New Powerhouse Team Member
We are thrilled to welcome Randi Cairns back to Powerhouse Planning! Randi is a former (20+-year) military spouse and a national advocate for military families. She’s a nonprofit professional who has dedicated over three decades to advocating for vulnerable populations. She’s also the owner of Randi Cairns Consulting, where she provides nonprofit and small business consulting and freelance writing and editing services. Her favorite title? Proud mama of four of the world’s greatest military kids who she hopes will always have a passion for learning and a heart for changing the world for the better.
New Powerhouse Team Member
Kate is incredibly excited to join the Powerhouse team as a graphic designer. She has six years of experience working in fast-paced agency settings and is looking forward to bringing her skills to this remote creative team. Along with her bachelor’s degree in graphic design, Kate holds a master’s degree in project management. She has a creative eye for detail as well as efficiency and process improvement.
Kate was born and raised in South Florida and then moved to Alaska after graduating college. She quickly fell in love with the mountains. Kate enjoys anything that will get her outside—hiking, camping, gardening, photography, and archery. On any given night, you can find her watching the sun set over the farmer’s field behind her house in Oklahoma. Kate’s husband, Noah, is an active-duty Air Force pilot. They have two huskies that bring much joy, and fur, into their lives.
New Powerhouse Team Member
Danielle is excited to join Powerhouse Planning as a finance specialist. In her 18 years in the financial industry, she has worn many hats. She started her career as a bank teller for a small community bank and quickly advanced into other areas of banking, finance, and tech. Her experience includes roles such as lending operations, project manager, IT support, BSA/AML specialist, internal auditor, and accountant. Prior to the pandemic, she was the senior accountant for Ron Jon Surf Shop but left to homeschool her children and focus on her family. Danielle currently holds a full-time position with Pershing of BNY Mellon in bank and depository balancing.
Danielle lives on Space Coast of Florida in Merritt Island with her husband and two teenagers. In her free time when she is not driving the kids to and from rehearsals or practices, she likes to work on home improvement projects, tend to her ever-growing collection of plants, or work on macrame creations for her side gig, Joy Bus Art. She also loves to travel, so she and her husband purchased a 30-foot 1998 Thomas school bus that they are slowly turning into a tiny home on wheels.
A creative problem solver with a great attention to detail, Danielle is always looking for ways to improve processes to make them more efficient while also remaining compliant to current policies and standards. She is eager to bring these skills to Powerhouse and is incredibly thankful for the opportunity to work with such a dynamic team of positive people with a passion for serving others.
CEO SPOTLIGHT
Good Things Happen Over Coffee: How Two Entrepreneurs Brewed Success
By: Nicole Keeny
Strong. Bold. Energizing. The words we often use to describe coffee also happen to define the cofounders and co-owners of Alpha Coffee, Carl and Lori Churchill. This entrepreneurial husband-wife team represents what you get when you brew passion with discipline and dedication.
As a 21-year U.S. Army combat veteran, Carl sat down with his wife Lori over a cup of delicious craft coffee roasted by a family member to discuss their future, brainstorm business ideas, and determine what to do next. “In mid-2010, we found ourselves deep into the Great Recession, and the startup I worked for had just gone bankrupt,” Carl says. “Lori had a corporate massage business that also got crushed by the Great Recession. After no luck finding a ‘normal job’ due to hiring freezes and deepening unemployment across the country, we realized we were caught in a financial ambush and were going to bleed out unless we did something bold.” (more…)
DID YOU KNOW?
Entrepreneurship is on the rise in America. After a steady decline beginning in the 1980s, the global pandemic has helped inspire the current growth trend. (It hasn’t been all bad!) According to U.S. Census Bureau data, the rate for entrepreneurial businesses was 38%, up from 29% in 2018. This growth rate spells great things because entrepreneurship drives economic growth, and according to Forbes.com, “Most job creation comes from companies that are 0-5 years old.”
As Powerhouse Planning celebrates its 10th anniversary, we’d like to remind you about the gifts we have for you. Check out the many free resources available on our website! From starting a small business, to making the most of conferences, to facilitating team building in-office or virtually, and more, our resources are designed to help you wherever you are on your entrepreneurial journey. Curious about how Powerhouse can come alongside you to take your small business to the next level? Contact us today for details.
MARKETING BUZZ
Four Tips to Market Yourself as an Entrepreneur in 2022
By: Julia Maier
There is no better time to be an entrepreneur than right now. When we look back on history, this very well could be considered the golden age of entrepreneurship. With icons such as Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk blazing trails; and companies such as Airbnb becoming increasingly popular, the desire to take your passion and be your own boss is all the rage. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration 2020 Small Business Profile, we saw 31.7 million small businesses started by entrepreneurs in that year alone. The glamor of owning your own business is everywhere. But the struggles these entrepreneurs face are often not shared with the public. Still, as Thomas Jefferson once said, “With great risk comes great reward.”
Just ask Powerhouse CEO and entrepreneur Jess Bertsch, who got very real about the high risk and high reward of starting your own business. So, what does it take to become a successful entrepreneur? For starters, a support system is key: people who see your vision and are there to support you in the highs and the lows. Those people will also be your biggest marketers in the beginning. Most small businesses don’t have the budget big corporations do to get their brand out there. However, in 2022, it doesn’t necessarily take big pockets to promote your business. Here are a few tips to market your small business:
- Find your target audience. When you come up with your initial business plan, one of your first considerations should be whom you are selling to. Being able to know and understand the gender, age, culture, etc. of your future clients will be essential to how you run your business.
