The following interviews were conducted by Jett Monroe, arts entrepreneurship student at SMU. Monroe was attempting to identify if the creative entrepreneurs he interviewed believe business plans are necessary and to assess if they had one when they started.
Meredith Baughman
Please describe an arts or creative business venture you developed.
The business I helped start is a digital educational resource. We started the business because we felt Continue reading
Adam A. Anderson is an actor and the founder of “The Striped Heart,” a
graphic design and photography agency in the DFW area.
Did you have a business plan when you started your business?
I did not have a business plan. While at SMU, I got a work-study job as an assistant graphic designer for Meadows, which helped me create and grow. I started working on projects in school and produced a show with actors and dancers. When I graduated, Continue reading
The following three interviews were conducted by Autumn Langston, SMU student of music therapy and arts entrepreneurship.
Kathleen Coleman
Kathleen Coleman, MMT, MT-BC has been a music therapist for 36 years. Over the course of her career, she transitioned from contracting with school districts to owning a private practice and a co-founding a business called Prelude Music Therapy with Betsey King, Ph.D., MT-BC. When asked if she started with Continue reading
The following interviews were conducted by Daniela Aguin. The goal was to identify if creative entrepreneurs began with a business plan and if they think plans are necessary.
Mousumi Tanha
What was the name of your company?
-“It was Ruptan…which is a combination of my sister’s first name and my last name. It
was located in North Dakota”.
Did you have a business plan when you started your business?
-“I did not have a business plan…not really…it was a clothing business…I got the idea at a party when people were talking about clothes and jewelry and it came to my mind, “why don’t I Continue reading
Gavin Mulloy 
Creative Director of Bomb Factory & Trees
Live Music Venues
Did you have a business plan when you started your business?
Yes.
Do you think business plans are necessary for entrepreneurship?
I don’t think anything’s necessary [for entrepreneurship], but I think they are almost required. Like I’ve seen people succeed without them, but I think Continue reading
Brittany Harrington-Smith, the founder of the Breaking Winds Bassoon
Quartet
1.Did you have a business plan when you started your business?
No, we didn’t. Basically, we did it for fun. Then we started getting popular, and we thought, oh, we can build something here. Basically, everything we’ve ever done has Continue reading
Satori Ananda 
Satori Ananda (Chief of staff at War Media & Co-Founder of Social Werk), did not have a business plan when she became an entrepreneur. Like many arts entrepreneurs have explained, the purpose behind having a business plan is Continue reading
Ryan Reed 
Ryan Reed graduated from Southern Methodist University and is the co-founder of Visual Voice Media. Visual Voice Media is a video production company that both Ryan and Michael Gonzales started. They do just about Continue reading
Michael Reese, Founder of Jack Mason Brand
About 4 years ago, Reese and his business partner Craig Carter started their own watch and leather goods company out of Deep Ellum, Texas. In just a few short years Continue reading
Justin Nygren 
Co-founder of ArtLoveMagic and The Grove
Did you have a business plan when you started your business?
For ArtLoveMagic, we did not. For The Grove, we did. A lot of it was based on the experience that my business partner Ken had in New Haven [developing a Grove there]. Knowing how they grew and what the response was there allowed us to Continue reading
