madeintheusa

Episode 14 - Steff Speirs is the owner of Sunshine and Sweet Pea’s Coastal Decor - a bright and colorful shop filled with art, decor, jewelry and all things coastal inspired. In 2018 Steff took her passion and knack for business and opened a retail space where art is center stage. Steff’s story includes lessons from operating previous businesses and overcoming unexpected life challenges time and time again. Her drive and determination to cultivate a place for community has allowed Sunshine and Sweet Pea’s to blossom into what it is today.

www.sunshinesweetpeas.com

Zach and Tricia were high school sweethearts. Little did they know when they started dating where life would take them.  Zach joined the Air Force and that dictated their lives for 20 years before retiring, just this past year. The military not only let them experience the world, but taught them perseverance. About 5 years before retirement they decided they wanted to start a business. Already handy, Zach had started dabbling in woodworking, matched with Tricia's accounting and business background TFTWood was born.

TFTWood

TFTWood, which stands for "The Family Tree Woodworking" is an online retailer that specializes in kitchen gifts, gadgets and accessories made of wood. This two-fold business also offers unique customized, luxury furniture and cabinets. The “Herbie”, an herb stripper is currently their most popular product. This little kitchen helper makes using herbs a breeze. Find this and more wood products like cutting boards and ornaments at the link below.

Listen to the podcast as they share their journey, what’s next for TFTWood and some marketing tips for entrepreneurs and small businesses.

Learn More

Website:  http://www.tftwood.com

Facebook & Instagram:  @tftwoodworking

Book Recommendation: Get Different  by Mike Michalowicz

 VeteranCrowd Network

Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch, or consider if Individual or Corporate Membership in the Network is a fit for you.

About Your Host

Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

This episode investigates conflicts that exist within the majority of Americans who want to "bring manufacturing back" but do not want their children to work in manufacturing because of outdated beliefs about what a machine shop looks like.

The Atlanta Story podcast features meaningful stories of Atlanta’s builders, creators, and entrepreneurs. In this episode Jon Birdsong sits down with Sara Irvani, CEO of Okabashi Brands.

This American Made brand produces over two million shoes a year right out of Buford, Georgia. Sara took the reins as CEO of the multi-generational family business three years ago and hasn’t looked back. In today’s episode, we talk about the effect of Covid-19 on the company, what makes a product and company American made, and future plans of Okabashi’s growth. After today’s episode, you’ll know more about how a family business has grown into a sizable player in the footwear space, why it’s important for factories to be located in the U.S., and how Okabashi is just getting started.  

The Atlanta Story is put together by the folks at Atlanta Ventures -- and we can’t wait to share some of the personalities behind the brand. Atlanta Ventures invests in entrepreneurs through community, content, and capital -- most notably through our Studio with companies like Greenzie and Intown Golf Club. We believe the best entrepreneurs learn from other great artists in different fields.

In this episode, we discuss…

1. Introduction of Sara Irvani and Okabashi (1:20)
2. What is Okabashi? (1:43)
3. How did Sara decide on the Okabashi value prop? (2:50)
4. How is Okabashi navigating Covid-19? (3:38)
5. Sara talks about the different markets and different brands under their umbrella. (4:30) 
6. What are the advantages of being American made right now? (6:30)
7. How does Sara double down on eCommerce at the moment? (7:40) 
8. Sara shares her personal journey to CEO. (8:50)
9. When did Sara gain the confidence to become the CEO? (11:05)
10. How did Sara create a fresh environment while still holding true to traditional values? (12:15)
11. How is Sara adjusting the company operations knowing the uncertainty of the business environment today? (14:05)
12. Sara shares how the sausage is made on the ecommerce side of the business. (16:08)
13. “Made in America” means a lot to different companies. What does it mean and can it be done today? (17:40)
14. During the outsourcing movement in the 90’s and 2000’s, why and how did Okabashi decide to stay “Made in America?” (21:45)
15. What are the two biggest challenges Okabashi must overcome to get to where they want to be? (23:15)
16. How does Sara tell the “Made in America” story of Okabashi even more? (24:00)
17. When launching a new brand, how do you find product-market fit? (25:56)
18. What were some of the surprises Sara experienced when moving back to Atlanta? (27:42)
19. Is most of the Okabashi talent sourced in Atlanta or do they move from out of state? (30:00)
20. What is the attitude Sara looks for in an employee and how does she find it? (31:45)
21. In a generational, family business how does Sara manage the transition? (33:34)
22. What has Atlanta done for Sara? (36:01)
23. Where will Okabashi be in 10 years and is the vision for it to be several hundred employees? (38:00)

How you can get involved: 

Visit atlantaventures.com/studio if you’re interested in learning more about Atlanta Ventures and the Studio. 

Where you can find us:

Website: www.atlstory.com

Twitter: @theatlantastory

Instagram: @theatlantastory

YouTube: Here

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Scott Hunter from Vedavoo talking Pig Farm Ink, Online Iron Fly, Labrador Brook Trout, and of course Vedavoo.