Philanthropic Ventures Foundation Gives Kudos to Centro

Philanthropic Ventures Foundation (PVF) is passionate about sparking innovative ideas and forging collaborations, and so are we! They are also dedicated to bringing joy, simplicity, trust and effectiveness to grant-making, and we could not be happier to attest to that.

Last week, James Higa and Bill Somerville, Executive Director and Founder of PVF respectively, visited our offices in old downtown Oakland to learn about our work. Shortly after we were extremely excited to receive a grant to go towards the development of our entrepreneurship education mobile app, and a heart-warming letter of support. Here are some highlights we’re proud to share:

We are so inspired by the work you are doing to partner with low income, underserved entrepreneurs to create sustainable businesses.

Centro’s access to microloans like Kiva Zip for these entrepreneurs and your pairing, training, and mentorship with MBA students is making a difference to lift these people out of their circumstances but also revitalizing the community of Oakland as more vibrant grassroots microenterprises are added to the city.

Your idea to augment your curriculum with a mobile module so that you can scale and reach many more multiples of these entrepreneurs is a wonderful idea.

Our deepest gratitude to James and Bill, and everyone at Philanthropic Ventures Foundation for investing in the future of Centro, and the creative and courageous small entrepreneurs of our community.

Séphora Pierre-Louis: Featured MBA Advisor

Can you please tell us about your academic and professional background?

I am currently getting my MBA at Mills College in Oakland with a concentration in nonprofit and marketing. I already have a bachelor degree in Management from Ecole Supérieure d’Infotronique d’Haiti and a Master’s degree in Project Management from Quisqueya University of Haiti. My career has been involved in both the profit and nonprofit sectors and I’ve been working in the fields of Management, Sales, and Marketing for more than 14 years. I’m mostly concerned with innovation in business, entrepreneurship, communication, and leadership.

I’ve also been a board and active member of Partners of the Americas (Haiti – New Jersey Chapter) for more than 6 years, which is a grassroots network that seeks to connect volunteers, institutions, and communities to serve and change lives. I am a Distinguished Toastmaster as well, which has allowed me to start many Toastmaster Clubs in Haiti. I have been the Area Governor of Caribbean District 81, and my clubs and area were actually granted the Distinguished President award, the highest honors that Toastmasters offers based on their excellence in accomplishments of a set of goals through innovative strategies.

Why did you decide to join Centro as an MBA Advisor?

When I saw Centro’s presentation at Mills College I was impressed by the work they were doing in the community. Moreover, their approach closely relates to my business plan, which focuses on launching my own nonprofit organization in my home country to assist entrepreneurs with small to medium-sized businesses. I felt a connection and wanted to get the experience of working with an entrepreneur myself so I could understand what it really implies, and eventually transfer this experience to my own project.

Which businesses/entrepreneurs did you advise?

At her first workshop, Eden poured oil in Séphora’s ears to demonstrate one of her treatments

My entrepreneur was Eden Tosch, a clinical practitioner of Classical Indian Healthcare (CIH or Classical Ayurveda). Her business, Eden Ayurveda, is a sole proprietorship that provides in-depth consultations that guide a wide range of Ayurvedic healing tools.

Can you tell us about a challenge that you faced?

The first challenge I faced was time pressure. Personally, I have the capacity of processing and recording information quickly and I had to adjust this behavior to my entrepreneur’s so we could work in symbiosis and achieve more. I also had to figure out the most efficient communication and leadership skills, such as asking my entrepreneur the right questions that would allow me to get the answers I needed to advise her in the most efficient way.

What did you learn during Centro’s program?

During the program I learned that being a coach is a very challenging duty that requires a good understanding of one’s self. I learned that a coach needs to be firm on goals but flexible on means to achieve those goals. Goals are the best way to stay focused and make sure that every step and action taken is done according to the goals that were set by the entrepreneur.

How has Centro impacted your career trajectory?

Damanbir Singh (MBA Advisor), Eden Tosch (Entrepreneur), and Séphora Pierre-Louis

Centro has given me the experience I need to implement an international program where I will be able to use these effective tools in my country to train small to medium size business entrepreneurs. I won’t need to re-invent the wheels but can adapt and reapply these tools somewhere else for a broader impact.

What are you up to now?

Updated April 2013: I am working on a research project with Women’s Initiative, which ties to a marketing research for my own business plan. The first step for me is to get qualitative and quantitative data on nonprofit organizations that are doing similar activities in the US, specifically in Oakland, California, so that I can learn about the best practices and failures, as well as how I can partner up with organizations for future programs in Haiti.

Emily Adams: Featured MBA Advisor

Can you please tell us about your academic and professional background?

I graduated with highest honors from University of California (UC), Santa Cruz where I received a bachelor’s degree in anthropology with a concentration in physical anthropology and a minor in earth science. I recently completed my MBA at the Lorry I. Lokey Graduate School of Business and I’m passionate about integrating social & environmental impact into for-profit business models. My professional experience includes 5 years working with small businesses and entrepreneurs across a variety of functions, including operations, finance, marketing, and consulting.

Why did you decide to join Centro as an MBA Advisor?

I recognized that Centro would be a unique learning opportunity. As an MBA Advisor not only would I be able to use the skills I was learning in my coursework to help an entrepreneur grow their business, I would also learn lessons that can’t be taught in the classroom; what it’s like working with clients, relationship building, balancing different work and communication styles, dealing with ambiguity, and overcoming the numerous obstacles to small business ownership, just to name a few.

One of the perks of working with chefs and food entrepreneurs ... the samples!

Which businesses/entrepreneurs did you advise?​

Azalina’s Malaysian food cuisine

Can you tell us about a challenge that you faced?

Time. Entrepreneurs and MBA students are inherently busy creatures. Syncing schedules is always rough, and it can be quite a challenge for entrepreneurs to plan for long term growth and stability when there are myriad activities demanding their attention in the present. As the advisor, it is important to manage time well, setting clear deadlines that respect both the entrepreneur’s and your time, and to communicate clearly with the entrepreneur to keep the project moving forward. It can often be challenging but it’s a great opportunity to learn.

What are you up to now?

I just completed my MBA and recently joined One PacificCoast Bank & Foundation as a Financial Analyst and Program Manager.

Eugene Oh: Featured MBA and Senior Advisor

Can you please tell us about your academic and professional background?

I have a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California (UC), Berkeley and worked at Genentech for five years. I then obtained my MBA from Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley and joined a cleantech startup doing product marketing.

Why did you decide to join Centro as an MBA Advisor?

I’ve always wanted to give back to the community but struggled with how exactly to do so. Centro offered me the perfect way to use what I was learning in business school for those who needed it to start their businesses.

Which businesses/entrepreneurs did you advise?

Over the last two years, I’ve advised three entrepreneurs who wanted to start or grow the following businesses:

• A children’s bookstore
• An organic pet food brand
  
• Malaysian food cuisine

Can you tell us about a challenge that you faced?

With every team you will have to learn how to work with people from completely different backgrounds to be successful. This can be a challenge but incredibly valuable in one’s professional and personal life. You learn a lot about patience, humility, perspective, yourself and others!

How has Centro impacted your career trajectory?

I think companies these days are looking for candidates that are well-rounded and are giving back to the community in some way. When interviewing for my current position with my manager, I learned that she worked with the city on women’s advocacy. When I shared about my volunteer work with Centro, we were able to relate to each other on a deeper level which helped me land the job.

What are you up to now?

I am currently a product marketing manager with a company named View. We just launched our product, an energy-efficient tintable glass, and hope to make a big splash in the architectural green building industry.

Skincare by Feleciai… Celebrate the Art of Bathing

Feleciai Favroth, Oakland, Skincare by Feleciai

Skincare by Feleciai is a luxurious handmade skincare line based out of Oakland, CA and owned and operated by Feleciai Favroth. Feleciai, a Bay Area Native, attended Cornell as an undergraduate and received her MBA from the University of Pennsylvania. After spending time in the trenches of Corporate America and then working as a realtor, Feleciai decided to follow her passion and pursue a career in the beauty industry. She went to the Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center to begin to conceptualize her business and then to Centro Community Partners, where she had a new support system and developed her business plan and financial projections. Feeling driven to provide a product and not a service, Feleciai envisioned a company dedicated to producing only the finest handmade products that were gentle on the skin and the environment. From that inspiration, Skincare by Feleciai was created.

Today Feleciai continues her mission to celebrate diversity and beauty with her fabulous line of products for both men and women. Her line features a variety of soaps and shea butter creams made from all-natural ingredients such as olive oil, essential oils and cocoa butter. She is proud of her product and feels truly successful when customers approach her to share their love of the overall experience they’ve had with her soaps and creams. Such praise is overheard frequently when Feleciai is out selling her line at local markets.

Feleciai participated in Centro’s Entrepreneurship Readiness Program in 2010 where she began to develop her business plan and used the program to access a loan. Skincare by Feleciai has nearly tripled in revenue since 2010 and continues to grow. To learn more about her products, visit http://skincarebyfeleciai.com, follow Skincare by Feleciai on Facebook or stop by the Old Oakland Farmer’s Market (at the corner of Washington and 9th Streets) on Fridays to meet her in person!

Update 5/1/12:

Feleciai just received an interest-free loan through Kiva Zip! The loan will help fund her website, take professional product pictures, upgrade her packaging and prepay five big festivals.

Update 3/25/13:

We are very proud of Feleciai for paying off her Kiva Zip loan!

New Packaging for Eucalyptus Peppermint Soap from Skincare by Feleciai

Feleciai was able to do exactly what she expected to do with the money – buy ingredients to make more soap, introduce beautiful new labels, pre-pay for high-end trade shows and craft fairs, and pay for professional photographs of her products. She was able to increase her revenues by both maximizing the visibility of her products and increasing the durability of her inventory, since the soaps last longer when professionally wrapped.

This year she plans to hire someone to help her with packaging so that she can fully focus on marketing, create new private-label items, fine tune her product line, and eventually move to a larger location. She’s considering taking out another Kiva Zip loan or trying out a crowdfunding site, like Indiegogo to help with the next stage of her growth.

Foodies at the Fruitvale Public Market

It has been a busy summer at Centro! We are currently working with the entrepreneurs at the Fruitvale Public Market in Oakland in our Business Growth Program. MBA Advisors have been working closely with the Fruitvale entrepreneurs to help grow and revitalize their businesses. We have also discovered some amazing foodie finds at the Public Market.

Stop by and try some of Leticia’s famous pozole and authentic home-style cooking at the Taco Grill. For dessert, there are plenty of options including traditional and unique ice cream flavors at Nieves Cinco de Mayo (our favorite is avocado!) Cold outside? Warm up with a churro hot caramel filled from Churros Mexicanos or a slice of famous tres leches cake from Bakery Del Sol.

PieTisserie: A Unique Take on Classic Dessert Pies

Jaynelle St. Jean was raised in a family of three women in the Sunset District of San Francisco.  She graduated from the top of her class from San Diego State University with a degree in journalism.  After living and working in New York and Hawaii, Jaynelle returned to the Bay Area and began her life as an entrepreneur.  On Valentine’s Day 2010, Jaynelle staged her mother’s apartment as a country window with pies set out to cool and served her neighbors on ceramic dishes in order to create a sense of community.  Soon, neighbors began to recognize her as the “pie lady.”  After this experience, Jaynelle knew that her future was in the pie business and she is now the owner of PieTisserie, a catering and retail business.

Jaynelle explains, “I will feel successful when my real life mimics elements of the lifestyle PieTisserie depicts – one in which my own financial needs are met and I share with others; one in which work and life complement one another, such that I have time and vitality to labor over food for family, friends and neighbors; and one in which I contribute to a community where trust is the norm and interdependency is safe.  The reason my business thrills me is because it allows me to experience these feelings, while I work on making my desired state a reality.”

Jaynelle participated in Centro’s second cohort, where she worked with MBA Advisors to further develop her business plan, capture her production costs, and create marketing and growth strategies. She has a devoted following who absolutely LOVE her pies!  To learn more about Jaynelle and her unique take on pies, see PieTisserie on Facebook.