AVIATRA ACCELERATORS CELEBRATES EARLY-STAGE AND SEASONED WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS DURING ANNUAL FLIGHT NIGHT
Local Female Business Owners Will Compete for Cash and
Women Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winners Will be Announced
CINCINNATI, OH – August 22, 2024 – Aviatra Accelerators, a non-profit accelerator devoted to empowering women entrepreneurs through education, connections and resources, will hold its annual Flight Night at 20th Century Theater, 3021 Madison Road in Oakley on Thursday, September 5, 2024. This year, the event celebrates both early-stage female business owners competing for a cash prize in the pitch competition and seasoned entrepreneurs who were nominated for Aviatra’s inaugural Women Entrepreneur of the Year awards.
The pitch competition showcases local female-founded businesses that have completed Aviatra’s Momentum Accelerator®, a ten-week program designed to help women entrepreneurs master the fundamentals of their businesses and accelerate growth. The winner of the competition will receive a cash prize of $1,000.00. The female entrepreneurs showcasing their businesses are:
- Sharlee Adams, owner of Tre`s Belle by Sharlee, offering an apprenticeship program for cosmetology graduates that helps them gain experience and business fundamentals for their careers.
- Libya Binford, owner of 10-D Outfitters Ltd, providing specialty construction products to general contractors in the Tri-State area.
- Kathleen “Mimi” Borne, owner of Mimi’s Macros, a meal prep company that specializes in healthy, gourmet meals delivered direct to customers’ homes.
- Kisiah Cole, owner of Calming Souls Massage, in-home/mobile massage and assisted stretching services for athletes looking to increase agility, aid in recovery and improve overall performance.
- Jen Mahuet, owner of Jen Mahuet Photography, photography services specializing in portraiture, finished photography and heirloom portraiture.
- Lindsey Paynter, owner of Paynterly Illustration, a visionary creator and artist who is launching a subscription-based community that uses art as a means of expression for mental health support.
- Laurkita Sheffield, owner of Sheffield Accounting and Financial Services, offering bookkeeping, accounting, tax and CFO services.
- Kerry Taft, owner of Taft Systems, an all-in-one business management platform that helps clients automate and streamline their businesses.
- Lori Wall, owner of Spanish on the Fly, offering corporate, adult and children’s conversational Spanish classes.
During the Momentum® program, the women entrepreneurs created a business plan with a three-year financial projection and participated in networking and coaching on sales strategies, finance, funding, marketing, human resources and growth strategies – all taught by local experts. Participants also received $500 of in-kind services to take their business to the next level.
New to this year’s Flight Night is the celebration of Aviatra’s Women Entrepreneur of the Year awards, a program that recognizes remarkable women entrepreneurs and business owners who are leading the way in the region.
Women Entrepreneur of the Year winners will be recognized across five categories, including health, technology, for-profit businesses focused on community impact, entrepreneurs under the age of 23, and the overall Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Aviatra will announce the award winners and share their success stories during Flight Night on September 5.
Tickets to Flight Night are on sale now at https://www.aviatraaccelerators.org/flight-night.To learn more about Aviatra Accelerators and its programs, visit https://www.aviatraaccelerators.org/.
About Aviatra Accelerators
Celebrating fifteen years of supporting women on the rise to find the power to soar, Aviatra Accelerators, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, exists to empower women entrepreneurs, providing education, coaching, mentoring, networking, and access to capital. Aviatra’s programs are tailored to meet the needs of women entrepreneurs at all stages of the business cycle. With a presence in Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky and Dayton, Ohio, Aviatra Accelerators has helped nearly 4,000 women entrepreneurs create 15,000 jobs and receive millions in funding, and its alumni have generated a cumulative total of over $1 billion in earned revenues. For more about Aviatra and its women entrepreneur success stories, visit https://aviatraaccelerators.org.
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