Kimber Lanning
Local First Arizona
Phoenix, AZ USA
"If you’re going to be innovative, you’ve got to be nimble and don’t take things personally—just say, “Ok, if that’s not the great idea, then what’s my next idea?” "
Career Roadmap
Kimber's work combines: Business, Entrepreneurship, and Problem Solving
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Advice for getting started
Take risks and start doing. Can't learn to be comfortable in the 'not knowing' through school.
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Architecture
Arizona State University
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life took a while to figure out
1.
She was born on the island of Okinawa, Japan; her father was stationed there during three tours of duty in the Vietnam War.
2.
Her family moved to Arizona in 1968 after her father was transferred to Luke Air Force Base and she’s lived there ever since.
3.
Says that her love of Arizona grew out of the many road trips around the state that she and her family would take.
4.
While working for a record store in her teens, her boss said she’d never be a manager because “no one would ever listen to a 100-pound woman!”—inspired her to open her own record store, Stinkweeds.
5.
Believes her success as an entrepreneur is due to “having guts” and being fine with failure—she utilized her friends’ help, lived on $500/month for two years, and put everything into her business.
6.
Started her nonprofit, Local First Arizona, to prevent talented young people from leaving the state to pursue opportunities elsewhere, and to level the playing field so small businesses can succeed.
7.
Passionately supports small local businesses in order to reenergize the economy and has made it her mission to educate people about how this can impact their futures.
8.
Doesn’t believe that learning how to run a small business is something that can be done correctly or incorrectly—says, “You have to be comfortable in the not knowing.”
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Peers:
You're a woman, no one will ever take you seriously as a business owner.
How I responded:
It boils down to having guts. I utilized the help of family and friends to build things for the record store. I lived on $500 a month for 2 years and was in the store everyday until I knew everything about my customers. You have to be fearless until you succeed.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
There have been several business ideas or opportunities that haven't worked out for me. As an entrepreneur, you have to condition yourself to be okay with failure.
In the early days of running my record store, I lived off of $500 a month for 2 years and put everything else back into the store. When I first started Local First Arizona, I didn't take a salary so that I could afford to pay my first staff members.