Chenelle Howard

Kim Perrymond can plan a celebrity’s party without breaking a sweat. She has worked events for Bravo TV, singer K. Michelle, and entrepreneur Pinky Cole, and her company, EZPZ Party Planning, now trains other planners and runs a software company built for creative business owners. But none of that came easy, and none of it came first.

Mara Smith was a tequila drinker long before she became a tequila founder. For years, she considered it a cleaner choice among adult beverages. Then she discovered something that changed everything. The big brands she had trusted were quietly using undisclosed additives, artificial sweeteners like aspartame, glycerin, and coloring, throughout the production process. None of it was on the label.

Most small business owners believe they need more customers. Gary Frazier says they need fewer. That counterintuitive idea sits at the heart of “Marketing and Channel Management for Low Brand Equity Firms,” Frazier’s new book outlining 21 principles for companies that are still fighting to get their names known.