Jeff Weaber is the founder of Aqua ViTea, a company that brews Kombucha, a fermented beverage that has been improving people’s’ wellbeing naturally for thousands of years. He had help from Opportunities to finance his rapid growth and expand his operations into mainstream grocery stores across the East Coast.
Stories
Clustas
A Vermont start-up, Clustas makes innovative, magnetic weights that have awesome potential both for fitness enthusiasts and for individuals dealing with physical challenges. At Opportunities Credit Union, Rollin Rachele found a financial partner that understands the local business scene and is eager to support entrepreneurs.
Mud City Adventures
Christine and Kevin are co-founders of Mud City Adventures, offering kids camps to Stowe residents during summers to encourage them to unplug and immerse themselves in multi-dimensional learning. They credit Opportunities Credit Union for helping to make the financial aspect of the business possible.
Village Spa
Heather Norton, the founder of Village Spa, wanted to give the small community of Brandon, VT a place to relax and recharge. Working with Greg Huysman, Senior Business Development Manager at Opportunities, she was able to receive financial help to expand her rapidly growing business.
The Hairy Bear
The Hairy Bear combines a family-friendly hair salon with the ability to give back to the community, making the process of getting a child’s haircut easy and enjoyable. Sandra Peck received a loan from Opportunities to move her salon to a more visible and highly trafficked location in order to save her business and help it grow.
The Swingin’ Pinwheel
What originally began as a vague vision of a mobile food cart working the streets of Burlington, a full-fledged, family-owned bakery and eatery unlike any other in the area was born, and Andrew and Wendy couldn’t be more thrilled. Thanks to the investments they made with Opportunities, their dreams of owning a thriving business became a reality within one year.
Snap Fitness
At Snap Fitness, you’re not just a member of a gym; you’re part of a community of like-minded people. Owners Lori and Brad Lockwood say that this gives members a feeling of ownership. Together with Opportunities, they’ve expanded Snap Fitness to three locations, providing Vermonters with access to state-of-the-art 24-hour fitness facilities.
Queen City Dry Goods
A one-man custom shoe shop launched in Burlington a little over 15 years ago started Matt Renna on the path to found Queen City Dry Goods. However, having the design mastery to create beautiful leather goods is just one part of the picture. In order to grow his operation, Matt needed to find a financing partner that truly understood small businesses. That’s when he turned to Opportunities Credit Union.
With Love Photography
Before the opening of With Love Photography, residents of Johnson, Vermont would have to travel long distances to get photographs of their families and newborns. Due to its remote location, few photographers had thought to open a business in the Johnson area and would instead opt to open studios in Chittenden or Washington counties. Cousins and business partners, Heather Perkins and Mariah Reed, sought to break this mold.
Laughing Child Farm
Ripe with farmer’s markets and organic products, it can be difficult to stand out among competitive farming businesses. Farmers Timothy and Brooke Hughes-Muse learned this first-hand while they were selling eggs, vegetables, and meat birds as a side-business years ago. Realizing there were many other farms in the area already selling such products, the married couple decided they needed to produce a crop that was missing from the Rutland County area: Sweet potatoes.
