Small Business Insider: for Anyone Starting, Running, or Growing a Business

2026-10-22T05:13:09.170Z

Japan's aging business owners are selling their legacies for cheap to young entrepreneurs who are down to hustle

6 min read

2026-10-17T09:10:01.228Z

I lost my job right before having my first child. My wife and I took the opportunity to level up our side hustle.

7 min read

2026-10-13T20:16:13.688Z

Becky sits at a wooden table beside an open laptop in a sunlit room.

After 20 years at IBM, I changed careers and started a side gig. Now it's a 7-figure company — here’s how I grew it.

Becky DeGrossa, 66, worked at IBM and then became a therapist before opening CounselingWise as a side gig. It's now her full-time, $2M business.

6 min read

2026-10-12T18:47:22.741Z

Founder of Bed Scrunchie Jack Nekhala, left, with his business partner Michael Nusinkis, right, in a warehouse full of their product.

This entrepreneur says Amazon nearly destroyed his business. He still shops on it every week. 'It's crazy.'

The Bed Scrunchie company made $4.5 million before Amazon deactivated its seller account. But one of the founders still can't quit shopping there.

2026-10-11T11:08:01.249Z

Partake Foods products and founder Denise Woodard.

I started a small food business to make my daughter's life easier. My storytelling helped land major partnerships — here's how.

Inspired by her daughter's food allergies, Denise Woodard launched Partake Foods and landed partnerships with Ben & Jerry's and Girl Scouts.

6 min read

2026-10-09T15:16:26.257Z

Rebecca and Jenn sit on a trailer holding pumpkins among hay bales and produce boxes outdoors.

I left my Fortune 100 HR career to launch a pumpkin display business. Here's how my cofounder and I scaled it.

Rebecca Paxton, the cofounder of a Dallas pumpkin-display business, shares how she left her Fortune 100 job and scaled My Front Porch to six figures.

6 min read

2026-10-07T09:00:01.237Z

Paul in a green "NASHVILLE ADVENTURES" shirt speaks beside a Maxwell House Hotel historical marker.

I launched a walking tour company with $3,600 and was able to replace my six-figure full-time income. These 3 tips helped me grow the business.

Paul Whitten created Nashville Adventures, a history and walking tour company in Nashville, on nights and weekends. It's now his full-time job.

7 min read

2026-10-03T11:12:01.237Z

I launched my small business after seeing my elderly family members struggle. I validated my business idea on Craigslist as my first step.

Alison Donnally founded a business to help older adults live independently. She explains how the idea came to life.

5 min read

2026-10-02T18:52:22.468Z

The founders of Arquia, GreenPortfolio, and Relatable Nonprofit

How 3 small business owners are — and aren’t — using AI to nail their marketing campaigns

Small business owners shared how they actually use AI to build and sustain a marketing strategy, as well as where it falls short.

5 min read

2026-09-30T16:19:01.242Z

I was tired of asking my boss for permission to take my kids to doctors. So I became my own boss.

My baby stopped breathing at four months and had repeated hospital stays. Managing his care eventually pushed me to rethink how I worked.

6 min read

2026-09-29T15:18:45.992Z

Restaurant staff in Simonds shirts gather inside a stainless steel commercial kitchen.

I'm a small business owner who took 50 of my employees to Greece. It was worth the $2,000 a person and 6 figures in revenue.

I'm a restaurant owner in New York. I spent months planning a trip to Greece for my employees, hoping to make it as affordable as possible.

5 min read

2026-09-28T21:10:46.350Z

Emily Byrne sits on a bed between glowing sunrise clocks in a softly lit bedroom.

I raised $200K on Kickstarter for my sunrise alarm clock. The lessons I learned while preparing the campaign were just as valuable.

Emily Byrne's Kickstarter campaign for her alarm clock business helped her learn financial mistakes and get valuable customer feedback early on.

4 min read

2026-09-27T12:07:01.293Z

sameera sulliven leaning on a wooden table smiling at the camera

I'm a matchmaker who charges up to $250,000. My clients want partners who are driven, but flexible.

Matchmaker Sameera Sullivan runs her own agency. She charges clients up to $250,000, depending on how specific they are with their preferences.

5 min read

2026-09-26T17:55:01.279Z

I'm 21 and make up to $280,000 a month reselling sneakers. I don't see my friends much and still live at home.

Robbie Cartwright started reselling sneakers at 14. At 21, he hit $280,000 in monthly sales while still living with his parents.

4 min read

2026-09-25T16:37:01.288Z

I was afraid to delegate tasks for my 7-figure business. Learning to let go helped me grow it to nearly $5M.

Luba Patlakh Kaplun was burned out when her business hit seven figures. New systems and management helped revenue grow to nearly $5 million.

4 min read

2026-09-25T09:05:01.298Z

I started The Nitro Bar with $1,500 and wood from my basement. Here's how I grew it to a 7-figure business.

Audrey Finocchiaro shares her journey from starting a coffee cart to expanding The Nitro Bar to five locations with thousands of social media fans.

6 min read

2026-09-24T17:32:29.141Z

A woman with long red locs and a brown dress poses before a giraffe-patterned wall.

She left Bank of America to start a fragrance brand with $300. Last year, it made $21 million.

Brown Sugar Babe founder Maekaeda Gibbons used $300 to start a fragrance business, growing it to $21 million in revenue without outside funding.

5 min read

2026-09-18T09:45:01.296Z

2 friends pooled $2,000 of their own savings and turned it into a $30 million company by focusing on 'green-light activities'

Before Britt Baker and Laurie-Anne King even launched their financial-education business, they had $40,000 in sales.

4 min read

2026-09-10T09:11:01.293Z

I was laid off from Amazon. After struggling to relax as a working mom, I went all in on my wellness side hustle.

Rania Zheng struggled to relax while juggling motherhood and a career at Amazon. After her layoff, she went all in on her wellness-travel business.

6 min read

2026-09-07T09:05:01.282Z

I took a 6-figure job at Amazon after stepping away from full-time entrepreneurship. A chance meeting led me back to my business.

Seun Phillips returned to his business, Stemnetics, after a one-year stint at Amazon. He used his tech experience to expand STEM education programs.

5 min read

Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know

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Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know

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Small Business Insider

Business Insider goes inside what it takes to start, run, and grow a business. Through careful reporting and candid owner stories, we reveal the numbers, decisions, mistakes, and lessons behind building companies that last.

Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know

Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know

Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know

Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know