Inspired by her grandfather’s love of gardening, Ariana Marbley decided to open her florist shop, Esscents of Flowers, in Oakland, California in 2016. As an East Oakland native, she is proud to own a business in a community that is rich in culture and political awareness.
Category: San Francisco Bay Area
Lina Mills, Creative Ideas Catering
Lina Mills worked in the catering business for 25 years. Then she had to go on disability leave for three months due to a back injury. While out on leave, her clients kept calling to ask where she was going next. They wanted to hire her again.
Sana Javeri Kadri, Diaspora Co.
Everything about Diaspora Co exudes passion. From the company’s growing line of consciously sourced and sustainably grown spices and its vibrant digital media channels to several creative product partnerships.
Shani Jones, Peaches Patties
Peaches Patties is owned and operated by Shani Jones and Yeheyis Bedada. The duo bake and cater traditional Jamaican dishes and patties. The name for Peaches Patties comes from Shani’s mother, who is lovingly referred to as “Peaches” by friends and family. According to Shani, if you visited the Jones family household anytime in the late ’80s or ’90s, you might have found a Jamaican beef patty shoved in between the sofa cushions.
Teri Beckett, SKS Engineering and Planning, Inc.
Teri Beckett is the founder, President, and Chief Engineer of SKS Engineering and Planning, Inc. As a civil engineer, ocean engineer, and arborist leading a team of four, Teri works to ensure coastal construction projects are environmentally compliant.
Jeff Phillips and Sherry Soleski, Comet Corn
Comet Corn is a popcorn manufacturer producing flavored, organic bagged popcorn. They also vend the product at music and community festivals around Northern California.
Jeff Phillips and Sherry Soleski have created a product that appeals to the foodie-centric nature of the area.
Lamees Dahbour, Mama Lamees
Most Americans have sampled hummus, that creamy Middle Eastern blend that is the perfect complement for vegetables and crackers. Well, the Bay Area is now excitedly trying new items like musakhan: pita bread with onions, almonds, and sumac.
Patricia Van Der Beek, CreArt Preschool
Originally from Brazil, Patricia Van Der Beek came to the US to make her childhood dream of starting a preschool a reality. She worked three jobs to put herself through a Master’s program in early childhood education. Then she won a scholarship that allowed her to complete a business management certificate at UC Berkeley. In 2015, with the help of the Marin SBDC, she was able to open CreArt Preschool.
Ivellisse Morales, bombilla
For a decade, Ivelisse Morales has been an expert in marketing, helping brands of all sizes with the power of creativity. In 2018, she decided to leave her career in corporate responsibility to start her dream company.
Sofia Lopez, Santo Hermano Pedro Boutique
Back in Antigua, Guatemala, Sofia Lopez had a small business. She sold items like pocketbooks, belts, and wallets on the vibrant main square. She always wanted to run such a venture and was achieving success. That is, until violence compelled her to leave her homeland a decade ago.