Life is full of changes. That couldn’t be more true for the entrepreneurial scene in Sioux Falls. On Wednesday, they took a day to celebrate that change.
They took the day to celebrate the big impact small business has made on the Sioux Falls community. What better way, than to have to first speaker from five years ago, make a return to share how much he’s changed.
In Sioux Falls, small business is anything but.
“The largest industry in our city is small business. So it’s the fabric of our community, so anything we can do as a city to support business growth, small business growth, people taking the leap to start their own company, embracing entrepreneurship; it’s really critical to the economy in Sioux Falls,” Mayor Paul TenHaken said.
The organization One Million Cups celebrated their five-year anniversary on Wednesday.
“Just celebrating everything that’s happened in the start-up community in the last 5 years, and we’re looking forward to the future as well,” Organizer for One Million Cups Matt Paulson said
“The entrepreneurial community here is very, very strong and they’re very encouraging to each other and really lucky to have each other,” Founder of Take Permisson Andy Traub said.
They celebrated by having the first ever speaker at the event, Andy Traub return to share how far he has come.
“When Andy lived here, he was one of the guys who helped start events like this and bring entrepreneurs together, and so, it’s great to see him back here today and kind of preaching the entrepreneur gospel, if you will, and helping create community in our city,” TenHaken said.
“It’s fun to just hear his perspective. Being a person that’s moved to another city now and being able to look with a little more perspective than we have here,” Paulson said.
His own business, Take Permission, is all about helping others take control of their lives and taking that first step toward their futures. Even though things aren’t the same as they were five years ago, Traub says some things never change.
“The things that have changed for me and my business, over the last five years, is that I’m still figuring it out. Everyday, I have to wake up and figure out, ‘What’s a priority for today?’ and balancing that with family and marriage,” Traub said.
He may not get to see Sioux Falls much these days, but when he does, he sees nothing but strong potential.
“Growth, growth, growth, but healthy growth; well managed growth, because we have the right city leaders, we have the right business community and its… the best days of Sioux Falls are definitely still ahead,” Traub said.
To learn more about one million cups you can click right here.
