Entrepreneurially Thinking: Innovation | Experimentation | Creativity | Business

Looking for something fun to do in St. Louis? You can get an up-close look at downtown St. Louis, the Gateway Arch, Forest Park or the Soulard/Lafayette Square area from the comfort of a three-wheeled, motorized machine called an Elekktric Trikke vehicle. Trikke tours are the newest way to explore the city’s most popular sites with ease. A completely new riding and touring experience that's fun, functional and perfect for groups, couples and families. The founder knows how to create a good time!! Joining us today is Bill Smith, who affectionately goes by the name “SHOE” from his days in morning radio and radio image production. He was the recipient of numerous industry awards and he’s worked with talent at Premiere and Westwood One. His phenomenally fun franchise provides engaging and entertaining tours and event facilitation in the St. Louis Region! Website Company Facebook Company Twitter Company LinkedIn Page Personal Facebook Personal Twitter Personal LinkedIn Personal Hashtags #WannaGoForA

What better way to have deep, meaningful conversation and exchange than over a cup of coffee? Our guest today has created the space for courageous conversations as well as for coffee. He has also created a space for underrepresented voices and unspoken dialogue to be heard. Cheryl and Christy sit down with entrepreneur, husband, father and newly elected first ever African-American member of the Clayton School District Board of Education, Jason Wilson today on #ETHINKSTL In this episode: In an article it noted that when people found out that Jason was an African-American man, business began to decline. He said “that doesn’t stop me from wanting to be in the game”. - What the real “game” is that folks don’t want to talk about. - How Jason is changing the way the game is played. - Why coffee? How Jason emerged into entrepreneurship. - The little whispers and conversations that were taking place were fuel for Jason. What was his response. - The challenges and obstacles he's encountered as a business owner

Joining us today are Phillip Sangokoya and LaTonya Thompson. Phillip is the Management Consultant & Vice President of the Business Resource Association for Networking & Development (BRAND) of St. Louis & the BRAND of St. Louis Foundation. Latoya Thompson is a client of BRAND of St. Louis. She is the CEO & Founder of Heritage1933. Heritage 1933™ serves women and children affected by homelessness. Thompson has inspired customers to join the Heritage 1933™ initiative by donating hair care products to women children living in shelters. BRAND of St. Louis aims to leverage innovative, collaborative strategies to solve urban economic challenges and bring accelerating solutions to communities. In this episode: How BRAND of St. Louis defines branding. - What inspired the creation of BRAND of St. Louis. - The contrast and comparison of higher education principles or approaches of marketing to those of the corporate marketplace. - The contrast and comparison of higher education principles or appro

Visionary strategist, master communicator, top-notch trainer and facilitator Rebeccah Bennett joins us today! She is the Founder and Principal of Emerging Wisdom LLC. With InPower Institute, a division of Emerging Wisdom, she offers hundreds of programs and events that spur human growth. She teaches participants how to unlock their personal power to create extraordinary lives. Her life and journey is extraordinary as well. The lessons that she shares of her path to entrepreneurship have given her an awareness and experience that will literally stir your soul. Rebeccah led a successful career in public policy consulting, organizational and community planning and public engagement for over 20 years prior to launching Emerging Wisdom. Emerging Wisdom LLC is a forward thinking social enterprise that helps individuals live empowered lives; assists leaders to build impactful organizations and promotes communities to generate brighter futures. She founded Emerging Wisdom to facilitate shifts with individuals, con

Joining us today is Dr. Jennifer Silva, an Associate Professor in Pediatric Cardiology at Washington University School of Medicine. She founded SentiAR with her partner and husband, Jonathan Silva who is an Assistant Professor in Biomedical Engineering at Wash U. SentiAR is developing the first intra-procedural use of augmented reality in this space. Using the Microsoft HoloLens, they can display a patient-specific heart hologram with the real-time catheter locations to better guide minimally invasive catheter based procedures. In this episode: - What is cardiac electrophysiology. - Dr. Silva's personal journey to cardiac medicine. - How she emerged into entrepreneurship. - Some of the challenges she experienced along the way and how she stepped outside of her comfort zone. - What has been the greatest surprise in entrepreneurship. - How she finds balance with family, work, and community. Learn more: Website: Company Twitter: Company LinkedIn Page: Personal Twitter: Personal LinkedIn: Entrepreneu

Joining us today are Kevin Bryant, Chair of the Kingsway Merchant's Association with James Buchanan, the Commercial District Manager with the St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC). The Kingsway Merchant's Association has been working since 1983 to support and improve the business vitality in one of our largest districts. The district is comprised of member businesses and other concerned residents, who are all working together for the continued support and sustainability of the business community. Kevin Bryant is the Founder and CEO of Conversions Global Marketing, a creative marketing firm that tackles the growing impact of diversity on brands by merging local action with global thinking. The SLDC is the economic development arm for the City of St. Louis, Missouri. In this episode: - What inspired this redevelopment plan. - How KMA overcame the multiple challenges faced with this plan. - The vision for the district. What success would look like. - What it means that the KMD is “Making Dreams A Real

Joining us today are Maria Meyers and Kate Pope Hodel of Sourcelink, a program of the University of Missouri- Innovation Center with a single mission: to make entrepreneurship easier. Maria is Founder Executive Director. Kate is with Special Projects. Together they run the network that builds entrepreneurial communities and stacks the cards in your favor! SourceLink has helped communities transform fragmented economic development organizations into vibrant and vital ecosystems. Developed through support from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, the U.S. Small Business Administration and the University of Missouri-Kansas City, SourceLink connects resources to each other and to a national network of best practices to help communities create jobs, accelerate business and strengthen local economies. In this episode: - How Maria became known as “the queen of entrepreneurship” throughout the Midwest. - The origins of SourceLink. - The biggest challenges for business owners. - Where business owners are least eff

Meet the dynamic husband-and-wife team that blends engineering excellence with enterprise. They do so while dedicating their lives toward the advancement of young and emerging engineering talent. They are community leaders and pace-setters for our region's growth. Abe and Nicole Adewale of ABNA Engineering are with us today. Abe and Nicole Adewale, founders of ABNA Engineering, a civil and structural engineering firm. They design for industrial, educational, healthcare and commercial projects and provide surveying, Geotech, construction management, testing & inspection and planning for major public works projects. Abe and Nicole founded ABNA Engineering in 1994 after a decade of service at the Illinois Department of Transportation working on major roadway and bridge construction projects. In this episode: -What engineering represents to each of them. -How and why did it engineering emerge into entrepreneurship for the Adewales. -What is their overarching business philosophy. -What are some of the cha

Joining us today is Erin Joy, founder of Black Dress Partners--a business consulting and coaching organization that helps emerging and evolving women business owners strategize, prioritize, and execute organizational growth as well as effectiveness. After 15 years of selling and consulting in the real estate industry, she founded Black Dress Partners in 2011. Erin is a third-generation female entrepreneur. She understands the rewards and challenges of starting a company and fueling its success. It is her life’s mission to provide female business owners with the resources, services, and support they need to be successful in business and life. In this episode: - Details about the Midwest Women Business Owners Conference. - Erin has entrepreneurial lineage. Did her matriarchs face challenges similar to the ones of the women she works with today? - What trends are specific to women-owned businesses across industries. - Where women business owners are most effective. Least effective. Seeking direction. - "Hi

At the intersection of Medicine, Entrepreneurship, and Design is MEDLaunch. MEDLaunch is a non-profit biomedical incubator that solves healthcare problems with interdisciplinary teams of students at St. Louis University. Joining us today are: John Hardin, a phenomenal business man and the executive director of MEDLaunch and Lucas Rydberg, a previous team leader (Phas3). In this episode: - About the MEDLaunch program and how it was inspired/founded - The development and overall success of MEDLaunch as a whole - What the teams and work with university students entail. - What the university students learned. - Who the key role models or examples of success are. - What is Demo Day

On this episode of #ETHINKSTL you will gain insights, wisdom and inspiration from the man who engaged our audience as our guest for our BioStL Inclusion Initiative, "An Evening With...". He launched his multi-million dollar, St. Louis-based pharmaceutical and medical service company from a stellar career in pharmaceutical sales...How could he? How did he? In the studio with us is Eric Bailey. He is the founder and CEO of EMED Medical Company. Bailey oversees the strategic direction of the St. Louis based multi-million dollar pharmaceutical and medical service company. With a national distribution presence, EMED is a viable provider of pharmaceuticals, medical products, managed care and specialty pharmacy services. Bailey founded EMED in January 1999. Before that, he worked in the pharmaceutical industry, serving in the areas of sales, national accounts management and products management. Bailey worked for several Fortune 500 companies such as Johnson and Johnson, Teva Pharmaceuticals, Roche Labs and Sun Phar

With us on the show today is Dr. Perry Drake. He founded the Midwest Digital Marketing Conference, which is named by Forbes as one of the top marketing conference to check out in 2018. He is currently the Assistant Professor of Digital and Social Media Marketing in the College of Business Administration at the University Of Missouri – St. Louis. He is responsible for the creation and instruction of the digital and social media marketing courses and programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels in addition to noncredit curriculums and certifications. He also serves as the faculty advisor to the UMSL Marketing Advisor Board and the UMSL Marketing Club. He also teaches in the UMSL International MBA program located in Germany and Finland. According to a survey of 4,000 marketers by Econsultancy, the top two digital trends in 2020 are going to be focused on customer experience (24%) and personalization (23%). This reflects a shift from the previous one-to-many marketing strategy to more of a one-to-one, data-

New high-end male grooming salons and barbershops are popping up in cities around the country. Men are paying premium prices at these places to get everything from a haircut and a shave to a wax and mani-pedi. According to research company, Statista, this global male "pampering" and grooming culture is a market that is estimated to be worth about 29.14 billion U.S. dollars by 2024. Joining us on #ETHINKSTL today are identical twins Eugene and Erik Potts of Original Gents Menswear. They are natives of St. Louis and grew up in Walnut Park.They attended Cardinal Ritter College Prep HS and graduated from Beaumont HS to answer the customary St. Louis "Where'd you go to HS" question. They served in youth organizations and were active in the community. In their early years, people knew them as hard workers and entrepreneurs. They also earned notoriety as rising stars in modeling. They have built upon their positive community reputation to create successful and lucrative men's product line and premium grooming busin

The conversation around entrepreneurship is expanding more and more to create space at the table for young business people. Youth entrepreneurship programs and training have been created for children in high school, middle school and now even in elementary school. In this episode we meet a couple of young entrepreneurs who are gaining invaluable lessons and experience from THE organization that has been training and grooming young women for over 100 years. Joining us is Bonnie Barczykowski. She is the Chief Executive Officer of the Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri. With Bonnie is 9-year-old Girl Scout Brownie, Aria Pelikan and 13-year-old Girl Scout Cadette, Taylor Boaz. Both are extraordinary examples of the legacy of leadership, adventure, and success. In this episode: - How the Girl Scouts offer every girl a chance to practice a lifetime of leadership, adventure, and success. - How entrepreneurship is integrated in programs. - How the CEO of Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri approaches the effort to give ev

There are millions of minority-owned businesses in the United States. While the number of minority-owned businesses is on the rise, many are often faced with challenges when it comes to clear plans of action to achieve their major goals. How do minority-firms know what to do when a standard or design has never existed? In this episode of #ETHINKSTL, we will learn more about the St. Louis Minority Business Council. This business development organization focuses on assisting minority owned businesses to develop strategic relationships and partnerships with major sourcing organizations. The result is mutually beneficial business relationships that facilitate measurable regional economic prosperity and equity. Joining us is Lakesha Mathis. She is the Program Manager with the St. Louis Regional Chamber. Lakesha was born in Chicago, Illinois and raised in Arkansas. She received a BA from the University of Missouri, St. Louis in Political Science. Later she returned to UMSL to continue her studies this time focusi

Meet the dynamic Genera Moore, founder and CEO of Motorparts Nation. If you look at Genera Moore’s LinkedIn profile you might not know that she is a St. Louis native. In fact, she is a global citizen. She’s journeyed from Atlanta to Dubai to Africa and back to St. Louis through industries ranging from entertainment to government to motor parts. She’s produced global entertainment events for the likes of Janet Jackson and Snoop Dogg. She cut her international business chops with a brokerage firm that obtained the rights for various luxury brands and brought their franchises into the Dubai market. She introduced the first Lexani luxury motorcar to the market and LXR&CO for women's vintage hand bags. She moves mountains from whatever port she calls home. Cheryl and Christy catch up with her when she was in town for a little while. We get to take a ride with her as she shares her inspiring entrepreneurial story. In this episode: - How she entered into her line of work - How to find a co-owner - How to move i

In May of 1965, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. addressed to the Negro American Labor Council stating, "there must be a better distribution of wealth within this country for all God’s children." From then to now our nation’s economic divide continues to widen. In his Nobel Peace Prize address he asserted, “There is nothing new about poverty. What is new, however, is that we have the resources to get rid of it.”. In this episode, we will learn more about the National MBA Association of Metro St. Louis. The organization who leads in the creation of educational opportunities and economic growth for African Americans through programs, partnerships and career opportunities in management. Joining us today is Carrie Sanders, President and Desiree Adeboye, the Entrepreneurship Co-Director/ VP of Recording with National Black MBA Association of Metro St. Louis.Carrie creates and implements marketing strategy development, risk mitigation & program analysis with LHHCII. Desiree is the owner of Prime International, busi

Agriculture is a changing landscape—and Monsanto is leading the way with technologies that are digitizing the farm and thereby digitizing agriculture. Today Cheryl and Christy are speaking with Jim Swanson, the Chief Information Officer of Monsanto to learn more about how he is using technology and innovation to impact and grow their business. A scientist by training, Swanson joined Monsanto because it allowed him to continue to pursue opportunities at the intersection of science, technology, and intellectual property innovation. As cited in Forbes, he has thought about the role of CIO much more strategically than most and is leading a digital revolution in the world’s oldest industry. We also have Mr. Malcom Mathis, an IT Business Architect at Monsanto and the President of the executive board of the St. Louis chapter of Black Data Processors Association (BDPA), a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing diversity in IT. Jim and Malcom share how Monsanto is using innovative technologies and how the o

If you classify yourself as a small business owner, an entrepreneur or someone with a side hustle looking to grow it into your full-time dream, you are in for a treat. We are joined by two fabulous women— Lynn Haynes, Director of MBE Services and Rhonda Carter Adams, the Executive Director for Central Illinois and Eastern MO — representing the Mid-States Minority Supplier Development Council. In this episode of "Entrepreneurially Thinking", discover more about what the Mid-States MSDC organization is and why they are important for you! Joining the conversation is the MBE, Regents Maintenance & Supply. President, Lamonte Sowell shares his story of how this organization has impacted him and his company. The Mid-States Minority Supplier Development Council is an affiliate of the National Minority Supplier Development Council and 1 of 23 regional councils operating in the U.S. Mid-States MSDC was created by the Indianapolis business community in the mid ‘70s to address and support minority business develop

For established, revenue positive companies, there is often nothing harder for founders than to make time to work on their business rather than in their business. Linda and Steve Hanlon know that challenge first-hand. And at first, they almost let the GVMS Flip Zone program pass them by. Thankfully, despite concerns about the time commitment, the Hanlon’s doubled down on their desire to grow LangeTech. That investment of time, money and energy is already paying off and they joined us along with GVMS Program Manager Hayley Johnston to talk about their experience and the other ways GVMS, one of the area’s oldest entrepreneur support organizations, helps startups and scale ups grow.