Every day we have a choice. We can support an up and coming podcaster, try a new family-run restaurant, join a boutique gym started by a local fitness champ or we could keep giving away our money to the handful of giants who already control so much of our commerce. Our daily decisions impact the kind world we live in; if we want a world where small businesses are growing and artists and creatives are thriving then we should support them with our time, money and attention. We’re proud to highlight inspiring creatives and entrepreneurs each week in Hidden Gems series. Check out some of our latest local gem features below.
Tina Cruz
I was accepted into the Art and Technology graduate program at the University of Oklahoma, where I honed my skills and developed a passion for pushing the boundaries of traditional painting. I wanted to bring my physical paintings to life in virtual reality, so I began working with Unity, Maya, and coding to create what I call Immersive Paintings. Instead of simply viewing a painting on a wall, these works allow people to step inside them using a VR headset. The viewer becomes part of the painting—interacting with it, sitting within it, and experiencing art in an entirely new way. Read more>>
Burnadine
Burnadine is an Austin alt-rock group pushing the boundaries of what falls under the umbrella of rock music. Our first single, “Tension”, has received raving reviews from critics, and even radio play. We just put out our second single, “Dreambitch”. We are planning to release one more single at the end of this month and our album this summer. Read more>>
Michael Pollock
I worked in record stores and bookstores for years and spent my free time at cafes reading, drawing and chatting with a wide cast of and people pursuing higher ed. I eventually tired of being desperately poor and made the calculation that working in warehouses for the rest of my life was equally as terrifying as going back to school and being in debt for the rest of my life. Figuring it was a lateral move essentially, I made the wise financial decision to study printmaking at Massachusetts College of Art and Design (MassArt). The major consisted of technical study of screenprint, relief, lithography and intaglio, intaglio being my favorite. Read more>>
Beth Coffey
Beth is married to Austin-based musician, Joe Jerkins. This talented duo promotes Texas culture through dance and music and can often be seen in commercials and music videos performing together, and on the cover of the Austin Monthly. Don’t miss her latest spotlight on NBC’s Today with Hoda & Jenna Show. Read more>>
Tye Harris
I think any small business owner can attest to the unique stresses that come with the job, especially if your business made it though covid, so we’re certainly not immune to that. Looking back, when we opened our doors in 2016, there was a fair amount of ignorance about running a successful business. That being said, I’m not sure we would have created what we have if it wasn’t for the initial naïveté. Read more>>
Luisa Nunez
After completing my studies, I moved to the U.S. to be with my now-husband, and through the challenges of cultural adjustment, I found clarity in my purpose. I started **Luisa Nunez: Fashion and Style LLC**, where I help clients discover and refine their personal style. My work is not just about clothes—it’s about confidence, empowerment, and feeling truly yourself in what you wear. Whether working with professionals, full-time mothers, or individuals looking to refresh their wardrobe, my goal is always the same: to make style effortless and fulfilling. Read more>>
Sahiba Bassi
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that organizing and mental health are deeply connected. Behind the clutter, there’s often a story—grief, depression, divorce, chronic illness, neurodivergence, or just the overwhelm of a busy life. My job isn’t just to tidy up; it’s to understand the “why” behind the disorganization and to support clients with compassion and practical systems. Read more>>
Kaelin Nguyen Rubenzer
My first professional experience working with people with disabilities came in high school, where I volunteered in the Life Skills program. I felt a deep connection with my peers in the program, but I was troubled by the systemic barriers they faced—limited educational opportunities, disengaged teachers, and, at times, unethical treatment. After graduating, I knew I wanted to contribute meaningfully to the disability field—not only for my friends in the Life Skills program but also for my own family members. Read more>>
Joaquin Rangel
That’s why I founded Joaquin in2 Inclusion. My goal was simple: to bridge the gap between families, educators, and resources so that inclusion isn’t just an idea—it’s a reality. We started by hosting Inclusive Learning Labs, where we train teachers to create supportive and accessible classrooms. From there, we expanded into parent advocacy, helping families understand their rights and work with schools to get the best possible education for their children. We’ve also written numerous articles to help educators and parents/guardians navigate the education system more effectively. Read more>>
Banks Cooney
Pilates has also been a deeply personal journey for me. It’s helped me build self-love through mindful movement. I love that it’s not focused on aesthetics, but rather on how you feel — on tuning into your body, your breath, and your intuition. That philosophy has become the foundation of the methodology we use at Haus of B Pilates. Read more>>
Fleetwood Jacobs
My story begins in 1977 on a hot summer’s day at Barton Springs in Austin’s Zilker Park. The air was humid, the water in the pool was stifling cold, and a drum circle infused the park with chaotic rhythm. Families, hippies, and topless women lounged on beach towels dotting the grassy hillside. As an 8-year-old, I fancied myself a swimming pool connoisseur—sure I’d swum in them all. But there was something different about this one. It was extreme, it was exciting, it was the most awesome place I had ever been. Read more>>
Janna Price
Life isn’t easy. Pursing a passion that is time consuming and costly can be difficult. However, I’ve never given up my dream of pursuing photography. As it functions now, photography is my side hustle, passion, and hobby. My ultimate goal would be to pursue photography full time as a freelance photographer, possibly even a wildlife photographer. Read more>>
Rich Wit A Blikk
That perspective shaped how I hear music. I don’t chase trends or try to fit a mold—I focus on the vibe, the emotion, the way a song can make you see something without needing a single visual. What started as me just playing around with sounds turned into something real, something people connected with. Read more>>
Kari Sneed
I started KC Outfitter in Early 2021. Covid restrictions were lifting and people were ready to get out and back into the world. It was perfect timing and just what Bastrop needed at the time. Since we opened, we have now moved into a much larger space. We carry Men, women’s and children’s clothing along with accessories and gift items. Two years after opening KC Outfitter, I saw a need for more retail downtown and opened Sage and Co., which is a women’s clothing and gift boutique. Read more>>
AJ Abrams
Not at all—real estate is never a smooth road. The industry is constantly changing, and you have to be ready to pivot at any moment. Between shifting market conditions, working with all kinds of personalities, and figuring out who’s the right fit for the company, there’s always something to navigate. One of the biggest challenges has been identifying our target audience and refining our vision over time. The saying, “the only thing that stays the same is change,” definitely applies. On top of that, deciding what tools and resources to provide our agents has been an ongoing process. We’re constantly evolving to make sure we’re equipping our team with everything they need to succeed Read more>>
Grace Wells
It took about 6 months of bad practice, a lot of youtube tutorials, and a lot of time searching chainstitch embroidery forums to get the hang of the machine. I had been doing vintage pop-ups for several months in Austin before I was ready to bring it along and offer live custom-lettering for the first time. I rebranded my vintage shop to incorporate chainstitch embroidery, and launched Source Material in 2021. Read more>>
Myles Herzog
idea of combining 2 songs together. It blew my mind that you could take 2 songs from completely different genres, blend them together, and create a new version that had its own unique sound & feel! Read more>>
Eric Stees
Owner, Eric Stees, began his health journey after being diagnosed with Ankylosing Spondylitis (a chronic inflammatory arthritis) while serving in the US Navy on a nuclear submarine. In college, he met his wife, Meghan, who was also navigating how to use food as medicine to resolve hormonal imbalances, thyroid dysfunction and PCOS. Together, Eric and Meghan have discovered the transformational power of REAL food and have been on a mission ever since to make real food more accessible. Read more>>
Luisa Duarte
I never imagined I would end up becoming a tattoo artist. As a kid, I loved drawing and coloring, but it was never a deep passion—just a hobby. Originally from Venezuela, I moved to the U.S. in 2018, where I completed four years of high school, learned English, and graduated. Throughout my high school journey, I thought about many potential careers, but none of them truly felt like my future. Read more>>
Jeanise Hatcher
At the time, I wasn’t yet certified, so I continued working my 9-5 in tech while managing the studio during evenings and weekends. That rhythm worked—until February 2025, when I was laid off. At that moment, I had a choice: chase another corporate job or finally surrender to the calling that had been stirring in my heart for years. Read more>>
Caren Áñez
Balancing this career shift with raising my three children, including my 14-year-old twins with autism, has been a journey of constant learning and adaptation. It’s taught me the importance of perseverance and the power of embracing new beginnings. So, in essence, I’ve taken my established expertise and blended it with a fresh perspective, creating a unique space where my media experience meets the vibrant world of social media entertainment, all while being a mom, and continuing to learn and grow. Read more>>
Tara Cooper
Overall it’s been a relatively smooth road, aside from having to work like a machine for 20 of my almost 25 years of experience. I couldn’t turn down any work for a very, very long time, because once you say no, producers may not call you back, and I never really had any help along the way by my family, so it all always fell on me. Really maybe the initial struggle is just wanting to be an artist in the first place – hahaha – I was really, really poor for the first five years of my career. Honestly though, I wouldn’t have had it any other way. I have had so much fun whether it was knee deep in the struggle or not. My job is still the best, and I have no regrets. Read more>>
Lalita Kennedy
Opening a business right after Covid was difficult in the beginning. It required a lot of practice and patience. Every client has different skin types and facial bone structures. I have to create different styles of brows to suit each person which makes it challenging. I now have over a thousand clients. I would say that I’m so much more confident in my work and can take on any client’s skin type. I always listen to my clients on what they prefer as well as suggest what would look good for them to create their perfect dream brows. Read more>>
Diana Castaldi
She regularly got her hair done and my sister and I would go with her to the salon and watch her stylist, Stephanie, mix and apply color, then wash & blow dry her hair and I thought she was so magical (I still do). I grew up before the YouTube era and read “Making Faces” by Kevin Aucoin and tried to soak up as many makeup skills as I could from his expertise. In college I would do makeup and hair for my friends and fell in love with getting people ready and the look of happiness when they looked in the mirror for the first time. Read more>>
Pedro
Knowing we had a lot to learn, we reached out to Guido Canedo, a long-time friend of our dad’s and the owner of Canedo Builders, who had been building homes in Austin for many years. We asked him if he would teach us how to build homes, and he generously agreed. Guido became our mentor, guiding us through the early stages of our business and providing invaluable insight that helped us grow. His experience and advice were crucial, and we owe a lot of our early success to his mentorship. Read more>>
Maggie Tra
I was living in Hanoi for a few years, within that time I started a female and non-binary dj collective Syster Sounds but I felt like I wanted to give back more to the community. So I started teaching myself and talking to other online radio stations on how to run a community radio. That’s kind of how Hanoi Community Radio was born. My ancestry is Khmer/Viet but I was born and raised in Sydney, Australia. So it meant a lot to me yo be able to create this for the community. I’m a DJ and a music producer and I really wanted to see the arts and music scene feel more connected. So HCR was my solution to that. Read more>>
Amir Mehmeti
That passion slowly turned into an idea. I started to wonder: what if I could offer this to others? Not just a car wash, but a full-on detailing service that comes to you — no waiting in line, no wasted time, just convenience and quality. I wanted to make something that people would genuinely appreciate, something that added value to their day. And that’s how Luno Mobile Detailing was born. Read more>>
Jose Santoyo
What I saw was Salsa dancing for the first time, to a live band on stage no less. I saw these guys dancing with these girls in a way I had never seen before, these guys had to be like the best in the world. I stood there watching all these dancers on that floor and decided right there that I would take classes to be able to dance like that. Not knowing that many years later I would be on that same dance floor competing in the Salsa World Championship and ending up on that same stage holding up the trophy. It seems like a movie sometimes. Read more>>
Ina Darley
Cleaning is about removing dirt—organizing is about creating systems that bring structure, peace, and efficiency into someone’s life. I knew the difference, but getting others to see that—and to invest in it—was tough. I’d explain the process, the long-term benefits, and the transformation that came with it, but the pricing often threw people off. They didn’t always understand that they weren’t just paying for a neat space—they were paying for clarity, time-saving systems, and a fresh start. Read more>>
Nikhila Narra Davis
But that ambition came with its challenges. I was new to farming, and it took time to learn the ins and outs of the land and vines. Later, when I shifted into winemaking, being one of the younger winemakers in the industry added another layer of difficulty, as I had to earn respect and prove myself in a field dominated by more established names. But each struggle taught me something valuable, and it’s been incredibly rewarding to see how far Texas wine has come and how my own work has contributed to that growth. Read more>>
Miranda Pewitt
Living in a zoo is my dream, but it still definitely comes with its challenges. Caring for this many animals requires hours of work every day. There are no weekends or holidays off. The early days were long, as I was still working a day job to support all the mouths I feed. When I got home each day, it felt like I was clocking into a second shift. The opossum poop doesn’t clean itself! I wouldn’t take any of it back. One of my favorite quotes kept me pushing forward: “Do what you love, and the necessary resources will follow”. Read more>>
Roxana “Roxy” Roman
The road has definitely had is ups, downs and arounds. The hardest part has been meeting the demand for custom pin̈atas, that i hand make and also being able to bake custom cakes on top of doing the deliveies of the event rental . 1 woman team here. However it has been all worh it. I wanted to bring somerhing unique and personal to the people celebrating special moments. Read more>>
Kiowa Madrid
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road, but it’s been a rewarding one. When you run a business mostly on your own, you learn pretty quickly how to juggle everything—from cleaning and organizing, to running the register, designing displays, keeping up with social media, and managing vendors. I wear all the hats, and somehow still manage to be a functioning 26-year-old outside of work (most days, anyway!). Read more>>
Abby Jones
I researched and through talking and communicating with people I knew around me I found Aveda Institute in downtown Austin! I attended Aveda right after graduating from Texas State University. It was a year of schooling and passing tests that I got my certificate of cosmetology. A month after receiving my certificate I started working behind the chair and I’ve been working behind the chair now for 13 years this October. It was the best decision I made going to cosmetology school. I get the creative aspect with working with my hands while simultaneously getting to yap yap yap with my some of my favorite people, my clients! Read more>>
Levi King
I want to try to design clothes that take on a runway. I love fashion and runways and want to create a collection using my friends as models and the thrift to obtain clothing.
Kenneth Jr Rector
When 2020 hit, everything changed for everyone. For us, it opened a door. We found a spot to lease and used our personal savings to finally open a brick-and-mortar location in Pflugerville. We started with takeout to keep our customers safe, and once it was possible, we opened for dine-in. Our goal was always to create a warm, welcoming space where people could sit down, enjoy amazing food, and feel at home. Read more>>
Steph Lynn Robinson
Soon, other voice actors I worked with began asking for help with these tasks too. That’s when I realized there was a real need in the industry for someone who not only understood marketing and the business of voice acting but also had firsthand experience as a performer themselves. That’s how Keep Dreaming Creative was born. I wanted to offer voiceover talent a comprehensive range of services – from voiceover demo production to private coaching and workshops, to creating a professional online presence – with a focus on supporting those who may not have much technical expertise or a large budget to work with. Read more>>
Dick Sanger
ABT (Automatic Bag Handling Terminal) – Raising $33 MM during: a Recession, Shooting War, on a Greenfield Site, involving the International Longshoremen’s Union, Computers, and lastly on the waterfront – how many Red flags do you see? Took 5 years. The First $1 Million almost killed me. I just kept writing checks. Got to $32 million and the financing stopped and I had to fund the last Million. “The world is full of unfulfilled Genius if only they had the money”. You either have it or you do not. Persistence, Persistence, Persistence. Read more>>
Aysa Province
At Beautifully Loved, we focus on helping children, teens, and families navigate the emotional toll that often accompanies physical illness. We do this by building confidence and self-worth through wellness, beauty, and fashion-based programs. Our work is grounded in compassion and powered by community. Read more>>
Philip Ellis
But with growth comes growing pains. One of the toughest parts has been managing client relationships at scale. I’ve brought on a lot of clients, and while we’ve gotten amazing results for the majority of them, there have been times when things didn’t go as planned. Sometimes it’s because we made mistakes — and I own that. Other times, a client’s expectations didn’t line up with the reality of what we delivered, even if we did everything we said we would. Read more>>
J.I. Mardones
People often think that filmmaking is a career with great advantages because you use to work with different groups of people practically all the time. However, sometimes it is not as nice as it seems. I can tell you about the few times when I did not receive any recognition, any mention, for my contribution in a project, or when other people tried to sabotage or steal my work or excluding me from important decisions. And that is how I began to learn the importance of having my own personal projects, parallel to the other projects I use to work on all the time. I know it may sounds like being individualistic, but I think you understand my point. Read more>>
Averi Segrest
Throughout this journey, I was fortunate to have the support of Sherri Arrington, the owner of Mainstreet Productions. Sherri played a pivotal role in my evolution from an inexperienced vendor to a successful one. I learned the ins and outs of the craft, not just from my own trials and errors but also under Sherri’s guidance. It wasn’t long before I was helping her as a show organizer, diving into social media strategies, and connecting with vendors to create engaging experiences at events. Read more>>
