Hidden Gems: Local Businesses & Creatives You Should Know

Sabina Bower

I’m happy to be part of the Inspiring Stories series—thank you for the invitation. I’m available for an interview in the coming weeks. My journey started very traditionally. I worked 9–5 jobs in marketing and design, building experience inside established brands while quietly working on my own projects on the side. Read more>>

Raymond Hayden

I’m not sure if I can remember back that far. Lol well, I started out on tour buses at nine years old playing drums in drum and bugle corps. Soon after, I switched to brass instruments… Trumpet, French horn, baritone, and then ultimately tuba. I performed in jazz band, pep band, concert band, marching band and honor band. Read more>>

Eleni Falangus Duffy

I’ve always been an artist, though my early career took shape in a different medium. I studied costume design and spent over a decade working in the film industry in Los Angeles, where I learned the discipline of craftsmanship, storytelling, and designing with intention under tight timelines. Pottery, however, has always been part of my life. Read more>>

ERIN OSBORNE

I’ve always been drawn to the road less traveled. At four, I was known as “Bossy Peanut,” and in many ways that spirit has shaped my career—trusting my instincts, embracing entrepreneurship, and ultimately creating a boutique agency rooted in purpose, creativity, and connection. Read more>>

Sattie Zapata-Nyachwaya

I’ve always known I wanted to work with people, and that comes from watching the women in my life. My grandmother was a teacher who loved being in community, and my mom has always found ways to give back. Haha, she still crochets sweaters every year for people experiencing homelessness. Read more>>

Smriti Barla

I’ve been a thoughtful gifter for as long as I can remember. Even when I was younger, I wasn’t the type to just grab something random and wrap it up. I always wanted the gift to mean something. I’d think about the smallest details, what would make someone smile, what would feel like them. Because to me, gifting was never just about the item. Read more>>

Arina Sharavueva

I’ve been tattooing professionally for about three years, though my interest in the industry started long before that. Before becoming an artist, I worked as a tech recruiter in large corporate companies, which gave me a strong foundation in communication, structure, and professionalism — skills that now shape how I run my business. Opening my studio in downtown Kirkland was a natural evolution. Read more>>

Anthony Singleton

In 2020 I got covid and was in the hospital for 8 days. Needless to say I had a lot of time to think about my life and what I wanted out of it. After some reflection I realized that I wasn’t living the life that I had dreamed of as a kid. I made up my mind that I wanted to be a comedian. Read more>>

Shelah Coleman

It all started in October 2022. I came home from a girls trip and knew some things needed to change. So I came home, got a business license and started a dream. By 2023 I changed locations for my hair practice and my boutique. I found a street fronted location that offered foot traffic and exposure. I went though pivotal changes in my business format. Read more>>

Tara Schafer

I’ve always been an entrepreneur at heart. My first venture was selling rocks to the neighborhood kids at the age of 6 with my older sister. We marketed them as ‘magical rocks.’ My first ‘group coaching program’ was when I taught 6 neighborhood girls dance routines. I even rented out my local school gym for our group meetings! Fast forward many years. Read more>>

Martina Preston

I’ve been baking and in the kitchens for what feels like my whole life, but I didn’t have the chance to have professional baking experience until college. I went to school in Kirkland, graduating with dual degrees in English and Media Communication. Read more>>

Carol Tice

I’ve been in Seattle over 25 years now — we moved here in ’95 when our first (of three) kids was a toddler. I started out in my career wanting to be a songwriter in L.A. – then entered an essay contest and won $200. I dove into journalism and never looked back. Read more>>

Jessica Salina

I’ve been into creative writing ever since I was a kid, but cracked down a few years ago for National Novel Writing Month to finally write my first book. Now, I’m an award-nominated romance author of five novels, including the romantic comedy STUCK ON THE SLOPES. My sixth, a fantasy romance titled EYES OF MOLTEN SILVER, publishes later this year. Read more>>

Lindsay Droz Kristi Lord

L’AVANT Collective began as a deeply personal solution to everyday life for both of us. With kids and pets constantly creating messes, we wanted cleaning products that were safe for our families, highly effective, and beautiful enough to live out on the counter. Read more>>

Kelly Lyles

Life (beside politics) is lots of fun, I hope viewers will share that in my work. I’m an exhibiting artist since 1981, but ‘full time’ since the 1990’s (known equally for painting, Artcars, colourful clothing, and networking for the arts), with various styles/media, all based on representational art steeped in years of classical training. Read more>>

Catryce Sutson

Long before I was a business growth strategist, I was the girl juggling everything. In high school, I was running varsity cross country and track, singing in choir, working sound tech for jazz choir, doing community service, part of AVID and College Success Foundation, and taking College in the High School courses through the University of Washington. My schedule was full, but it was intentional. Read more>>

Jon Meggison

Lynnwood born-and-raised actor Jon Meggison hit the ground running when he began his acting career in January 2020, working through the challenges of the pandemic, self-promoting, and quickly landing roles in films alongside big names like Eric Roberts and Robert Lasardo. Read more>>

KRISTEN ALLOTT

Most people know me as a Naturopathic Doctor and Acupuncturist, but my most profound education didn’t come from a textbook. It came from living within a brain and body that has navigated PTSD, Neurodivergence (ADD and Learning Disabilities), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), and autonomic dysregulation. Read more>>

Ashley Grammer

My first career was actually in the hair industry! I was a hairstylist for about 15 years, and while I learned a lot, I felt deeply unfulfilled. Eventually, I worked up the courage to step way outside my comfort zone and try something completely different, while still staying within the creative realm. Read more>>

Bryan Dosono

My journey as a speaker is built on a central conviction: that the most complex systems in our world aren’t made of code, but of the human stories of connection that move us to action. Read more>>

Ekaterina Dzyuba

My journey started with a simple love for beauty, precision, and creating something meaningful with my hands. What began as a personal interest slowly turned into a profession, and then into a vision that was much bigger than I initially imagined. In the early days, I was doing everything myself. Read more>>

Annette Stiers Jones

My journey with photography began in childhood in Indiana, where I first picked up a camera through 4-H fair exhibits. Those early experiences sparked a lifelong love of art and storytelling through scenic photographs that captured the world around me. After high school, I pursued a career in science, graduating at the top of my class in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University. Read more>>

christian salgado

My music comes from my kids. A lot of it is shaped by not being able to see them, and everything that comes with that—love, pain, regret, hope. Creating music became the only way I knew how to process those feelings and stay connected to them. Even when I’m not physically present, my kids are at the center of everything I do. Read more>>

Angela Di Filippo

My name is Angela Di Filippo, and I am a leadership coach and a creative. I was born on the East Coast and have lived in Washington state for the past 12 years. As a child, I always knew I wanted to help people, but figuring out how to best do that took me a while. Read more>>

Blessing Beam

My name is Blessing B. I am from Liberia west, Africa. Adopted at age three.grew up in Washington. I am a model, influencer, event curator, and fashion designer. Official started my creative journey in 2020. Since then it’s been a ride. Both heart filled and pain. Lost some and gain. Today still create and model. Learning to take the journey one day at a time! Read more>>

Ryan Mullane

My name is Ryan Mullane, I am from Spokane Washington. I have been in the title & escrow industry for 8 years now. When I started back in 2018 I knew nothing about the real estate or title industry. Right away I fell in love with every aspect of the industry. Read more>>

Priscilla Jaeger

My path into this work didn’t begin in a wellness studio — it began in a warehouse. I spent nearly a decade working in distribution logistics, pushing my body hard and trying to prove I could keep up in a physically demanding environment. As one of the few women in that space, I carried a lot of pressure to be tough. Read more>>

Jen Self

My route to the work I do seems circuitous at a glance; however, the throughline of everything I’ve done since I was a kid is educating about, fighting against, revealing, and healing racial and gender inequity and injustice. So much of that work has been undoing my own cultural learning. Read more>>

Shalini Thyagaraja

My story has always been shaped by curiosity, resilience, and a desire to create meaningful impact. I came to the United States at 19 with two suitcases and a dream, to build a life rooted in purpose and possibility. Read more>>

John Platt

My story is long and winding, with several detours and diversions along the way. But looking back, I see that my path was always there. I was destined to communicate about environmental issues, especially endangered species. Read more>>

Olusegun Daramola

My story is not one of sudden awakening, but of gradual remembering. I did not begin my journey seeking titles, recognition, or spiritual authority. I began with questions—persistent, existential questions about identity, destiny, order, and meaning. Read more>>

Deon Abdullah

My story is rooted in purpose, resilience, and a deep commitment to serving my community. I began my journey in the wellness space as a massage therapist because I recognized the power of healing through touch. Very early on, I realized that massage therapy wasn’t just about relieving physical tension, it was about restoring balance, confidence, and well-being in people’s lives. Read more>>

Alex Ivy

My story of how I became a tattoo studio owner is not conventional by any means. I have always done art growing up and I always had random businesses from the age of 13. But I did not think to put the two together for quite some time. Read more>>

Aliyah Babauta-Sims

My story really begins in childhood. I’m the daughter of a chef and business owner, so food was never just food in our house — it was work, love, and community all at once. I was put to work early on, and those early experiences shaped how I see food as something that brings people together. Read more>>

Kristina Corbett

My story really begins in Los Angeles, where I was working as a Studio Manager for a locally owned wedding photography studio. Read more>>

Greg Jamiel

My story really begins with a love of storytelling and a deep belief that art and community can change how safe people feel in the world. For most of my career, I worked as an Art Director in television and creative production, telling stories on a national scale. Read more>>

Jamie O’Neill

My story really begins with my own healing journey. I went through seasons of my life where I felt lost and disconnected from who I truly was, and eventually I reached a point where I knew something had to change. Read more>>

Kevin Korte

My time in Washington State starts like that of many others, as an immigrant in the tech sector. I was in the first year of my career as an I.T. Project Manager at Univention. Univention sells Identity Management software. Its core product, UCS, enables companies to access their Computers and IT services securely and efficiently. Read more>>

Nedy Johnson

My voice has always been inexplicably linked to my soul. There is no separating the two. I’d spent my entire life being told not to sing. However, in December 2022, I decided ‘f*** that,’ and started going for it anyway. Read more>>

Leeah Smestad

Newberry Travel was started out of a very obvious issue we had started to spot while on vacation, specifically post-COVID. I haven’t been a lifelong traveler – I went to Mexico a few times in high school but that was it. Once I started my first ‘real’ job, I bought a 3 week ticket to Europe! Read more>>

Pastor Kevin Rogers

Pastor Kevin Rogers: A Change Agent in the Pacific Northwest Born and raised in Linden, Alabama, Pastor Kevin Rogers was shaped early by strong values of character, faith, and perseverance—virtues instilled in him by his mother, Mary E. Rogers, whom he describes as one of the most graceful women he has ever known. Read more>>

Andrea Michelle

Photography entered my life in high school. I found passion in capturing images on film, and learning how to develop film all on my own. But it never occurred to me that this could be something I could do as a job! Until I was in college aiming towards being a mental health therapist. And reflecting on what I want from my life. Read more>>

Alisha Bennett

Raised by a single mother in the beauty industry, I never imagined I would one day find my own place within it. In my early twenties, I felt deeply unsure of my direction — struggling not only with my skin, but with a sense of belonging. It was my mom who gently suggested esthetics school, a step that would unknowingly change everything. Read more>>

Isomahguomoh Sarah Idornigie

Sarahmond Designs Was Officially Founded On The 20th Of November 2013 . Before Then I Had Already Started Showing A Keen Interest In Creativity, Business And Entrepreneurship As Early As Age 10. So Far , I Would Say Our Almighty God – Jehovah’s Love For Me, My Resilience And The Genuine Love Of People Around Me Has Gotten Me To Where I Am Today. Read more>>

Romey Fox

Since the age of two, I knew that I wanted to be a doctor. In fact, I used to cry to go down the Band-Aid aisle instead of the toy aisle. I was exposed to the medical field at a young age due to my brother having a lot of medical issues and hospitalizations. Read more>>

Kira Miller

Sure, I’d be happy to! I have always loved photography. Although I often took pictures for family and friends, I always felt like photography was more of a hobby and not something I could pursue professionally. I got my degree in psychology and was passionate about the work I was doing in the mental health field. Read more>>

Amy Terepka

These two great loves of mine, the body and the earth, have always woven themselves through my life. Read more>>

Ms. Kash

When I first moved to Seattle I lived at homeless shelter with my two sons. We lived there about 8 months before moving into transitional housing. I left Oakland Ca to give my kids better opportunities and to change my old ways and become a better woman and mother. During our situation, I never veered away from my love of music. Read more>>

Alexandra Dane

When my third child moved on from home I debated my next chapter: another degree, go back to teaching, increase my hospice volunteer hours? Then I decided late one night to reach for the near impossible and definitely unproven: I applied to a writing workshop 3000 miles away, rented an apartment near the classes and dedicated six weeks to trying. Read more>>