The Giving Keys was founded by Caitlin Crosby in 2009. Crosby was a singer and entertainer and always had a heart for supporting women who dealt with body image issues. She originally started an organization called Love Your Flawz with Brie Larson. This organization consisted of people taking pictures with a hand written sign that embraced their flaws. Later in 2009, Crosby was inspired by a key that was given to her at a hotel. She wore the key around her neck as a way to remember it and wrote “Love Your Flawz” on it. Crosby then made multiple keys that had inspirational words and sayings on them and began to sell them. The keys symbolized how everyone is unique and flawed, but still play a major role in society. Crosby originally sold the keys at her concerts, telling her fans to “pay it forward”. The keys began to outsell her own albums, but she knew something about the keys was missing. This is when she had the idea to employ homeless people as key engravers. In 2010, Caitlin Crosby renamed the brand The Giving Keys and started a website for people to place orders on and easily buy the product. In 2011, Crosby partnered with Path to find employees for her business.

Caitlin Crosby constantly shifted her entrepreneurial goals. Originally, she was an entertainer, then the founder of Love Your Flawz, and finally she was the owner of The Giving Keys. Crosby always pivoted her ideas until she found the perfect cause for her to support. She always had a heart for giving back, but her focus for that shifted over time. She began supporting women who deal with image issues and ended by employing homeless people. The heart of her cause never changed, despite finding more factors to focus on. The keys still share the same message as Love Your Flawz, but she found another cause she could support at the same time. Crosby’s entrepreneurial spirit was focused on pivoting until the perfect idea was created. Now, through The Giving Keys, 144,719 hours of work has been created for people transitioning out of homelessness.

Teva footwear was founded in 1982 by Mark Thatcher. Thatcher was a Grand Canyon River guide and realized that there was no proper footwear for river activities. Thatcher saw this need and created a very basic design for proper river footwear. The design was basically a Velcro strap attached to a basic flip-flop. From there, Thatcher was able to create both a brand and a lifestyle. The Teva brand is focused on durability and adventure and the Teva community stands for spontaneous adventure and a new culture has come out of this. If you meet anyone that owns a pair of Teva Originals, an automatic bond has been created and the stereotype that surrounds this footwear allows for great conversations.

In the early 2000s, Teva’s popularity had fallen drastically but, since being bought by Deckers Outdoor Corporation, Teva is back on the rise. With a new marketing campaign focused on the Instagram adventurer, Teva has been able to focus on their target and create even more community than what existed in the early days. Teva’s Instagram posts stories of their various adventures and focuses on spontaneous adventure.

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In 1982, Mark Thatcher saw a hole in a very niche market and began to create something great. He also used the need for experience to create and expand his brand. Teva now stands for the adventurer’s experience and is focused on a spontaneous, do anything mentality. This all began with a Grand Canyon River guide searching for a solid pair or “amphibious utility sandals”.

Throughout Johnnie Leroy Compton III’s life, he has aspired to create a brewery that makes and sells only sour beers. Compton began this dream after first encountering a sour beer in Philadelphia and from there, began to dissect the flavors of this sour beer he had tasted. From there, he began brewing beers in his manor in Liverpool, Pennsylvania. Johnnie Compton then went to beer festivals throughout the east coast with his home brewed beers and was constantly complimented and told to start a real brewery. Compton took this advice to heart and many years later began Highway Manor Brewing Company. In 2013, Johnnie Compton first began turning his dream into a real company. Five years later, Highway Manor Brewing Company is now situated in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania. The line of sour beers can be found in various taprooms around the east coast from Florida to Vermont.

Johnnie Leroy Compton III is constantly expanding and improving on his current line. By doing this, Compton has allowed his product to be enjoyed by all, even if the customer does not like typical sour beers. Compton introduces seasonal beers and creates unique flavor combinations, making his product different from almost all other breweries. In addition to having a broad line of sour beers, Highway Manor Brewing Company is the only brewery that only sells sour beers, creating another point of differentiation. By selling only sour beers, Compton generates finely crafted sour beers that only come from someone who truly know how sour beers work and allows Compton to produce a broad line of sour beers. Currently, Highway Manor Brewing Company is working on a taproom in which Compton’s unique style, in both beers and design, will be showcased. Johnnie Leroy Compton III through Highway Manor Brewing Company shows how innovation in a startup can come at any point. In the beginning of Compton’s brewing days, he was purely a home brewer. Then, Compton took on the strategy of distributing through the east coast, with no taproom. Currently though, Highway Manor has taken on a new look through it’s upcoming tasting room. To learn more about Compton’s process and Highway Manor Brewing Compton, click here.