As any entrepreneur will tell you, running your own business is no easy task.
“My days are extremely long, but it's for me and my family and for legacy."
Verita Black Prothro opened the doors to her Veritas Empowerment Boutique when our economy was seriously struggling so she kept her prices low.
"So, I'm not gonna get rich overnight doing it this way, but think I'll be able to help more people and reach a wider audience because it's more accessible."
Dave Asher prides himself in making business ownership more accessible to all Nevadans. His "Buy Nevada First" store in the Reno Town Mall showcases all local products for local entrepreneurs.
"With 300 vendors here and each one of them is unique and it's just a blessing to be able to offer this to our community and keep the money here and keep the jobs here."
And the effort is working. The Chamber of Reno-Sparks and Northern Nevada represents 1,800 members. "...the vast majority which of course are small businesses, a lot of them are saying that they are in the black for the first time in four or five years,” says Tray Abney.
"If we can help companies grow, they start off with a good idea. They become a small business and maybe someday a big business"
Mike Kazmierski with Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada says retail and restaurants are always popular choices for small businesses but other fields are showing promise as well.
"High demand in the construction industry you have a lot of buildings going up and manufacturing, advanced manufacturing, some technology - all of those are driving wages up."
EDAWN projects tens of thousands of new jobs will be created in Northern Nevada over the next five years.
