Local Female Entrepreneurs Honored at Annual Fall Event Luncheon on November 7

Allison Bross-White started crafting her business plan in high school. She envisioned making a living by combining the things she was most passionate about—social responsibility, clothing and hip hop. After receiving degrees in fashion design, merchandise marketing and business administration management, Allison was ready to launch her unique business concept—a “buy outright” clothing store featuring gently used designer items, street gear and locally-sourced products with a focus on urban trends. Her college debt prohibited her from getting a bank loan, but thanks to funding from WomenVenture, Allison’s dream business—B. Resale—became a reality. A year later, Allison was ready for expansion and received additional funding from WomenVenture that allowed her to move to her ideal storefront location in South Minneapolis. A new mom who makes space for her son at the shop, Allison remains dedicated to keeping wearable garments out of landfills, and her business continues to thrive.

Katie Steller Schultz was a tomboy growing up and didn’t give much thought to her appearance. Everything changed when a major illness caused her hair to fall out. Katie felt she had lost a significant part of herself and became depressed. To cheer her up, Katie’s mom treated her to a salon day. The care she received from the stylist was life-changing and inspired Katie to pursue a career as a hair stylist. She dreamt of owning a salon that catered to its employees and believed that happy stylists would make for happy clients. After overcoming hurdles with licensing and location, Katie’s final obstacle was funding her small business. When traditional banks were unable to do so, WomenVenture partnered with the City of Minneapolis to fund Steller Hair Company. After one year, the business continues to exceed revenue goals, but Katie does not measure her success by numbers alone. She is respected in the industry for her commitment to paying her stylists a living wage and for providing them with a nurturing work environment.

Kristy Allen has long been an ambassador for honeybees. And as a member of a beekeeping family, she knew that hives were dying and the bee population was in trouble, so she decided to take action. Kristy’s original business concept combined her love of bees and bicycles—she initially planned to deliver honey from her aunt and uncle’s Northern Minnesota bee ranch to buyers in the Twin Cities by bike, to raise money for urban hives. The Beez Kneez grew quickly and proceeds from honey sales were also used to support urban beekeeping and community education programs. As the demand for these programs increased, it became clear to Kristy that her business plan needed to evolve, so she came to WomenVenture for guidance to grow her business. Today, Kristy and her business partner maintain more than 60 honeybee hives in public spaces in the Twin Cities where they also provide community education opportunities. Beekeeper support is provided through the Beez Kneez Honey House and advocacy work continues through the Beez Kneez Healthy Bees, Healthy Lives campaign.