Veteran entrepreneurs embody resilience in service and business

When Tiffany Richardson left the service after six and a half years, she took a job as a marine electrician, following a predictable skilled-labor career path for vets. But, as she soon discovered, expected career paths are not always fulfilling career paths.

To change course and pursue her dream of starting her own business, Richardson had to get over feeling isolated. “It can [be] difficult without a mentor or immediate support group for veterans to pursue interests that have nothing to do with the military,” she says.

Post-military, Richardson also struggled with her mental health, a challenge common to many veterans. “People noticed I was a lot more pessimistic, not the Tiffany that went into the military,” she recalls. She also struggled to find security, dealing with homelessness and needing to live with extended family while pregnant and caring for her young son.

After losing money on her first, art-based business, Richardson switched gears, founding Artisan-Preneur Consulting in 2021. The firm helps other entrepreneurs launch their own businesses. The next year, she found her niche as an AI strategist, which sparked her creativity, enthusiasm, and curiosity, allowing her to better serve clients seeking strategic planning and AI-driven solutions to a host of common issues, such as financial projections and marketing campaigns. That same year, Richardson discovered Verizon Small Business Digital Ready. Richardson utilized the platform’s resources to implement structures and practices that have helped her gain support and community.

“The Verizon Small Business Digital Ready program has been instrumental in the significant evolution and expansion of my business this year,” Richardson said.

The program has informed and affirmed her strategic decisions which has resulted in an increase in annual revenue from $8,000 to almost $60,000 and a 120% increase in new client acquisitions compared to the year prior.

Richardson’s aim now is the same as when she left the service. “I really just want to work for myself and show other people, especially female entrepreneurs, that you can run a business [while living] with mental health issues and still have a positive impact on other people,” she says.

A recipe for resilience and reinvention

Carl Fambro, Francar’s Wings