When Total Glamour Beauty supply opened in 2021, business was slow. “Working with Oakland Thrive gave me the clarity and support I needed to grow my business with confidence. As my business continued to evolve, I found myself juggling operations, marketing, and planning—but through ongoing guidance and access to the right resources, I was able to make more strategic decisions and strengthen my overall foundation. From marketing support to connections around capital and business planning, I’ve been able to move forward with more focus and be less overwhelmed. I truly feel like I have a partner in my business journey—I’m not doing this alone anymore.” said Tara Smith, founder and owner of Total Glamour Beauty Supply.

Mark Raymond, co-host of The Running Commode said “I’ve had this dream of producing a television show and Oakland Thrive helped bring this dream to reality. They got me in touch with Brian Birney of The Birney Directive. He sat down with me and I described for him a television show that I wanted to make that had to do with tips and tricks to help people in the community with the management of a home from a property manager’s perspective, and would co-host with Eric Hodge with Hodge Home Inspections, a home inspector. At the beginning of the show is an animation that was produced through the Birney Directive at no cost to me because of Oakland Thrive. It would have cost me $10,000 to have something of this caliber made. Oakland Thrive also provided some really good tips and tricks on the social media side to help promote the show. I’m so grateful to Oakland Thrive for all their help.”

Vicky Winkler, owner of The Marketing Shop said “Oakland Thrive has been amazing. I’ve been working with them since April 2024. Even though I've had my business for over 20 years, when I came to Joyce and said, "There's certain areas that I just feel like I need to up my game or there's certain areas I felt like I'm just not sure if I'm doing the right thing," she set me up with Oakland Thrive Consultants on numerous occasions that have been just immensely helpful and really helping me to move in the right direction. They provided me with training on Co-pilot, Excel, Word, business strategies, and more.”

Robin Maloney, owner of ROMA Consulting, said “I have been so grateful for the small business support from Oakland Thrive. They have given me access to services that as a small business owner would have been very difficult for me to budget for, and even have within reach. They worked on getting me social media support, presentation support, and has just been an incredible asset for me. They’ve been inviting me to different workshops on branding and how to manage your business. These are all the things that I wouldn't have had on my own. Joyce Kreger specifically has been like a fairy godmother, walking me through step by step on creating a Google Business Profile and providing a keyword strategy. I’m now visible locally on Google, where I haven't been in the past. And in addition to all this, there's all sorts of support that she's given me in terms of ongoing documents and workbooks. I can reference this material, come back to, and use it to continue to work on my business. So thank you Joyce and thank you Oakland Thrive.”

“Through our engagement with Oakland Thrive, we strengthened our financial foundation, a critical component of our business. By leveraging Oakland Thrive’s B2B services, we worked with Jessica Smith of JLS Vision Services to organize and refine our financials, making us well-prepared and competitive for funding opportunities. That preparation paid off. With our financials in order, we were able to successfully apply for—and win—this highly competitive grant,” said Cassie Morrison, owner of The Culinary Studio.

Tamara Antishin, Co-Owner/Therapist of Dynamic Wellness Collaborative LLC, connected with Oakland Thrive for small business assistance. Tamara said, “If you own a business in Oakland County, you need to call Oakland Thrive. Their free support in areas like legal, marketing, and accounting has helped us strengthen critical parts of our operations that aren’t our area of expertise. Whether you're looking for reassurance that you're on the right track or want expert input to make things more efficient, working with Oakland Thrive’s team is an incredible opportunity for any business owner.”

Carmen Luna, owner of Luna Spanish Center, shared, “I want to thank Oakland Thrive for supporting me by clarifying my doubts last year for tax season. It was my first year filing taxes with my LLC, Luna Spanish, and I had many questions. I feel very happy to be part of Oakland Thrive because they are a great support for small businesses in the community.”

Oakland Thrive started working with Carmelita Samuel, owner of Mental Balance and Wellness Practice in July 2025. "Oakland Thrive played a critical role in supporting the growth of my small business. They connected me with the right professionals who provided high-quality HR and legal support tailored to my practice. Through this assistance, I received professional documentation needed to hire therapists and guidance on how to grow my business both ethically and effectively. Without Oakland Thrive’s support, this process would have cost thousands of dollars and presented significant barriers to transitioning from a solo practice to a group practice. As a result, I am now in a position to hire a contractor and will officially be operating as a group practice. Their resources and connections made sustainable growth possible." said Carmelita Samuel.

In 2020, Jennifer Heard started Love Bigger, an app to connect people downsizing with local charities. Heard’s consultant helped to adjust Love Bigger’s business structure, allowing Heard to apply for additional lending to begin the beta testing necessary for the app to go live. The consultant also set up a registered apprenticeship program through Michigan Works! and received a grant to help fund the program.

When Cynthia Dane, Founder and CEO of Recipes For A Reason, was looking to sell her jars of organic vegan soup in retail shops and online, our consultant connected her with a valued Resource Partner for Oakland County who used their relationship with Whole Foods to give Dane an opportunity to present samples for consideration. Recipes For A Reason has a fully functional online store as well.