Congratulations to Crain’s 2011 Top Entrepreneurs

Every day we interact with successful businesses and enjoy our favorite products and services that they provide, but rarely do we get to hear from its founders on how they got started, what struggles they went through, and what advice they’d give to others getting started.  At Crain’s Top Entrepreneurs awards breakfast, we got an inside look at this year’s top 6 entrepreneur’s businesses.  Throughout the morning, we were inspired by each entrepreneur’s unique story of trials and tribulations and how they turned their ideas into successful ventures. 

Vita Coco’s founder Michael Kirban found success by rollerblading to 60 New York City supermarkets a day and conducting taste tests for customers, which eventually lead to Whole Foods picking up the coconut water brand.  Karen Grando, from International Asbestos Removal Inc, spoke about the importance of managing and planning for growth and not being surprised by it.  Each entrepreneur talked about adapting to changing demands and challenges.  Lee “Peanut Butter” Zalben evolved his childhood dream of owning a peanut butter sandwich shop into offering custom peanut butters for sale at grocery stores.

All of these New York City based business are truly inspiring and we at The Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute would like to congratulate Crain’s 2011 Top Entrepreneurs:

Biz2Credit

Founders: Rohit and Ramit Arora

SquareSpace

Founder: Anthony Casalena

City Winery

Founder: Michael Dorf

International Asbestos Removal Inc.

Founder: Karen Grando

Vita Coco

Founders: Michael Kirban and Ira Liran

Peanut Butter & Co.

Founder: Lee Zalben