I was born into small business. My parents came to this country from Greece with little more than determination, a dream for a better future, and the ambition to build it with their own hands. My mom opened a beauty salon. My dad became a bricklayer.

I grew up in those businesses. Summers, I carried bricks across dusty job sites under the hot sun. Winters, I swept hair from the salon floor and wiped down chairs after closing. I wrote invoices and paid vendors for my dad, and picked up shampoos, colors, foils, and supplies for my mom. That was life — built on hard work, long hours, ambition, and resilience.

I also learned about the rollercoaster that is running a small business. I saw the lean times, when construction dried up or the salon sat quiet. I saw the good times too, when building was booming, and the chairs were full. I learned early what every small business owner knows: it’s never easy, but it’s always worth it.

That experience shaped me. I saw the weight my parents carried — how their business wasn’t just about profit, it was about putting food on the table, paying for school, and holding onto the hope of a bigger future. I realized that for small businesses, every customer matters, every decision counts, and every day is a fight to keep moving forward with ambition.

In 2004, I set out on my own journey to make that fight a little easier. I started one of the first digital marketing companies focused solely on small businesses. Back then, the internet was confusing and overwhelming — but it was also where new customers could be found. Big companies had the resources to take advantage, but small businesses were left behind. Our mission was to change that — to make internet marketing and growth simple for the businesses that needed it most. Over time, that company grew to serve tens of thousands of small businesses across the country. We eventually went public, growing into a $100M+ business.

Today, the challenge is even greater: marketing is more complicated than ever. The tools weren’t built for business owners; they were built for experts. Campaigns are hard to manage across platforms, and finding help is expensive — and too often unreliable. And now, even as AI transforms industries, small businesses are again being overlooked.

I was born into small business. My parents came to this country from Greece with little more than determination, a dream for a better future, and the ambition to build it with their own hands. My mom opened a beauty salon. My dad became a bricklayer.

I grew up in those businesses. Summers, I carried bricks across dusty job sites under the hot sun. Winters, I swept hair from the salon floor and wiped down chairs after closing. I wrote invoices and paid vendors for my dad, and picked up shampoos, colors, foils, and supplies for my mom. That was life — built on hard work, long hours, ambition, and resilience.

I also learned about the rollercoaster that is running a small business. I saw the lean times, when construction dried up or the salon sat quiet. I saw the good times too, when building was booming, and the chairs were full. I learned early what every small business owner knows: it’s never easy, but it’s always worth it.

That experience shaped me. I saw the weight my parents carried — how their business wasn’t just about profit, it was about putting food on the table, paying for school, and holding onto the hope of a bigger future. I realized that for small businesses, every customer matters, every decision counts, and every day is a fight to keep moving forward with ambition.

In 2004, I set out on my own journey to make that fight a little easier. I started one of the first digital marketing companies focused solely on small businesses. Back then, the internet was confusing and overwhelming — but it was also where new customers could be found. Big companies had the resources to take advantage, but small businesses were left behind. Our mission was to change that — to make internet marketing and growth simple for the businesses that needed it most. Over time, that company grew to serve tens of thousands of small businesses across the country. We eventually went public, growing into a $100M+ business.

Today, the challenge is even greater: marketing is more complicated than ever. The tools weren’t built for business owners; they were built for experts. Campaigns are hard to manage across platforms, and finding help is expensive — and too often unreliable. And now, even as AI transforms industries, small businesses are again being overlooked.