Erin Bonilla, Founder at Bonilla Pet Studio, joins the show to discuss her business: a photo studio for pets, lessons learned from scaling & expanding a business, and the importance of focusing on the positive as an entrepreneur.

This week hosts Tim Ryan and Zack Miller sit down with Erin Bonilla, Founder at Bonilla Pet Studio, to discuss how she bootstrapped her business through difficult times, growing to $1M in revenue in 5 years and what motivated her to keep "showing up" every single day.

Tim Ryan is the Executive Director of StartWheel, an organization dedicated to connecting entrepreneurs with resources in Hampton Roads. Learn more at: https://www.startwheel.org

Zack Miller is a serial entrepreneur and recent author of his new book Anomaly, a guide on how to differentiate yourself and your business from the crowd. Learn more at: https://www.zackmillersays.com

Enjoy what you hear? Listen to the Fervent Four Show LIVE every Thursday at 11AM. Live: https://www.startwheel.org/live/

Past Episodes: https://www.startwheel.org/fervent-fo...

Show notes:

0:00 Introducing Erin Bonilla + What is Bonilla Pet Studio? Learn more: https://bonillapetstudio.com

10:34 The story of founding & growing a photo studio for pets 'World of Pets Expo': http://www.worldofpets.org

20:59 Erin's advice: Lessons learned from scaling and expanding Bonilla Pet Studio

28:08 How Erin onboard's new employees + How to tell a story with images

40:42 Erin Bonilla's experience as a female founder

48:52 Focusing on the positive: How to push through difficult times

56:10 Erin's prior work experiences & their impact on Bonilla Pet Studio About Erin Bonilla and Bonilla Pet Studio: "Hi, I am Erin Bonilla (pronounced "Bon-ee-a"). I am the wife of a military officer, the mother of 4 young children, and a PPA Certified Professional Photographer. I believe that animals are an expression of God's love, and I thought that was a beautiful description of the role pets have in our lives. With our precious pets we laugh more, love more, and enjoy our lives more. We should return their love with as much devotion as they give to us. We like to take great care of them, to make sure they have the best food, the best care, and are as happy and healthy as they can be! They deserve to be remembered in the best way too, with a beautiful artistic portrait." - Erin Bonilla "Bonilla Pet Studio is a portrait studio that caters specifically to families with pets.

Founded in 2017, Erin Bonilla has scaled the business to nearly $1M in revenue for 2021 and is opening their second location in Williamsburg this winter. They currently employ 17 pet lovers and photograph 130+ pet portraits per month."

Learn more at: https://bonillapetstudio.com

The Fervent Four Show: Did you know that only 4% of businesses hit $1M in revenue? Tim Ryan and Zack Miller are the creators of The Fervent Four Show, designed to help you get there. Check them out on Facebook Live every Thursday at 11 AM. Listen here: Live: https://www.startwheel.org/live/

Past Episodes: https://www.startwheel.org/fervent-fo...

Social Media: Erin Bonilla https://bonillapetstudio.com

Tim Ryan https://www.startwheel.org Twitter (personal): @ryantnt (https://twitter.com/ryantnt) Twitter: @StartWheel (https://twitter.com/StartWheel) LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/star...

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StartWheel Zack Miller https://www.zackmillersays.com Twitter: @zackmillersays (https://twitter.com/zackmillersays) Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zackmillersays

Thanks to our Sponsors: The Hampton Roads Small Business Development Center – http://www.hrsbdc.org/en/ StartWheel – https://www.startwheel.org