Hidden Gems: Local Businesses & Creatives You Should Know

Kathryn Starke

I started my career as an elementary school teacher in Richmond Public Schools in Richmond, Virginia. While I was teaching second grade, I realized that my students had a lot of social studies and science standards to learn, but the textbook was written significantly above many of my students reading abilities. Therefore, I started using children’s picture books to teach objectives. Read more>>

Megan Bowers

Hi, I’m Megan Bowers—wife, mom of two daughters, dog mom, entrepreneur, painter/artist, and the owner of Three Melons Bake Shop, a home-based bakery in Woodstock, Virginia, specializing in custom-decorated sugar cookies. I began my baking hobby as a child, making Christmas cookies every year with my family. Read more>>

Dr. Sabrina Wooten

My journey began with a deep desire to serve people and create meaningful impact in every space I entered. Early in my career, I found myself drawn to roles that allowed me to uplift others, whether through public service, community development, education, or leadership. Read more>>

Vana Chupp

I was born in a small beach town in southern Albania to an Albanian father and a Greek mother. As the oldest of three sisters, I was also the first in my family to leave my country. In 1999, I moved to the United States to study architecture, a discipline that shaped the way I think about form, proportion, and storytelling through design. Read more>>

Jonathan Scott

I have been shooting photography on and off for the past 13 years, but I truly re-engaged with it during the COVID period. For me, photography is a relaxing and creative outlet—it allows me to meet people, listen to their stories, capture meaningful moments, and share those experiences with others. Read more>>

Matthew Defreitas

I started making videos on YouTube at the age of 23 which developed into a huge hobby and growing to start my own production business which I did in 2024 Read more>>

Sia Alexander

I started Pure Lagos as a one day pop-up at an incubator event in downtown Norfolk 4 years ago. With no capital, I managed to expand the business into 4 distinct locations within 2 years, due almost entirely to sales revenue. Read more>>

Rachel Dunn

I started small with a basic Canon camera, shooting whenever I could while also working part-time in a family owned restaurant. What began as something simple quickly became something meaningful. Creating images that made other people happy and made me so happy too. Over time, that passion grew into what I do today. Read more>>

Megan Vaughan

Then we miscarried. I decided I needed plants. Lots of plants. All under my control, all things I could keep alive. I never seemed to have enough. Each month we had a negative test, that day I’d go to a nursery and get more plants. I’d take my time walking through the plant aisles. Read more>>

morgan bender

My journey started in a really simple way with a camera, a love for people, and a curiosity about moments that matter. I did not get into photography chasing trends or perfection. I got into it because I loved how it felt to witness people in some of the most meaningful seasons of their lives. Read more>>

Anisa Turner

I started working with Artists in 2021. First I was managing from 2021 to 2024 but as I went on I realized I was more than a manager. I built a lot of relationships and connections throughout the music industry and business industry just by networking and moving around. Read more>>

Ruth Anne Kramer

My name is Ruth Anne Kramer, and I live in Chesapeake, Virginia, with my family. I’d like to share a brief story about my journey that began at eighteen years old, which was twenty-five years ago. After obtaining a bachelor’s degree in psychology, I joined the Army without a clear idea of what I wanted to do with that degree. Read more>>

Mary Fisk-Taylor

I didn’t set out thinking I would build a 30+ year career in photography — I simply fell in love with the idea of preserving people’s stories. Early on, I realized a portrait isn’t just a picture. It’s proof that a moment existed. A family. A season. A relationship. And once I understood that, I was hooked. Read more>>

Ciera Veale

My name is Ciera Veale—but everyone calls me “CEE.” I’ve been doing hair for as long as I can remember. As a little girl, I’d spend hours in the mirror doing my own hair, and soon I was the girl in the neighborhood doing everybody else’s. School picture day? I had my sister’s hair done. Read more>>

Ruth Jay Royce Mabwe

My creative journey began in my teens through drawing and later expanded into photography, film, poetry, and artistic expression. My friend and mentor, Joe Texas, introduced me to the media world, letting me shadow him on shoots and learn by fully immersing myself in the creative process. Read more>>

Rick Landers

I’ve always been drawn to music, even as a six-year old I sang on the radio in Florida. Later, I’d learn guitar after being mesmerized by the music and the look of The Beatles and other British groups…and, of course, The Beach Boys and The Ventures. Read more>>

Blanca Gruber

From a young age, I was connected to the arts thanks to my grandmother. My parents were politically persecuted by the government, so my brother and I stayed with my maternal grandmother. From the time I was a year old, she took care of me. She came from a noble family. Read more>>

Dremon Miller

Street Smartz Over Safety started as a very personal response to a community reality I grew up with. I’m a Richmond native who came up in neighborhoods where too many young people are exposed early to violence, instability, and limited access to enrichment opportunities. Read more>>

Collette Mann

My journey as a mosaic artist began with simple curiosity. I remember discovering a library book filled with ancient Byzantine mosaic icons, and I was instantly captivated by their intricate designs and the stories they seemed to tell. Read more>>

Taylor bradley

I started doing makeup for weddings probably around 2007 or 2008, That turned into assisting hair stylists at weddings, and when I was living and working in Alexandria my hair stylist at the time suggested I go to hair school. So, it was really a natural progression, and I’ve basically been passionate about the profession of cosmetology from the time I was a teenager. Read more>>

MacKenzie Hultberg

My love affair in the wedding industry began while working at a premier wedding venue as a marketing & venue manager in Maryland. From there, I was able to hone in on the aspect of planning as an associate planner under esteemed companies in the DMV area. Read more>>

Blair Northen Williamson

I’ve had a vivid imagination for as long as I can remember, but for a big part of my life that creativity was channeled through journaling, photography, and adventure. I spent years as a competitive athlete, and later as a boat captain and scuba diving instructor, which took me all over the world and deepened my love for the ocean and the natural world. Read more>>

Rachel Queen

I started out as a teacher, and after a few years I became a stay-at-home mom. Like so many women, I thought I was prepared for motherhood, but the truth is, it can be isolating and overwhelming in ways you don’t always expect. Read more>>

Mary Haberski

I began my journey in wellness over 30 years ago through Oracle cards, spell work, yoga, breathwork, meditation,and embodied healing practices that fundamentally changed how I understood the body, mind, spirit, and nervous system. Read more>>

Terrence Pasley

When I first began Terry’s Taste, I was in college and wanted to make more money on the side. I began selling dinners as a side business, then started to take on catering orders, custom cakes & desserts and more along the years while trying to perfect my craft. Read more>>

Whitney O’Halek

I started blogging about my travels back in 2006. My first website was QuickWhitTravel.com, and I posted regularly until January 2025, when my husband died. I knew I needed to shift gears because Quick Whit was young and fun, and my husband Steve was such a huge part of it. Read more>>

Brandy Hubbard

All I can say is WOWWWWW! I began my entrepreneurial journey more than 26 years ago, and time truly flies. I can hardly believe I haven’t worked a J.O.B. — just over broke — in over two decades. My story started in the legal field as a legal secretary, eventually becoming a legal assistant. Read more>>

Charlie Hoffman

From a very young age, I was drawn to film in any form. Movies, TV, animation, shorts etc. it was so much more than just a passion for me. I am so grateful, and I feel so blessed, as to have found what I love to do so young. I truly believe it is part of God’s plan for my life. Read more>>

Shantell Chambliss

My nonprofit journey really began when I founded and led Dress for Success Central Virginia in 2012. Building that organization from the ground up gave me a front-row seat to what it truly takes to launch, grow, and sustain a mission-driven organization—from board development and fundraising to programs, partnerships, and day-to-day operations. It was meaningful, challenging, and incredibly formative work. Read more>>

Erika Page

I’m Erika Page, Founder and CEO of Living Dappled, a media brand and community for women with vitiligo. For those who aren’t familiar, vitiligo is an autoimmune condition that causes loss of pigment in the skin and hair. About 1% of the world’s population has it. It’s not contagious, there’s no cure, but there are treatments. Read more>>

Monika Monk

I started my business in 2020 with what felt like a simple goal. I wanted to become more flexible and understand how my body moved. I was fascinated by movement, sensuality, and the pleasure side of sexual wellness. That curiosity led me to become a Certified Sexual Health Professional, where I began studying intimacy more deeply. What I discovered shifted everything. Read more>>

Leah Lattus

Holistic Hair Studio was born from both my love of being a hair stylist and a much deeper personal awakening. After years in the traditional beauty industry, I began questioning the long-term health impacts of the products we use every day—on stylists, on clients, and on the planet. Read more>>

Danielle Simone

When I was in my 20’s, I enjoyed adventure sports and dabbled in freelance journalism to help pay for trips! Fast forward to now where I’m past the mid-century mark and a nana of six! I wanted a way to be able to share the adventures I had taken with them in a fun way. Read more>>

Sarah Morrison

I’ve always been creative. I was a dancer as a child, a ballet teacher as a young adult and I studied art history in college. Movement and art have always shaped how I see and experience life. During the COVID shutdown my creativity had nowhere to go and everything felt heavy. Read more>>

Sacha Walton

I started my business journey over 25 years ago in even production and business development. While helping others develop their businesses, my passion was in event production. I am, what I like to call, a ‘strategic creative’; a perfect blend of analytical strategic and creative person. Read more>>

Karen Brace

I have been a licensed wildlife rehabilitator in Virginia since 2012. I started off working only with squirrels and groundhogs and then, in 2016, someone brought me a box containing 11 of the cutest little opossum joeys ever. It was love at first sight. Read more>>

Kimberly Johnston

I grew up beside a small creek tucked between two mountain ranges in southwest Virginia, where the rhythms of nature shaped the rhythm of daily life. My grandmother always kept chickens, tended a generous vegetable garden, and filled the yard with flowers. I’m certain that’s where my love for blooms first took root—and where my lifelong dislike of weeding began. Read more>>

Julie Ter Borg

From an early age, I was inspired by my family’s creative pursuits—my father was both a science teacher and artist, my grandmothers sewed, and my mother expressed creativity through gardening and baking. Though I became a scientist, I continue to craft and create joy to myself and others. I’ve experimented with sewing, painting, pottery, felt work, and crochet. Read more>>

Vanessa Espinoza

VAES began as a small but intentional dream, created with the purpose of offering accessories that connected with real women and their everyday style. What started as a single store grew through consistency, learning, and listening closely to our customers. Over 2 years, that vision evolved into a strong brand built on experience, resilience, and authenticity. Read more>>