In 1996, while a student at University of Mary Washington, Heidi Bass took a trolley ride that changed her life.

As the Trolley Tours of Fredericksburg’s trek around the city came to the end, Heidi heard her tour guide, Butch Wimmer, mention to his passengers that he was hiring drivers. A full-time student in need of income, Heidi approached Butch, who was also the founder and owner of the company, and asked if he was serious. Several months later, she earned her commercial driver’s license and started working as a part-time driver and tour guide.

“It was a fun job, a fun way to make money,” Heidi says.

It was so much fun that 25 years after she drove her first trolley route, Heidi bought the business with the help of the University of Mary Washington SBDC (UMW SBDC).

Even though Heidi had first-hand experience with all aspects of the company during more than two decades as driver, guide and general manager, she still sought out guidance for her entrepreneurial journey. UMW SBDC Director Susan Ball, who previously helped Trolley Tours with the SWaM certification process, stood ready and willing to lead the way.

“I felt confident in my understanding of the business. I felt confident in my abilities to own and operate it,” Heidi says. “But I needed guidance on, you know, getting the state corporation commission, getting established as an independent business, getting the loan paperwork, and working with the bank and getting all my ducks in a row.”

Along with helping Heidi navigate legal and procedural hurdles, Susan also put her in touch with the Bank of Charles Town in Fredericksburg. By June of 2023, Heidi had secured a loan and purchased the business, carrying forward what Butch Wimmer started nearly 30 years earlier.

Since taking over, Heidi has reinvested to upgrade her fleet of trolleys. She has continued to reach new audiences by hosting preschool classes, wedding parties, and trips to Fredericksburg’s many breweries, wineries and cideries.

Today, Trolley Tours of Fredericksburg offers the original Fredericksburg route as well as a holiday light tour, Santa trolley, and more. It appeals to people in all stages of life — in Heidi’s words, “from cradle to grave” — and has even received a request from one patron to someday transport her ashes to her funeral.

“I know how lucky I am to have purchased a thriving business,” Heidi says. “That doesn’t happen every day.”

But for all the strides Heidi made in the company, her transition to owner couldn’t have happened without the SBDC.

“Their help was essential,” Heidi says. “I am grateful for their support. I didn’t know where to start as far as buying the business. But I knew — having already met Susan and worked with her on other things — I knew that’s where I could go to find the answers I needed.”

Clinton Ward and Stephen Young worked together for years in the HVAC industry. With help from the Blue Ridge Crossroads SBDC, the friends and co-workers are now co-owners of an HVAC contracting business.

“We’ve worked together for a lot of years, and it was just finally the right time to start,” Clinton says.

After planning the business together, Clinton launched Appalachian Mechanical in January 2024 with Stephen coming aboard the following May. Now the duo is managing projects in Southwest Virginia with jobs as far as two hours away from their home base in Fancy Gap.

They credit SBDC Business Advisor April Collins with laying the foundation that made their business possible, from helping them set up as an LLC to registering their Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI).

“I really can’t brag on April enough,” Clinton says.” I know the trade, but when it comes to a lot of the paperwork, the business, licensing a lot of that, they’ve helped me out a lot. It’s been the biggest learning curve, actually seeing and understanding how much goes on behind the scenes to have a business and operate it.”

Clinton has worked in HVAC, plumbing and electrical for his entire career, while Stephen is a lifelong tinkerer who entered the industry through building trades programs. And while Clinton’s father and grandfather owned a contracting business — which he credits with planting the entrepreneurship seed in his own mind — launching a company was well outside his area of expertise.

“I feel like if it weren’t for [the SBDC], we’d probably still be scratching our heads figuring out how we were going to do this,” Stephen says. “We would have figured something out, but it wouldn’t have been nearly as smooth.”

Along with the LLC and BOI setups at the start, April also connected Clinton and Stephen with Virginia’s APEX Accelerator program, which facilitates connections and contracts between businesses and government agencies. A year later, Appalachian Mechanical’s services are in high demand.

“I’m not trying to toot my own horn, but we’re both very skilled at what we do,” Clinton says. “We’re really focused very heavily on our quality and making sure we do things right. By being small and keeping our overhead low, we’re able to provide that quality at a more affordable price than a lot of the major companies.”

And while Clinton and Stephen are currently the sole employees, their early success has them planning to expand to a four or five-person operation.

“You have to make money. You have to make a living. But in my mind, being able to help people, your community, friends and neighbors — that stuff is honestly more important than the money,” Clinton says. “I don’t care about being a big millionaire running a massive empire. As long as I’ve got enough to pay the bills and go buy a cheeseburger once in a while, I’m just fat and happy.”

What do you get when a developer and a performance coach team up as business partners? A successful Maine company that’s adding new outlets in Virginia. With assistance from the Longwood SBDC – Eastern Region, The Smoothie Spot recently opened in Colonial Heights with three more locations slated to open in the near future.

A health-conscious smoothie bar that encourages clean eating, The Smoothie Spot is the shared vision of co-founders BJ Grondin and Jeremy Callahan.

“Our goal is to give as many people as we can the opportunity for quick and tasty real food choices,” Jeremy says.

The Smoothie Spot’s first Virginia location opened in Colonial Heights in April 2024.

“While searching for funding to open this business and three others we have planned in Virginia, I came across Eastern Region Director Vandy Jones and gave him a call,” Jeremy relates. “Within a week he called back and has been offering guidance ever since.”

The Colonial Heights location became a reality with a $40,000 loan and a $10,000 line of credit approved by Peoples Advantage Credit Union (PACU). Vandy connected Jeremy with D. Curtis at PACU, who helped secure the financing needed to launch the first Virginia shop.

Expanding to Virginia meant Jeremy and BJ needed help establishing themselves and forming connections with local business resources. Vandy and the SBDC helped them accomplish exactly that and put them in touch with First Community Bank for a Small Business Administration (SBA) loan.

Currently, Jeremy is working with First Community Bank on a $175,000 SBA loan to fund the new locations. While the loan has not yet closed, the SBDC has continued to support Jeremy through the process.

“Vandy has been a great resource to help us find local funding for start-ups,” Jeremy explains. “I signed three leases in the last month for locations in Henrico, Chester and Emporia. We needed funding for these proposed expansions.”

“Vandy has a wealth of knowledge on this area,” Jeremy adds. “That was also very valuable to us.”

Currently the Smoothie Spot has six employees in Maine and four in Virginia. Jeremy expects that number to quickly increase as new locations are added.

“We already have people calling to see if we’re hiring,” Jeremy notes. “It’s great to see people interested in helping other people be healthy.”

As expansion plans continue, Jeremy is conferring with Vandy on vendor approval for airports in Richmond, Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

“There is a certification needed for that, and Vandy has done a lot of research on the topic for us,” Jeremy relates. “That’s been very helpful.”

Also in the planning stage is a distribution center where products can be made and sold to vendors who then offer the products under a licensing agreement in their own place of business.

Overall, Jeremy sees the SBDC as a great resource.

“For me specifically it was the connections I found valuable, but essentially it was the follow up that made a difference,” Jeremy concludes. “Not only did Vandy connect me with the right organizations and people but also checked on me during the process and after. The commitment that the SBDC has to its clients makes for a great partnership — one that I plan to continue.”

Growing up on a family farm in Botetourt County, Candace Monaghan and her family worked the land and tended cattle as a team. When 20 acres of the farm became the epicenter for the annual Beaver Dam Farm Sunflower Festival, a need to expand that team prompted Candace to bring in the Greater Roanoke & New River Valley SBDC.

“We’ve been a family farm since 1900, my great-grandfather, grandfather, father, myself and siblings, and so on; so it’s always been a huge part of my life,” Candace says.

As a child on a dairy and cattle farm, Candace grew up milking cows and bottle-feeding calves, but she also harbored an interest in the arts. She went on to study graphic design at Virginia Western Community College and, after graduating, launched Candace Monaghan Design where she designs marketing materials.

And when Candace’s father planted Beaver Dam Farm’s first sunflowers in 2015, Candace’s creative, entrepreneurial mindset saw potential. She organized the first Beaver Dam Farm Sunflower Festival in 2016, and the annual event has since grown to cover multiple weekends, draws more than 20,000 people and 100 vendors, and won a Blue Ridge Golden Star Award.

All of that foot traffic created a significant revenue stream for the farm, but also a need for business and marketing expertise. In 2019, with the event growing in scope and attendance each year, Candace connected with Greater Roanoke & NRV SBDC Business Advisor Heather Fay. Heather helped Candace and Beaver Dam Farm Sunflowers, LLC secure a $20,000 Virginia Tourism Corporation (VTC) Grant and provided a guiding hand in 2021 when Candace won first place at The Gauntlet, a prestigious Virginia business competition.

The SBDC has also guided Candace to new marketing opportunities for the festival, ranging from advertising to digital media and public relations. The two continue to collaborate through the GrowthWheel Peer group Heather facilitates. They are currently planning for the sunflower festival’s 10-year anniversary in 2025.

“When I have an idea and think, ‘Oh my gosh, this is the best idea ever, that’s when I’ll meet with Heather,” Candace says. “Then she’ll come back with another amazing idea that I hadn’t thought of. It’s just a highlight for all of us to be able to meet monthly and discuss what’s going well and what’s not going well.”

Along with the anniversary planning, Heather and Candace are currently collaborating for the upcoming “Agripalooza,” a brainchild of Heather’s that will connect agriculture, technology and tradition in the Greater Roanoke and NRV SBDC’s coverage area.

“Heather has helped me so much,” Candace says. “From applying for the Virginia Tourism Grant every year to advertising opportunities and just somebody to share ideas with.”

Rory Brogan, founder and CEO of Torev Motors, has always enjoyed building things – an interest he says likely started while playing with LEGO blocks as a child.

That interest continued throughout Rory’s life and led him to earn dual degrees in electrical engineering and mathematics from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, and an MBA from Georgetown University.

While studying engineering, Rory became interested in developing a more efficient and environmentally-friendly electric motor. And like it did as a LEGO-obsessed child, his creativity and imagination led to invention…or at least so he thought.

“After about 50 iterations of motor drawings, I came across the axial flux motor design,” he relates. “I thought I had invented something — then I learned Michael Faraday beat me to it in the mid-1800s.”

However, Rory found new applications for the motor in today’s world and shaped his “reinvention” into a double axial flux motor that improved vehicle efficiency and performance. It was enough to give him the foundation of a business that he launched the day he graduated from Georgetown’s MBA program in September 2022.

Shortly into his entrepreneurial journey, Rory realized he needed more than passion to launch a business. That led him to the Virginia SBDC – Innovation Commercialization Assistance Program (ICAP), which assists Virginia-based technology and innovation-driven startups on their paths to success.

Rory was connected with ICAP Mentor TJ Master, who taught him to dig into the specifics of why customers should care about his product. A major point of emphasis was the environmentally friendly aspect of Rory’s motor design.

“90 to 93 percent of electric motors rely on magnets that are produced by rare earth metals,” Rory explains. “Harvard National Review reported that every ton of rare earth metals can create 2,000 tons of radioactive waste. Reducing that amount is a big win for the environment.”

Looking to raise funds for his new business, Rory also turned to TJ and the SBDC.

“TJ coached me for a number of competitions including the Accelerate Annual Conference in 2022 and the $75K Virginia Innovation Partnership Commonwealth (VIPC) Commercialization Fund Grant,” Rory adds. “We received funding from both.”

Torev Motors also received a $3,500 grant from VIPC Federal Grants; was one of four winners (out of 1,500 applicants) in the Global Automotive & Mobility Innovation Challenge (GAMIC) in April 2024; and one of three winners in the Summer 2024 EPIC (Energy Program for Innovation Clusters) Pitch Competition.

Recently Torev Motors surpassed $1 million in funding, which Rory says “will make a world of difference as we move into the development stage.”

“I credit TJ for telling me about the Virginia SBDC,” Rory continues. “Without the SBDC and ICAP, I wouldn’t have known about the VIPC that led to several funding grants. We wouldn’t be where we are today without ICAP and assistance we received from TJ.”

As a banker, Lucia Resendiz Garcia was inspired by her entrepreneurial customers to start her own business. After working with the Laurel Ridge SBDC to establish Lucy’s Custom Arrangements, business is now in full bloom.

“I wasn’t sure at first what I even wanted my business to be, but I started to see these people on social media making these kinds of arrangements and bouquets,” Lucy says. “I fell in love with them. At first, I didn’t think it was possible because I was working full time, my son was three and I just didn’t feel like I had the time.’

“But then I said, let me do just one. I tried it and fell in love with it right away.”

That first arrangement proved to be the spark that ignited Lucy’s entrepreneurial spirit. She debuted her work on her own social media channels, and soon orders started to pour in. With the help of her mother, who is also a business owner, Lucy launched Lucy’s Custom Arrangements in June 2020.

In less than a year, demand grew to the point where Lucy needed to officially establish her business. That led her to the Laurel Ridge SBDC and Business Advisor Diana Patterson, who helped her set up Lucy’s Custom Arrangements as a registered company.

“Diana was a huge help at first,” Lucy says. “She made everything so easy and just very simple.”

With her business foundation established, Lucy’s sales continued to grow. She and her mother began selling their arrangements at pop-up shops during holidays like Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day. But her company soon outgrew that model, which prompted Lucy to consider a big next step.

“We did pop-ups at physical locations, and it was just a huge success,” Lucy says. “So many people were able to find us at our pop-ups, even if it wasn’t a known location, so I said we needed to have a physical space.”

After finding an available location on Costello Drive in Winchester, Lucy returned to the SBDC for guidance.

“Diana and I talked about opening a physical location, and she let me know all the steps I needed to take to make it happen,” Lucy says. “There was a lot [I hadn’t thought about], like getting renters insurance, finding a good CPA, that I could request rent abatement for the first month, and things like that. Getting [rent abatement] was a huge help; I didn’t even know that was an option until she told me.”

Since her grand opening in September 2024, Lucy has been working to make the new location her own. Her customer base has expanded into Richmond and Washington, D.C., while also retaining many of her original clients.

“A lot of my customers come in and they’re like, ‘I remember when you were working from home,’” Lucy says.

Just like her bouquets, Lucy’s business is blooming.

If you are looking for the face of the future, you will find it at Beach Baby Ultrasound. Run by ultrasound technologist-turned-business owner Karen Devlin, the Virginia Beach business introduces babies — complete with chubby cheeks and smiles — to parents and other family members before birth.

“This ultrasound studio is a happy environment,” Devlin says. “It’s very different from working as an ultrasound tech in the hospital where you’re looking for problems. At the Beach Baby studio, we focus on cute baby features.”

Beach Baby Ultrasound offers parents-to-be a large ultrasound room with ample space, a comfortable seating area and a large TV that provides 3D, 4D and 5D tracking of a baby’s development from seven to 30 weeks. That’s part of the peaceful, celebratory vibe Karen envisioned when she purchased the facility in December 2023.

“I had always wanted to be a business owner,” says Karen, whose pre-entrepreneurial career was as a licensed ultrasound technologist. “I thought it would be a great opportunity.”

As a new business owner, Karen first found the Virginia SBDC Network through the organization’s online resources for starting a business. However, she soon realized she needed more personalized guidance, which led her to contact the Hampton Roads SBDC and advisors Bill Holloran and Donna Norman. While Bill worked with Karen on the key elements of buying a business and arranging a business loan; Donna offered guidance on human resources, business management, and marketing.

“Bill was a wealth of knowledge and gave me suggestions for lawyers and accountants and introduced me to Small Business Administration (SBA) loans, which I eventually went with,” she notes.

Making the transition from employee to business owner, Karen renamed her newly purchased business to Beach Baby Ultrasound, updated the website, and changed the packages offered to clients.

With an existing client database in hand, Karen focused next on marketing.

“Bill and Donna suggested flyers and business cards as well as email marketing campaigns,” Karen explains. “I’ve done two email campaigns that brought in a lot of customers.”

Turning to human resources, Karen increased the employee pay scale and changed a random work schedule to regular four-hour shifts.

“Donna helped me create an employee handbook and advised me on situations like firing an employee, which I had to do,” Karen continues. “She also helped with social media and encouraged me to start and post on an Instagram account. I was able to grab some new clients from that. All her suggestions were really helpful.”

Since signing on with the SBDC, Beach Baby Ultrasound has realized a 29% increase in sales and hired three more technologists and a receptionist.

“Working with the SBDC has been wonderful, and I learned a lot,” Karen concludes. “Working with the SBDC, I don’t feel alone. I know I can turn to them for advice — a good feeling for a first-time business owner like myself.”

Shortly after they first struck up their relationship in 2019, Michael and Mary Blevins discovered that their skillsets and passion for developing luxury spaces complemented each other professionally and personally. After decades of high-end design and marketing strategies for the real estate and economic development sector, building and designing spaces for themselves, the now-married couple felt was the next natural progression to intertwine their skillsets from the ground up.

“Once we got together, we instantly recognized both of our skillsets and how well they played together,” Michael said.

With Michael’s 25-year background in real estate development and marketing complemented by his love of architecture and building plus Mary’s career in hospitality and interior design, the couple launched their own contracting company in 2022: Mason Dixon Brothers. They began by purchasing and renovating a historic storefront on Tazewell’s Main Street to create Haus of Taylor, an art gallery that doubles as an Airbnb and a showcase for the design and building skills of Mason Dixon Brothers.

As they completed Haus of Taylor, however, a larger vision began to take shape—one that extended beyond a single property and aimed to breathe new life into their hometown and the entire Southwest Virginia region. Ground zero for this revitalization is an 87-acre property they own, dubbed Ruakh Resort. They and Mason Dixon Brothers’ master carpenter Scott Fry are in the process of converting Ruakh into a getaway destination for concerts, events, and vacations.

This vision led Michael and Mary to the SBDC.

“Everything Mason Dixon does is focused toward making Ruakh a success and one of the biggest things to hit Southwest Virginia,” Michael says. “Mason Dixon really exists to fund that. In 10 years, we hope to have a little Red Rock in the back of the property – an outdoor amphitheater that attracts big names to a place where people may think there’s nothing.”

To secure funding that would make those first steps possible, Michael and Mary began working with the SBDC in February 2024 through a recommendation from the Tazewell County IEDA. Mt Empire SBDC Director Becki O’Quinn-Purdie and Southwest Virginia SBDC Director Denise Harmon helped them apply for a Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority (VCEDA) tourism grant. VCEDA approved a $10,000 grant that helped Michael and Mary build Ruakh Resort’s first luxury geodesic dome.

The Blevins’ 10-year plan is to erect more geodesic domes at Ruakh in proximity to other amenities like a common house kitchen and the aforementioned concert venue. And with Mason Dixon Brothers’ capabilities and the SBDC’s resources and funding connections, they intend to do all the work themselves.

“We just thought, we have 87 acres of fun land. How do we turn that into something that’s an attraction, that holds events like Bristol has and other places like that?” Michael said. “That’s what will help the community. Our ultimate goal is to have art and culture, art and music festivals, fall festivals and weddings. If we can get more lodging here, then that money stays in our community, in our county.”