Category Archives: entrepreneurism

The Reality of Doing Business in Ypsilanti: a roundtable discussion with a half dozen of Ypsi’s most well known entrepreneurs

This Thursday evening, from 5:00 to 7:00, I’ll be on stage at Woodruff’s, facilitating a conversation between Bee Mayhew Roll (Beezy’s), Eli Morrissey (The Rocket), Darryl Daniels (Jacobsen Daniels Associates), and Wonder Woman (Bona Sera Cafe) about the challenges that entrepreneurs face in downtown Ypsilanti, and the opportunities, as they see them, that currently exist. […]

Also posted in Local Business, Locally Owned Business, Ypsilanti | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Local entrepreneurs Jean Henry, Lisa Waud and Helen Harding on what it means to be “Small and Mighty”

We didn’t announce it until this evening, but the October recipient of the Ann Arbor Awesome Foundation’s monthly $1,000 cash grant was Small & Mighty, the scrappy, little entrepreneurial support network created in the fall of 2012 by brilliant local shit-stirrers Jean Henry, Helen Harding and the cheese-loving Lisa Waud. What follows is a transcript […]

Also posted in Ann Arbor, Detroit, Local Business, Michigan, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 25 Comments

Ann Arbor’s vegan food cart The Lunch Room to evolve into a brick-and-mortar Kerrytown restaurant

Yesterday, the owners of Ann Arbor’s favorite vegan food cart, The Lunch Room, formally announced that they would be following in the footsteps of Eat, and making the transition from seasonal outdoor vendor to year-round brick and mortar. Following is my interview with Phillis Engelbert, who, together with Joel Panozzo, owns The Lunch Room. MARK: […]

Also posted in Ann Arbor, Food, Local Business, Locally Owned Business, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Lisa Waud on her plans to expand Ann Arbor’s Pot & Box into the thriving entrepreneurial hotbed that is Detroit’s Corktown

A few days ago, Linete and I foud ourselves in Detroit, without kids, poking around Corktown. The plan was to get something warm to drink at Astro Coffee, but it looked too crowded. Linette peaked in, through one of the fogged-up windows, to see if there was space for me. (She can fit most anywhere. […]

Also posted in Ann Arbor, Local Business, Locally Owned Business, Mark's Life, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 24 Comments

Grand Rapids shows us how economic development is done right… home-grown food entrepreneurship over dollar stores

A few months ago, when I was in Grand Rapids, attending the annual BALLE (Business Alliance for Local Living Economies) conference, I had the occasion to hear a speech given by the city’s Mayor, George Heartwell. I can’t find my notes at the moment, but I seem to recall that, buried somewhere in the long […]

Also posted in Economics, Environment, Michigan, Sustainability, Uncategorized, Ypsilanti | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 42 Comments

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