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We’ve helped thousands of entrepreneurs. Here are some of their

SUCCESS STORIES

Discovery College Consulting, LLC

When Sara Zessar first began meeting with consultants and attending programs at the Denver SBDC in 2013, she had a company name and not much else. A former high school counselor, Zessar wanted to start a college consulting practice to assist high school students with the college search and admissions process, but she had no experience in the business world. “I knew what I wanted to do, but I needed a lot of help in creating a viable business, especially in regards to marketing,” Zessar said.

Zessar began meeting with consultants at the Denver Metro SBDC in June 2013. Wendy King, a marketing consultant with the Denver Metro SBDC, advised her on developing a website and putting together marketing materials to share with potential clients. Although a friend had offered to teach Zessar how to design a website, the consultant encouraged her to pay someone to do her website – and said Zessar’s time would be better spent building her business.

“I definitely don’t think I’d be where I am today if not for the SBDC consultant – her guidance, assistance, and support have been paramount to helping me build my business, and I look forward to continuing to work with her in the future,” Zessar said.

In order to round out her consulting sessions and build her network, Zessar also took advantage of SBDC classes. She focused on digital marketing through programming.

In the summer of 2015, Zessar brought on an associate college consultant to accommodate growing demand. To date, 90% of Discovery College Consulting’s students have received college merit scholarships of up to $33,000.

Zessar’s company is now four years old, and, with the SBDC’s help, it has become a very successful business. Zessar has worked with over 90 students (and worked with hundreds as a high school counselor) and has helped them gain admission to more than 100 colleges.

Ristole

“Moving to Denver set me on a trajectory that changed the course of my life.” For Ristole CEO Jackie Adams, a woman whose life has already taken many turns, that’s saying something. Starting her career in computer programming, she quickly found the hours behind a computer screen tedious. She then applied for and was accepted to serve as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Tanzania, where she taught high school math in Swahili. After returning to

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Factotum Brewhouse

The concept of Factotum Brewhouse was first imagined when siblings Christopher and Laura Bruns met their other brother and sister for dinner. As it usually goes when the four congregate, several beers were consumed and before long the idea of a homebrewer-driven craft brewery began to materialize. No strangers to the craft beer scene, Christopher and Laura began racking their minds, trying to think of any brewery—local or otherwise—that truly focused on homebrewers. Was there

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Future Fit Foods

Future Fit Foods is a woman-and-minority-owned food startup out of Boulder, Colorado, bringing people diverse plant-based foods that prioritize the wellbeing and happiness of people and communities. They are also the winners of the 2021 Trout Tank CPG Pitch Event. Paloma Lopez, founder of Future Fit Foods realized the change people were making was incremental because the business models, brands, and products had not been designed with today’s sustainability and nutrition needs in mind. After

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Sky Blue Builders

When Mowa Haile set out to build a business with a couple of friends, they agreed on one fundamental principle: customer service. “The opportunity to be customer focused is what motivates us and differentiates us,” said Mowa, President of minority-owned Sky Blue Builders, LLC. “As consumers, we see the mistakes that big companies make – and we want to change that. Everything we do, we consider it from the perspective of the customer. If it

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Collective Counseling Solutions

Collective Counseling Solutions serves clients and therapists across 10 states, from Colorado to New York, by providing high-quality care to patients and being a resource for their network of therapists around the country. An SBDC client since 2018, Collective Counseling Solutions has shown exceptional growth since completing the Trout Tank Pitch Accelerator program and becoming a finalist for Start-Up of the Year at the 2022 Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce Business Awards! Founders Nicholas Mancini

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Create Cooking School

Create Cooking School has actively engaged with the SBDC community for two years by taking advantage of Leading Edge, Trout Tank, financial classes and multiple consultants within the network. And now, owners Erasmo Casiano and Diego Coconati are on the brink of opening Create Cooking School in the Stapleton neighborhood of Denver. Leading Edge played an important role in the growth of the company. Casiano learned that adapting and pivoting is beneficial to your business,

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