On the podcast today is Angie Avard Turner, an attorney who loves pattern and color.  After over 20 years in retail, 14 years in wholesale, and 8 years in licensing, Angie decided to meet a glaring need of creatives—an attorney who was familiar with the needs of creative entrepreneurs and an understanding of the law. 

Joining me on the podcast today is Kae Whitaker, owner and CEO of Kae Whitaker Media Group. Kae specializes in helping service providers create automated marketing systems that close the gap in leads lost, enhance their sales processes and keep customers returning through delivering an amazing experience and increasing client referrals.  

Charles Sedaker is with us for another of the Profit First Success Stories. Cheryl started sewing at age 5 and, by her teenage years, she was already making clothes for other people. She graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology, Cornell University and has a Master's from the University of Connecticut - specializing in clothing and textiles.

SeaCheryl Designs began after Cheryl left corporate in 2005, so that she could return to her love of fabric and soft home furnishings. Cheryl has a thirst for continuing education and she uses that to stay up to date on the latest methods and trends in the industry. She's completed courses through WCAA, the Custom Home Furnishings Academy, Workroom Tech and at Custom Workroom Conferences.

Vita Vygovska is joining us today to talk about building businesses that are sustainable, profitable and scalable. She is an award-winning author, speaker, and window treatment specialist.  Her company, Vitalia, Inc.- Fine Window Treatments & Interiors, is an all-encompassing fabrication, measurement, installation, and project management service exclusively for interior designers and architects.  In business for over 13 years, Vita and her team are proud to be experts in their narrow field, providing their clients with superb quality product and excellent communication.  Most importantly, they take off the stress, save time, and provide a peace of mind in the job is well-done.

Mark McDonough is with us today. With over 20 years of marketing expertise growing brands and making them explode online, Mark brings his expertise to the digital world. Mark, along with business partner, Kathleen Bandaruk, are shaping the face of the interior design industry by offering valuable content and tips in their fast-growing Facebook group, Interior Design Marketing. The Tastefully Inspired Agency prides itself on getting small businesses across the globe, fast results on and off social media. Their expert marketing knowledge and lean, scrappy mindset keeps them ahead of the pack.

Mark is proudest of being a father of three amazing girls who inspire him daily. Normally when he is working, he has the youngest on his lap wanting a sip of his coffee. His motto for everything he does is "family first".

On the podcast today is Claire Jefford.  Claire began her award winning Interior Decorating firm in 2011 & quickly grew her business, boasting the highest reviewed design professional in the Greater Toronto area with 100 Houzz reviews. In 2017, Claire started a second business as a Business Coach.

With a background in Human Resources, Claire is passionate about having organized processes, marketing & she also loves creating videos. Audiences love Claire for her authentic personality, her helpful, straight up advice & cheeky sense of humor.

Shauna is an award-winning home staging industry expert and business strategist, fiercely committed to guiding aspiring entrepreneurs to achieve success in all facets of their business. She is A veteran of educating and inspiring entrepreneurs from all industries, and has built a thriving home staging and design business, been voted number one in her local region, and oversees a remarkable team of home staging and design professionals. In 2015, she founded Styled, Listed, and Sold (SLS) Academy to provide core and continuing education for home staging professionals, and has created a comprehensive and systematic program for teaching the technical and the business side of the home staging world. Prior to founding her home staging and design company, Shauna Lynn worked as an analyst. She continues to apply her technical training in Mathematics to her every day work, combining creativity with logic to achieve incredible results. 

Joining me on the podcast today is Shawna Percival, owner of Styleberry Creative Interiors.  Shawna’s 10-year design career started with a Business, Art & Media degree, grew into the popular Styleberry Blog of the late 2000s, and became the flourishing design firm that Styleberry Creative Interiors is today. Shawna believes that an ordered, beautiful space is the fastest way to a family’s harmony and happiness at home — and she loves nothing more than bringing this to life for clients across her tight-knit community. A San Francisco Bay Area native, Shawna currently lives in San Antonio with her military physician husband and their two young children. When she’s not designing, you can find her sweating it out at yoga, cooking in the kitchen, or sporting her signature hoodie.

On our podcast today is Kolleen Losch, owner of Core Physique and Core 57. Kolleen is a certified personal trainer, as well as Corrective Exercise Specialist with the National Academy of Sports Medicine, and a Master Trainer for Trigger Point Therapy. Being a mom, wife, and business owner, she understands the demands our lives make that can interfere with our health and fitness. Her passion is making fitness realistic and accessible for anyone – no matter what challenges they might face.

Debbie DiFrancesco is joining us today for the Profit First Success Stories episode. Debbie has been sewing since the age of seven and founded Creative Hands in 1990 to supplement the family income. Initially, Debbie provided general sewing and bridle alteration services, while working a second job as an assistant manager at House of Fabrics/ So-Fro Fabrics until 1991.  Two years later, Creative Hands transitioned from alterations to exclusively fabricating window treatments and selling hard treatments. Soon after, in 1997, Debbie attended courses at the professional drapery workroom school - later known as the custom home furnishings Academy and Swannanoa, North Carolina under Cheryl Strickland.  Since then, she has participated in the Custom Home Furnishings Conference and International Window Coverings Expos - as both an attendee and window treatment fabrication instructor.

Joining us on the podcast today is Julianne Taylor. Julianne is the Founder and Creative director of Taylor Burke Home. She is also a published author, collaborator, public speaker and business consultant to creatives. Her newest venture, Julianne Taylor Style allows her to be creative and to work with other companies to put her ‘look’ on all types of products, from wallpaper to pajamas to table top items. Julianne is sharing her story today about building her brand, a bit about licensing product and really using her creativity to express herself and make a living.

JoAnne Lenart-Weary is the owner of the JLW Company, a decorator, home stager, instructor and so much more. She has had a career in the interior design industry for over 40 years. She founded the Decorating and Staging Academy and continues to provide assistance in building curriculum and growth strategies for the academy. JoAnne can be found at many conferences and online, sharing her vast knowledge.

Amy Flurry operates an independent communication studio that assists companies in developing and implementing focused communication strategies that position them for the next stage of growth. She draws on her experience in the fashion and home furnishings industry. Also, she applies trend direction to product development and an expanding market strategies to connect businesses to the interior design trade. Amy is the author of Recipe for Press, which has two editions.

Marie Kurmin is the owner of Kurmin Kreations. Marie graduated from the University of Rhode Island with a degree in Fashion Merchandising and Marketing. She opened Kurmin Kreations to allow her to be home with her kids and pursue her passion. Marie offers design, fabrication and installation of custom window treatments to interior designers and retail clients in the New England area.

Darren Virassammy is the Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of 34 Strong - a new breed of consultancy that believes everyone deserves a great place to work and that any workplace can be great. A leading expert in the global Employee Engagement Community, the 34 Strong team leverages the Gallup Strengths Finder Assessment and the Q12 Employee Engagement Survey to create massive shifts within organizations - both culturally and on the bottom line.

Darren is a nationally acclaimed keynote speaker and facilitator on the topic of strength leadership and employee engagement.

Scott Beebe is the founder and head coach of My Business on Purpose and he's the host of the My Business on Purpose podcast. He loves to liberate small business owners from the chaos of working in their business and helps to get their lives back by assisting them in articulating and implementing intentional vision mission values, systems and processes.

Tracie holds a Bachelor’s degree in Apparel Engineering and a Master’s degree in Quality Assurance Technology from Southern Polytechnic State University. She worked in the apparel and the consumer products industries for 12 years.  Tracie opened  Custom Creations in 1996, fabricating custom window treatments and accessories .

Tracie will share her journey to good money management using Profit First and the Master Your Profit course.

Natalie Reddell, also known as the ‘COMMANDER in CHIC®’, is a Richmond, Virginia based interior designer who has earned a reputation for her passionate approach to creating elegant interiors that feature layered styles, textures, colors and patterns. Specializing in luxury residential interiors, Reddell translates her love of travel, fashion and art into vibrant, tailored spaces that reflect the personalities of the people that reside in them. Over the past eighteen years Reddell has designed homes nationally and internationally, including modern beachfront properties, classic mountain retreats, updated-traditional farm estates, eclectic city apartments and warm, inviting family-friendly homes. Reddell’s strength lies in her ability to pair classic style with custom details and functionality tailored to each client.

Susan Woodcock owns Home Dec Gal, a how-to sewing resource and custom workroom in Western North Carolina, and is a Bluprint (formerly Craftsy) instructor and international speaker.  Susan’s publishing credits include Singer® Sewing Custom Curtains, Shades and Top Treatments.  Together with her husband, Rodger Walker, Susan co-produces the Custom Workroom Conference, an annual educational event and trade show.  In 2017, Susan and Rodger founded Custom Workroom Technical Center or “Workroom Tech”, a hands-on training facility dedicated to the workroom industry. She credits her mother with teaching her to sew and inspiring her career of creativity. 

Annette Faber is the owner of Kaylees Creations in Greenville, SC. She is a to-the-trade workroom focused on high end fabrication and dress maker details. Annette strives to add value to her design teams by working hard, being trustworthy, collaborating and living the core values of her business - integrity, transparency, excellence, dependability, and leaving a positive fingerprint on each person she interacts with.

Annette shares with us her financial journey before, during and after the implementation of Profit First.