Kate Beadle is a Corporate Responsibility Analyst for State Farm® where she has worked for 23 years. She grew up in Virginia Beach and lived in Norfolk prior to relocating to Charlottesville. Kate manages a philanthropic portfolio for both Virginia and West Virginia, working with non-profits in the areas of safety, education and community development. In addition, she manages the national education portfolio. Kate works with State Farm agents on engaging with their community and building their brands. Follow Kate on Twitter @SF_KateBeadle.

Jamie Beadle is a 27 year employee of State Farm. He has been involved with catastrophe planning and response for 22 years. Outside of work Jamie is active as an EMT and Swift Water Rescue Technician for his local volunteer fire rescue organization.

Don is a sales and marketing veteran with deep experience across many industries. His diverse perspective and creativity help guide every client to achieve their unique business goals. With nearly twenty years in advertising, marketing and sales he’s learned that a sale itself is not the objective, it’s the byproduct of truly understanding and caring about what clients need. Always committed to doing the right thing and putting others first, Don serves on the board of StartWheel and the United Way of South Hampton Roads as Marketing Chair and Executive Committee member.

Marcia Futterman Brodie, Business Performance Specialist for BizConnect Hampton Roads, has been in sales and marketing in both the private and not-for-profit sectors for over thirty years. Additionally, she currently handles all of the marketing and public relations for Beth Sholom Village. Because of her career experience in sales, sales management, marketing, and public relations she partners with BizConnect Hampton Roads to help business owners better themselves in business. Marcia also coaches individuals on interviewing strategies, communication skills, and how to make their presentations a success.

Dawn is the founder and President of InSource Consulting, Inc. InSource Consulting, Inc. has been operating for 13 years and is an independent business consulting firm that works with small to mid-size companies to provide valuable analytical, bookkeeping, and training assistance. InSource serves a multitude of sectors of the business community, specializing in the financial system setup, systems integration, and tax preparation/review. Dawn is known for “unscrambling the egg” – finding the fundamental problems with how a business processes data, fixing it, and working with the client to establish more efficient processes moving forward.

Jim Clark has been a State Farm Agent in Norfolk, VA for 15 years. Jim’s Agency deals in all personal lines insurance including auto, home, and life insurance and specializes in small business insurance and financial services. Jim is a mentor for many State Farm Agents in Norfolk and Chesapeake. Jim is an active volunteer with the ROC Solid Organization, and with Seat Belt Safety programs in the Norfolk school district.

Prior to opening his Agency with State Farm, Jim worked for 14 years as a CPA with a CPA firm, bank, and for a number of years in the restaurant industry. He is a native of Atlanta, GA, and is married with 3 sons.

Barbara is an experienced customer service representative with a demonstrated history of working in the financial services industry. She is skilled in negotiation, budgeting, advertising, sales, and sales management.

Barbara has been with Retriever Merchant Solutions since 2013 after having been with them as one of their clients for several years. Having been a small business owner, she remembers how hard it was to keep the bottom line healthy.

Robert (Bob) Gurnee is a highly experienced businessman having worked in various industries throughout Hampton Roads for over four decades.

After a long career ranging from real estate management to financial investment, Bob officially retired in 2017, but you can take the man out of the business but you can’t take the business out of the man. He has served on the Board of Directors for Retail Alliance since 2003 (including being President of the Board) and continues to do so and also currently sits on the Virginia Advisory Board at Dollar Bank.

Lori is co-owner of Once Upon A Child Newport News. She has over 21 years of experience as an HR generalist with experience in retail, whole distribution, IT, and architecture/engineering industries. She has practiced HR in the US, Canada, and 13 countries in Europe.

She holds a master’s degree from the University of Oxford and bachelor’s degree from Campbell University and a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt from the University of Wisconsin. She additionally holds the Society of Human Resources Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP) and Human Resource Certification Institute Global Professional in Human resources professional (GPHR) certifications.

Tobias Janke is co-owner and operator of Once Upon A Child – Newport News, an award-winning retail-resale store that has been in operation since 2010. The store is being continuously recognized locally and nationally for sales, operations, and customer service/satisfaction. In this store, Tobias focuses on operations (IT systems, facilities, compliance, business processes), finance (accounting, AP/AR, payroll, analysis, budgeting, planning/forecasting), and projects (store build-outs, renovations, relocations, lease negotiations, security). He has also served on national advisory boards for both brands and is a frequent contributor/presenter at the brands’ national meetings.

Pamela is the owner of Garden Gazebo, a company that opened its first location 25 years ago. Garden Gazebo once operated seasonal garden gift locations in major shopping malls around the country, having as many as 40 locations. It became a year-round concept in January 2004, with stores in Ghent and Richmond. The Richmond location eventually moved to Pembroke Mall and the Ghent location moved to MacArthur Center. Both stores enjoy successful sales, loyal customers, and long-term employees.

She is the all-powerful Wizard of Pixel. Even when you can’t see her, she’s busy working her magic behind the curtain and reaching out when she sees a tax or compliance disaster about to happen. She has her BA in Accounting and Administration and her MBA with an emphasis in Finance. She’s been working that magic since she entered the world of Accounting at the age of 15 years old. She’s very passionate about her work with Small businesses and it’s not unusual for the Mama Bear in her to come out when she believes her clients have been treated unfairly. One of the most important parts of her job is to educate her clients so that they can be part of the solution to their problems and be proactive about their growth!

Hi, I’m Kaycee McCoy, a digital marketing & branding expert based in Norfolk, Virginia.

The entrepreneurial spirit runs through my veins. My parents were successful small business owners, but they ran blue-collar companies like crude oil drilling and rock hauling. Growing up in that environment gave me a unique perspective on life; the moral of the story is that entrepreneurship was the norm and I’ve had a penchant for small business my entire life. At the ripe age of 5 years old I was happily answering the business phone and talking on the CB Radio to our truck drivers. And while most kids were babysitting or running lemonade stands in middle school, I was carefully crafting greeting cards and creating bracelet companies. Small business life is a part of my DNA: it’s who I am.

Traci Bunn Powers is a native of Newport News, VA. She earned her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Campbell University in Buies Creek, NC. Immediately after Graduate School, she spent twenty years in Non-Profit Leadership in North Carolina and Virginia. She opened her first retail resale store in 2009 in Newport News, VA and she opened her second retail resale store in 2012.

She brings years of business acumen with a specialty in Human Resources, Sales Leadership, Marketing, and Team Development. She has created programs to drive efficiencies in her stores that have been implemented in stores across the country. In addition, she has served on numerous boards in Virginia and is Chair of the Board for Just Compassion, a non-profit that addresses the lack of dental care in the western part of Virginia.

Tim has extensive experience in entrepreneurism, early-stage startups, angel investing, and small business development. Tim is the President of Arcphor, a locally based business that works with early-stage startups and small businesses. Tim also serves as the Executive Director of StartWheel, an organization focused on consolidating and coordinating the entrepreneurial efforts across Hampton Roads, Virginia, and as a business analyst for the Hampton Roads Small Business Development Center. Tim was the former Director of the Launchpad, an award-winning business incubator located in Greater Williamsburg, and a Lead Associate with Booz Allen Hamilton.

Tim has an MBA from William and Mary and his undergraduate degree in Computer Information Systems from St. Leo University. Tim is also a certified Project Management Professional.

Marketing, done intentionally! Sonya’s mission is to prove that marketing doesn’t need to be mediocre or lack strategy or intent.

Combining deep experience with strategy, execution, and analysis, Sonya has helped clients break through the marketing chaos to find success through intentional marketing strategy, exceptional marketing execution, and narrative.

Rooted in the belief that marketing can be done intentionally, Sonya is dedicated to helping organizations question the conventional and change the marketing status quo.

Sonya is uniquely positioned with an extensive 30-year career in marketing execution, content, and social media development, as well as marketing strategy in various verticals, industries, and business sizes. She is acutely aware of the uniqueness and diversity of each organization she works with, providing unique solutions to suit their specific needs.

Philip M. Scotti is the owner of Philip Michael Fashion for Men, a men’s apparel store in operation for the past 11 years. Before owning his current store, he owned seven locations of an apparel store called Eagle Clothes from 1972 to 1990. When those stores went out of business, he went the corporate route, working as VP of Operations at S&K Menswear for 15 years. He chose to work for a corporate organization to learn from a larger business and mentors before venturing back into entrepreneurship.

Philip Michael Fashion for Men is a leading men’s apparel retailer in the Hampton Roads Area. Their ultimate goal is to provide patrons with the means to dress for success while maintaining a balance among fashion, sophistication, and affordability. They take great pride in their company, their commitment to customer service, and in the products they sell.

William Warford is the current Director of Web Development & Digital Sales for Vista IMS (Internet Marketing Solutions), a Division of VistaGraphics, Inc. He has over 30 years of sales, marketing, and product management experience. This experience includes positions with very well-known companies such as IBM, GTE, BellSouth, and Dominion Enterprises. He is extremely proficient in the areas of digital sales, SEO (Search Engine Optimization), SEM (Search Engine Marketing), Websites, Mobile Apps, and most recently Programmatic Advertising. He is certified in Google AdWords and Google Digital Sales.

William is a graduate of Tennessee State University and the United States Air Force Veteran. Since joining VistaGraphics, he has been instrumental in launching their Target Audience Solutions (Programmatic Advertising) program.