2021 Business Accelerator Podcasts
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Episode 1Sheryl Wohlford with Automation-Plus discusses everything from how her company utilizes LinkedIn to connect with customers to finding the "sweet spot" in their company size. Learn more about Sheryl > |
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Episode 2Jennifer McDonald, founder and CEO of Jenny Dawn Cellars. Jennifer crafts and bottles her wines on-site, with grapes and juices sourced from the finest growers in California and Kansas. Learn more about Jennifer > |
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Episode 3Jennifer Barnard, co-owner of Tillie’s Flowers. Jennifer shares how flowers help communicate a unique language and how Tillie’s has connected with the community and earned the title of second oldest business in Wichita. Learn more about Jennifer > |
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Episode 4Clint Cornejo, of AllMetal Recycling talks about how leading a recycling and scrap business has turned into his passion. Learn more about Clint > |
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Episode 5Brandon Huynh discuss how the KimSon Asian Market was founded in a recession but has continued to grow and thrive over the years. Learn more about Brandon > |
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Episode 6Stacy Edmundson discusses her passion for helping her customers at Red Door Three, offering latest in trade show booth design & custom fabrication. Learn more about Stacy > |
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Episode 7Janice McClelland of McClelland Inc., a business staple in Wichita providing audio, video lighting and control services for a variety of industries. Learn more about Janice > |
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Episode 8Chrissy Robben, co-founder of Hexcode Designs, discusses how embracing business diversity and diving into her clients’ businesses has helped her to deliver a great customer experience. Learn more about Chrissy > |
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Episode 9Eddie Sandoval started Pinole Blue in his dorm room at Wichita State and now finds his products on grocery store shelves. Learn more about Eddie > |
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Episode 10April Albert owner of Four Feathers Boutique shares how she unexpectedly pivoted from eCommerce to having her own storefront. Learn more about April > |
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Episode 11Luis Rodriguez is convinced that Wichita is a location for growing any kind of business, particularly the technology kind. He discuss his roles at KeyCentrix and Method Productions. Learn more about Luis > |
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Episode 12Chad Hanson from Emprise Bank guides us through things to consider as you succession plan, in our first deep dive conversation. Learn more about Chad > |
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Episode 13Ethan Eck, owner of Eck Fabrication shares how his Chem-Blade product revolutionizes a pain point for farmers across America. Learn more about Ethan > |
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Episode 14James Barfield, discusses being a franchisee for a larger brand, Squeegee Squad, and how he focuses on being a resource partner locally in Wichita. Learn more about James > |
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Episode 15Sherrie Hill, who expanded Martinizing Dry Cleaning mere weeks before the pandemic, explore how she has found opportunities in the midst of struggle. Learn more about Sherrie > |
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Episode 16Mary Billings, of party company, Love of Character, explores the origin success story of the paper goods & party supplies shop based in Kansas. Learn more about Mary > |
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Episode 17Krissy Buck, Program Director of Digital Marketing at WSU Tech, joins the show to talk all things social media and digital presence. Learn more about Krissy > |
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Episode 18Carla Lawless and her three daughters have leveraged their own unique skills and experiences to create a whole different kind of beauty company. Learn more about Carla > |
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Episode 19Wayne Bell, District Director of the Wichita SBA, talk about the programs that the Small Business Administration has available to support small businesses, from sole proprietorships to companies with up to 500 employees. Learn more about SBA > |
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Episode 20Conan Fugit and his wife, Katherine, turned their love of campers and photography into a thriving photo booth business, Lamphouse Photo Booth Co., that travels to events all over the Wichita area. Learn more about Conan > |
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Episode 21Joy Eakins and the consultants at Cornerstone Data work with businesses to understand the questions leaders are asking and identify the unique data required to answer those question. Learn more about Joy > |
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Episode 22Hear directly from Freddy’s Frozen Custard and Steakburgers co-founder and COO Scott Redler on how this business came to be and how the approach they took that brought them so much success. Learn more about Scott > |
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Episode 23Stacy Ward-Lattin shares the Hopping Gnome story, from home brewing to deciding to create something brand new in Wichita in an effort to enhance the community. Learn more about Stacy > |
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Episode 24Mike Mathia and Jason Toevs, co-founders of Quicc, join co-hosts Don Sherman and Clemons-Ajibolade to explore everything from starting out with heavy involvement of investors and pivoting into new opportunities amid explosive growth. Learn more about Mike and Jason > |
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Episode 25Ajamu Webster discusses Dubois Consultants, with co-hosts Don Sherman and Clemons-Ajibolade. Hear about how he expanded from his first location in Kansas City to the Wichita market and how he has approached growing and building his business over 30+ years. Learn more about Ajamu > |
Wichita Chamber Business Accelerator - Journey Unseen
The Journey Unseen podcast series features three stories of women who have had a profound impact on our community through their leadership and achievements.
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Episode 26Yolanda Camarena, dedicated leader for the past 40 years advocating for the Latino community, shares about the value of mentorship in her life, Learn more about Yolanda > |
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Episode 27Vera Bothner of Bothner and Bradley, shares her desire to champion causes and clients that can make her small corner of the world just a bit better, working side-by-side with great leaders and teams on important and complicated issues, opportunities and projects. Learn more about Vera > |
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Episode 28Amy Williams of Spirit AeroSystems, shares about how she learned to own her own space when she entered the room. Amy joined Spirit AeroSystems in December 2015 and is currently the Senior Manager for Global Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I). Learn more about Amy > |
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Wichita Chamber Business Accelerator
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Episode 29Sarah Bagby has been leading Watermark Books & Cafe through difficult challenges, but has always been able to move forward, partly by having the right focus. She share what makes her business stand out. Learn more about Sarah > |
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Episode 30Dan Reisig and Jeff Ollenburger to talk about how UV&S has grown into Wichita and worldwide from their original business beginnings in Hutchinson. Learn more about Dan and Jeff > |
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Episode 31When Jessie Sterling saw a unique opportunity for a new business in Wichita she jumped right in with Paint the Towne. Jessie shares what led her to become an entrepreneur and her unique perspective on success. Learn more about Jessie > |
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Episode 32Bill Gardner has been around the brand creation game for a long time and has a ton of insight to share. Don and Ebony dive into what has made him successful with Gardner Design and how others can be successful at building their own brands. Learn more about Bill > |
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Episode 33When one thinks of dynamic and evolving industries, funeral services does not immediately come to mind. However, Ashley Cozine is continuously looking for opportunities to innovate with the Cozine Memorial Group and he shares those developments with hosts Don and Ebony. Learn more about Ashley > |
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Episode 34It’s a simple story, where a desire to capture great photos of his children eventually led to Milt Mounts moving his photography from hobby to business. But as he shares with Don and Ebony, his Essential Images business did not necessarily go in the direction you would expect. Learn more about Milt > |
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Episode 35There aren’t many companies that can claim they have been in business longer than electricity has been available in Wichita, but that’s what the four-generation Dondlinger Construction can hang their hard hat on. Tom Dondlinger and Raymond Dondlinger share with hosts Don and Ebony what has contributed to their long term success over a century in business. Learn more about Tom and Raymond > |
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Episode 36Sometimes your super-power just finds you. That’s what happened to Dawn Monroe as she began her first job out of college helping others learn how to use Word Perfect and Lotus. From there, she shares with Don and Ebony how she built her own technical education business, Dawn Monroe Training, from the ground up. Learn more about Dawn > |
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Episode 37For the past 25 years, Steve Dixon has been helping others to live their best life through providing career opportunities at P.B. Hoidale. He shares with Don and Ebony his passion for the community and people in it while providing critical needs through the gas stations his business builds. Learn more about Steve > |
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Episode 38The Wichita Regional Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting is coming up. Which makes this a great time for us to catch up with the 2021 Chair Ben Hutton, CEO of Hutton. He joins Don and Ebony to talk about his leadership path as well as what to expect from special guest speaker Patrick Lencioni at the Annual Meeting. Learn more about Ben > |
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Episode 39In the world of providing marketing and media to the local Hispanic community, Claudia Yauiar-Amaro is all over the place. She shares with Don and Ebony how AB&C Bilingual Resources has created a bridge to the Spanish-speaking community in the Wichita area through intentional and thoughtful engagement. Learn more about Claudia > |
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Episode 40Imagine for a moment just how much media has changed over the last 30 years, from TV and radio to internet and social media. Bonnie Tharp, founder of Copp Media, has been in the middle of that transition and shares her story of growth and transition with Don and Ebony. Learn more about Bonnie > |
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Episode 41When Brandon Gaide helped to start the strategy and innovation firm Sevenfold, he found an unlikely partnership with construction firm Hutton. Brandon shares with Don and Ebony how that partnership has allowed the creation of something new to help businesses make work more human. Learn more about Brandon > |
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Episode 42When businesses come to Kansas Business Services, LLC it’s about more than just business. Donna Wright shares with Don and Ebony how she and her son are supporting the community and culture through this work that they do. Learn more about Donna > |
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Episode 43When the pandemic started in 2020, Taishma Council saw business opportunities to support others in the midst of chaos. Through a team of virtual assistants, she shares with Don and Ebony how the Virtual Goals Assistant Agency helps others grow and become successful. Learn more about Taishma > |
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Episode 44Being a dentist that intentionally considers their practice a business is rare. Dr. Ashley Humlicek, with Humlicek Family Dental, talks with Don and Ebony about her unique perspective as a healthcare provider that focuses on her practice as an entrepreneurial opportunity. Learn more about Ashley > |
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Episode 45Josh Oeding and Mary Beth Jarvis aspire to grow the Wichita business scene through NXTUS by capturing the rapid change created by new startups. They share how all of us can be involved in supporting startup growth with Don and Ebony. Learn more about Josh and Mary Beth > |
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Episode 46Troy Houtman was always supposed to be an accountant, but he found a passion for growing communities through Parks and Recreation. He shares with Don and Ebony how the Leadership Wichita program challenged him in new ways and gave him a network of support across the city. Learn more about Troy > |
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Episode 47We are excited to have the new Wichita Regional Chamber of Commerce President and CEO, John Rolfe, join us to share his insight for what the Chamber does for our community. Listen now to get inside his vision for supporting businesses in our region. Learn more about John > |
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Episode 48When it opened, The Monarch was not necessarily in the best location in Delano, but owner Jen Ray trusted her intuition and has been able to thrive over 9 years in business. She shares her challenges through the COVID pandemic with Don and Ebony and her perspective on the local business community. Learn more about Jen > |
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Episode 49Half of the guests on the podcast have mentioned her and now we get to hear directly from the legend, Christina Long. Don and Ebony explore with her how CML Collective and the Create Campaign have lifted other minority-owned businesses in the community. Learn more about Christina > |
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Episode 50It’s a milestone today as we hit 50 episodes! Danielle Johnson, Executive Director of the Wichita Habitat for Humanity joins Don and Ebony to share her experiences with the Leadership Wichita program and how it has impacted her perspective on the community. Learn more about Danielle > |
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Episode 51As we take a short break to prepare for the new year, we thought it would be a good time to bring back one of our favorite episodes from the first year of the Wichita Chamber Business Accelerator. We hope that you find inspiration from Mary Billings’ story as you make resolutions for your own business. See you all in 2022! Cheers! Learn more about Mary > |





















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