community architect with over 35 years of experience designing scalable, high-impact violence prevention and reentry programs. His work bridge...
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36:08
Design. Disrupt. Deliver. | Kenzie Perry of ZeHaus
Meet Kenzie — a creative force raised in Miami whose passion for art and design sparked the vision behind Ze Haus, a trailblazing brand transforming interiors across the globe.What started as a love for creativity has grown into a th...
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38:05
From Pandemic Setback to Sweet Comeback: The Story of JeniferShwartz, the Maven Baker
In December 2016,The Maven Baker opened. It's a kosher wholesale bakery serving natural baked goods for restaurants and events. By 2019, it expanded into hospitality with Sushi Addicts.But in 2020, everything changed. ...
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48:32
Stephanie M. Jones: the truth about the $9+ trillion cultural tourism industry
Stephanie Jones, CEO of Disrupt for Change and Founder of Diversity Tourism Academy, has dedicated over a decade to empowering small Black tourism businesses and underserved communities. Her work is transforming cultural tourism into a powerful...
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49:54
Why Jeremy Bower & Givr Is Flipping the Script on Traditional Packaging
Givr Packaging, LLC is revolutionizing the supply chain with sustainable, fully recyclable, and custom packaging solutions designed for every step of the process. By partnering with global tree-planting initiatives, they deliver <...
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33:49
Dr. Kenyatta W. Stephens | Innovating Public Health with Data, Tech & Community Strategy
Meet Dr. Kenyatta W. Stephens — an internationally recognized Infectious Disease Epidemiologist and founder of SAPHE Consulting Group. Known for her innovative approach to public health, Dr. Stephens blends data science, modern technology, and ...
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55:45
How Tariffs Are Forcing Freight Forwarders to Pivot in 2025
Global freight forwarding is undergoing a massive shift as tariffs shake up supply chains. In this video, Simple Forwarding CEO Abe Orgel will help us understand how freight forwarders are pivoting and adapting their logistics strategies in res...
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39:27
Madeline Raiford-Holland: Short-Term Rentals to Long-Term Wealth
Airbnb and Vrbo are booming short-term rental platforms generating billions annually—and our guest, Madeline Raiford-Holland, MHM Luxury Properties CEO, has cracked the code on turning these opportunities into serious income. From influencer to...
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46:43
How a woman-owned closet company withstands 34-years of ebbs and flows, and keeps on growing
IbisWorld says the annual revenue for the Professional Organization industry in the United States is approximately $32.3 billion. That's a lot of organizing and product sold. Jennifer Q. Williams, Saint Louis Closet Co. CEO, jumped ...
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46:43
From AirBnB, Vrbo Investing to Financial Freedom
AirBnB, Vrbo are short term rental businesses that rake in billions each year. Several like our guest, Madeline Raiford-Holland, have been able to use these platforms to make big bucks. Now, she's teaching you how to do it too. She pivoted from...
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35:00
Kim Johnson shares the restoration and business story of an 85 year old tea room
University of Florida declares the economic impact of historic preservation in Florida is a conservative estimate of $4.2 billion annually. That number may shift with the recent federal funding shake up. Kim Johnson is able to share...
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44:07
Just Talking Business with Autumn Sheldon, CFO & Partner of Autumn Brands
Autumn Shelton, CFO and Partner of Autumn Brands, is helping us navigate the uncharted waters of the the Cannabis Industry. We discuss California’s Prop 215 and the Regulated California Cannabis industry (Prop 64). We discuss her ad...
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32:57
Just Talking Business with Dr. Willie Logan, CEO of Ten North Development Group
Revitalizing Miami: A Developer’s Journey to the Florida Capital and back to reinvest in homeReal estate development makes billions, but when you make it personal and affordable it becomes more than dollars and cents. Meet Dr...
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1:05:46
Just Talking Business with Marcus Hill, Real Estate Expert & CEO MHill Enterprises, Inc.
Just Talking Business is the Entrepreneurs’ Podcast. Thats means we’re talking to business owners about their pivot plan. Marcus Hill is a distinguished home appraisal expert, real estate investor, professional speaker and author with nearly 20...
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31:50
Just Talking Business with Candace Ford, LLC Ladies Love Cigars
Cigars are a $23.4 billion industry worldwide; $13.3 million of that in the US. In a male dominant industry in both sales and consumption, Candace Ford, CEO of LLC Ladies Love Cigars, has made herself known. She has crafted a very specific prod...
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22:23
Just Talking Business with Ashley Glass, Black Women Cultivating Change
The business of using media to inform and eliminate the stigmas associated with mental health is growing. Especially in the Black Community. Leading expert Ashley Glass, Executive Director of Black Women Cultivating Change, will share the ways ...
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30:43
Just Talking Business with Lakeshia Grays, Beauty Supply Express
Courier Delivery Services is a 165.1 billion business. Commerce could not thrive or survive without. CEO Lakeshia Grays will share how she found her niche in the space delivering beauty products B2C and B2B. And what are the p...
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40:52
Just Talking Business with Rico James Documentary Film Director Nobody Was Here The Life of TMNK
It's like life imitating art. At least documenting it. Rodrico "Rico" James who crafted the story of street artist TMNK, will share the ins and outs of the film business. What happens when the doc is done? How do you mar...
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38:24
Just Talking Business with Rashada Campbell, Girl Power Rocks, Inc.
Per studies in 2023, giving to women’s and girls’ organizations represents 1.8 percent of charitable giving in the U.S. Girl Power Rocks, Inc. is one of the organizations at the forefront of serving at promised girls successfully. D...
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48:28
Just Talking Business with Dr. Edda L. Fields-Black, Author/Historian/Professor
Author, historian, professor Dr. Edda L. Fields-Black has written extensively about the history of West African rice farmers and technology. She is also the executive producer and librettist of "Unburied, Unmourned, Unmarked: Requiem for Rice,"...
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36:09
Just Talking Business with Kenasha Paul, Black Professional Network (BPN) Founder & CEO
"Your network is your net worth." -- Porter Gale. Founder and CEO Kenesha Paul will teach us what this means. The Black Professional Network helps small black-owned businesses strategically build relationships within the netwo...
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29:45
Just Talking Business with Dexter Bridgeman, CEO of M.I.A Media Group LLC
Dexter Bridgeman, CEO & Publisher of MIA and Legacy Magazine is back! This time he will share the importance of Customer Management. He will share his expertise on managing the needs and expectations of customers that consists o...
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36:02
Just Talking Business with Inez Long and Myrlande Simeon, Black Business Investment Fund (BBIF)
Capital Investment is imperative to business success whether it's from you, family, friend and/or an Angel Investor. Inez Long and Myrlande Simeon will tell us exactly what we need to know to look good in the eyes of an investor.P...
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38:54