Inc. Magazine 09.2019

(Amelia) #1
FR

OM

TO

P:
SH

AY

AN

AS

GH

AR

NI
A;
EM

ILI

AN

O^ G

RA

NA

DO

/R
ED

UX

EDITOR’S LETTER

James Ledbetter [email protected]


Born in Liberia,
educated in the
U.S., and prevented
from going back
home by recurring
political violence,
Richelieu Dennis
and his mother,
Mary, created a line
of products that
revolutionized skin
and hair care for
millions of Ameri-
cans. In my exclu-
sive interview with
him (page 40),
Dennis discusses
scaling and selling
his company, his
purchase of the
iconic media prop-
erty Essence, and
his plans to invest in
businesses run by
women of color.

ith the rise


of video games in the late 20th century


came the rise of cheat code culture: “Buy


this book [or visit this site] and you will


learn everything you need to win at Galac-


tic Insect Invasion.”


The advice is usually effective, if a little


unsavory. But, in case you need a reminder,


most of life—and starting a business in


particular—is not like a video game. The


annual Inc. 500 list serves as a colorful


and potent reminder that there is no cheat


code for business growth, no single path


to success.


Take, for example, Josh Levin, founder


of Empowered Electric (No. 210 on


this year’s list, and featured on page 108).


He is about as far from the Harvard MBA


path as it’s possible to get. He may never


even have become an electrician were


it not for a fateful call from his future


mother-in-law. But he quickly developed


a vision for how a good and fair company


should operate—and an instinctual


sense that electrical contractors were


underrepresented on Instagram. Or our


subscribers’ cover subject, Krystle


Mobayeni, the daughter of Iranian immi-


grants, who, on page 34, discusses the


winding road she took (and the stomach-


churning moment when she feared she’d


endangered her company’s funding)


en route to making BentoBox (No. 305)


a restaurant-industry mainstay.


Another unusual success story
comes from Loren Brill, founder of

Sweet Loren’s (No. 114, page 100),


whose cookie company grew out of a
desire to take charge of her diet during

chemotherapy. The founders of this


year’s No. 1 company, the online ad
operations firm Freestar (page 19),

started off in the improbable business


of publishing pinup calendars. It took
more than one major pivot before they

landed on the idea that would shoot


them to the stars.
To the extent, then, that there is

a cheat code for business, it’s not a


degree or a bank account or a set of


lessons that everyone learns. It’s
more about creativity, flexibility, and

persistence. At Inc., we won’t guaran-
tee that you will win the game. But

we guarantee we will show you those


qualities on every page.


No


Single


Path


10 ● INC. ● SEPTEMBER 2019 ●● ● ●● ●

Free download pdf