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By Ginger DeShaney Before August, Prabin Dhar had never worked behind a register. Now he’s working a register almost every day at his new convenience store, Crossroads Mart, at 673 East Broadway (the site of a former 7-Eleven). The store is open from 6 a.m. to midnight every day. After 12 years as a dog walker and trainer with his business, Canine Superstars, Dhar was ready for a new challenge and jumped into the retail market. (Dhar’s Canine Superstars is still in business with a friend taking care of the dogs.) “I had been looking for a good business,” he said. “I was looking for the right opportunity.”  Sandesh Prajapati, now his business partner, called him one day out of the blue and let him [...]

By Ginger DeShaney Olga Markos still remembers the coffee percolator her mom had so many years ago. She can envision it sitting on the stove. It had a glass knob so she could see the magic brewing inside. Her mom would let young Olga take sips of coffee. “I love coffee,” Olga said. “I’ve always loved coffee.” In her late teens, she attended a bridal shower and had her first flavored coffee: chocolate raspberry decaf. From that point on, “I was in love with flavored coffee.” Olga turned that passion for coffee into a successful business in Boston’s Financial District, where Olga’s Kafe thrived for 23 years at 99 Summer Street, before the building’s owner wanted to go in a new direction. That shop closed [...]

By Ginger DeShaney When Colleen Howard was starting out with her business, Camden Hydes, she was welcomed by other women-owned small businesses in South Boston, the holiday pop-ups being a particular favorite. Now, she’s returning the favor. “It’s nice to do the same for other women-owned small businesses,” she said. Colleen has organized several pop-ups this year but has had to get creative because of COVID-19. “I’m trying to make the best of a difficult situation,” she said. “Normally, we’d have so many opportunities for people to shop in person at local pop-ups.” The group couldn’t plan on the usual indoor pop-ups as in years past inside local restaurants or function spaces, so Colleen had to think outside the box. She reached out to the [...]

By Ginger DeShaney When Sean Ryan and Troy Sproul wrote the business plan for their OTTO Pizza location in South Boston, a big piece of it involved giving back to the community. “Any business has to have a connection to the community,” said Sean. For some, having a community-based initiative is an afterthought. “But we wrote it into our plan,” Troy said.  “It’s important for any business -- a moral obligation -- to come into a new market and ... give back,” said Troy. “We are grateful we can give back to the community.” Sean and Troy brainstormed how they could impact the most people. “At the end of the day, it’s the right thing to do,” Sean said. Their Tips for Kids program ensures [...]