Company

Going beyond managing their businesses, this group of founders are creating environmental change through their ventures. Learn how they’re up-cycling plastic bottles, making drinking water more accessible, and protecting ocean life.

Londoners Kristina Velkova and Sara Douglas found that no shampoo could combat the effects of their city’s hard water and perpetual rain. So they tackled the problem at the source. In 2017, the two women founded beauty brand Vitaclean and launched their first product: an aromatherapy showerhead that filters hard water—and also gives back. Here’s how these friends found a millennial audience for a bathroom fixture.

Boston’s storied history is preserved in the details, even as the city evolves. And it is, according to one local, “a collaboration of new and old communities built on a gritty, sturdy structure.” Among  those communities is South End, an arts-centric borough with foodie leanings. I zigzagged through South End, interviewing people behind independent local businesses—dog bakeries and shoe manufacturers and pattern designers alike—to uncover what makes this tiny pocket of Boston unique.

We’re not laughing about murder,” podcast hosts Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark are careful to remind listeners. But they are. Just not like that. My Favorite Murder is a true crime comedy podcast that debuted in January 2016, and quickly landed at No. 1 on the iTunes comedy charts.

The rich community of die-hard fans—called Murderinos—has not only ignited friendships and provided a safe space to obsess over every detail of Ted Bundy’s crimes or debate theories involving the infamous staircase murder. It has also inspired fan art. And even new businesses. Learn how a podcast about death gave life to a community of makers.

Taryn Rodighiero launched KaiKini and grew the business quickly, hiring six employees and shipping her Hawaii-made swimwear worldwide. Then, Taryn had her first child. The stress of balancing home and work life prompted her to bring on a partner—a mistake that plunged the company into unimaginable debt. During the darkest days of the business, she says, she almost quit. This is one founder’s deeply personal story of financial struggle.

Detroit has undeniably prevailed through the most catastrophic blows to its economy. Once, hundreds of thousands of people worked in the city’s auto industry until the largest car manufacturer closed and kicked off a decades-long decline. But though automakers left the rust belt in their dust, the manufacturing heart of the city beat on, and instead of cars, that workforce is using its skills to make everything from denim and bikes to jewelry and coffee.

As a diver, Natalie Parra often saw turtles and sharks tangled in fishing line, covered in nets and ropes, and struggling for their lives. That’s why she and her friend Siena Schaar began work on a nonprofit awareness project called Keiko Conservation. In 2014, Natalie contracted a virus and the autoimmune reaction left her paralyzed—but it didn’t slow down her fight to help marine life.

In his first year of running Two Wheel Gear, after the high of scoring a purchase order with a national retailer, Reid Hemsing was delivered a blow: his business partner wanted out. On the hook for loans, with all of his money invested in the business, Reid was stranded. How would he stay afloat? This is the first-person story of one founder’s financial struggle.

Venice, California is an eclectic mix of old and new. Give it a decade or two, and maybe it will have lost its gritty surfer-artist charm altogether. But, for now, those born and raised here are holding tight to its roots—roots that have brought life to a much more polished Venice, for better or worse. From a humble beachside café to a music studio–cum–surf culture brand, I crisscrossed their neighborhood to speak to the people behind the independent businesses in this oceanfront enclave.

Launching a business on its own is an act of bravery, often fueled by a drive to pursue a personal passion while making a living doing it. But what if that motivation is outside of ourselves? Meet the changemakers. Eight social entrepreneurs share their recommended reads —  the books that inspire their acts of doing good.

In 2016, Tina Gong drained her savings to fund the first print run of her tarot deck under the brand Labyrinthos. But what started as a side project is now Tina’s primary source of income. From her home studio, she creates a virtual world, designing and selling physical tarot decks and the accompanying mobile learning apps and online resources. Her ultimate success, though, sometimes came at great personal cost. This is one founder’s story of financial struggle.

Nestled on the western edge of Vancouver Island, Tofino is mostly enclosed by waves and dotted with ancient cedar. Its creative community is one with nature, an idea that organically weaves its way into the essence of their work. This is how these makers highlight their habitat—and earn a living—through crafting, surfing, and foraging in Tofino, and nowhere else.