Local Business

Whether you paint like Picasso, dabble in doodling, keep a journal, play “Chopsticks” on the piano, or help the kids with their art projects, everyone has a creative side worth exploring and nurturing. In and around Coconut Creek, there are plenty of ways to spark your imagination and increase your creativity in both hands-on and

The Palace at Weston wastes no time making an impression. The entry to the leasing center recalls the lobby of a fine European hotel. Massive crystal chandeliers glitter overhead, ornate furnishings are upholstered in the finest damasks and velvets, and plush area rugs in vibrant Old World patterns embellish gleaming marble inlaid floors. Behind the

Two successful sock entrepreneurs live in West Kendall. But they might not be exactly what you expect. The Martinez brothers—Sebastian, 11, and Brandon, 13—have created dozens of patters, colors and styles, selling more than 100,000 pairs through their company, Are You Kidding Socks. The result? About $200,000 raised and counting—all dedicated to organizations that help

After eight years of working together as paralegals, and then leaving corporate America to run a mobile espresso café, LouErik and Desirée Ambert know the secret to entrepreneurial success: friendship. The Coconut Creek couple, who have been together for 12 years and married for five, founded Cool Beans Espresso Café on Wheels in 2015 after

From South Florida to rural Oregon, households are adding new flavors to their Italian-inspired kitchen adventures—all because a young Pompano Beach entrepreneur refused to accept insults as truth at home in Minnesota. As Justin Comparetto tells it, the story of his multimillion-dollar business, Just Ryt Foods, begins right after high school, when he overheard comments

On any given afternoon, you might find Stephen Tulloch pouring a cup of his signature coffee blend, Fifty-Five, behind the counter at Circle House Coffee. The former NFL linebacker recently opened the combination coffee shop/coworking space/sports bar—in Fort Lauderdale’s up-and-coming Flagler Village. Though he looks like a natural crafting lattes and cappuccinos, the venture marks

Mathias Kiwanuka was chosen in the first round of the 2006 National Football League draft; the defensive end out of Boston College played nine seasons with the New York Giants. But since hanging up his cleats in 2015 and moving full time to Fort Lauderdale along with his wife and their two children, the two-time

Melody Erez admits that she often takes her work home with her. Like others in her profession, the speech therapist notes that she thinks about her patients’ cases after meeting with them—how she can try something different to help them improve. But she doesn’t mind. “I always wanted to help people, and I feel like

In search of a better life, Venezuelan chocolatiers Susana and Isabel Garcia Nevett immigrated to Miami in 2012. Having worked in the chocolate business in their native country, they dreamed of opening their own chocolate shop in their new home, creating a place where they could spread love and comfort through handcrafted bonbons and jars

Some kids believe that monsters live under their beds. When Stacey Lewis’ three children were little, and their rooms were messy, they affectionately referred to her as the “monster” in plain sight. “They’d say, ‘Hurry up and clean your room, or the ‘purge monster’ is going to get it,’ ” Lewis remembers with a laugh.

Photos by Eduardo Schneider   In 1982, Larry J. Buck was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time. The New Jersey native had just graduated from Syracuse University and was looking for a career. Around the same time, the casino business was booming in Atlantic City. New Jersey became the

Images courtesy of PS Photography & Films   As evidenced by Janderyn Makris’ rise in the industry, not every recipe for baking success starts in the kitchen. Unlike pastry specialists whose aspirations begin the moment they can reach the strings of mom’s apron, the founder of West Palm Beach-based Earth & Sugar didn’t begin experimenting