Introducing the Spectacular Seven: Maria Sharapova and NAWBO Announce Women’s Entrepreneur Program Finalists

The Maria Sharapova Women’s Entrepreneur Program and the National Association of Women Business Owners have selected the seven female entrepreneurs they will mentor.

(June 18, 2018, New York, NY) – Today, five-time Grand Slam tennis champion, Maria Sharapova, in partnership with the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) is proud to announce “The Spectacular Seven” group of female entrepreneur finalists selected to participate in the Sharapova Women’s Entrepreneur Program. The program initially kicked off in March 2018, with a nationwide call for applicants for the 12-month-long mentorship program. Sales from Sugarpova will support the Sharapova Women’s Entrepreneur Program.

The seven businesswomen finalists, who are all members of NAWBO (www.nawbo.org), were chosen by Maria Sharapova as the top candidates to participate in the inaugural launch of the Maria Sharapova Women’s Entrepreneur Program with NAWBO.

While all of these women business owners come from different backgrounds, locations, and beginnings, all of them have some important qualities in common: they are committed to growing and scaling their businesses, not only for themselves but for their employees, families, communities and beyond.

Maria Sharapova commented: “As I carefully went through the piles and piles of applications for the Women’s Entrepreneur Program, I was blown away by the talent and experiences of these emerging business leaders. I am excited to get to know the seven businesswomen selected, and can’t wait to watch them flourish and grow as they begin the 12-month mentorship program with me and my team.”

NAWBO Circle Program Director, Lynda Bishop, commented, “The Spectacular Seven is a truly impressive and diverse representation of women-owned business across our nation. With a wide variety of industries, services, products, company sizes, ethnic and age diversity, this group of women is all ready to join the Maria Sharapova and NAWBO teams to scale, grow and propel their businesses forward over the next 12 months.”

Meet The Spectacular Seven

Reema Dutt is the co-founder and CEO of LuminouStudios located in Los Angeles, California. LuminouStudios is a bi-coastal video production company, producing story-driven content for start-ups and mid-stage companies, mainly in the technology and lifestyle sectors.

Camille Vizzavona Eddera is the founder and CEO of Birthstone Scents located in Los Angeles, California. Birthstone Scents is a line of environmentally friendly, fair trade fragrances inspired by the ancient tradition of birthstones as a healing and protective talisman. The scents are offered in perfumes, scented candles, and diffusers.

Deanna Montrose is the founder and CEO of Paraffin International, Inc., located in Phoenix, Arizona. Paraffin International Inc., is the next generation of paraffin wax treatments and products for the beauty, health, wellness and sports markets. With over 20 patented components and an FDA approval as a medical device, Paraffin International is poised to be the top paraffin wax treatment in the nation.

Kelly Parthen is co-founder and CEO of Bean Sprouts, headquartered in Orange, California and Denver, Colorado. Bean Sprouts is a nationally-recognized café concept where kids and families participate in a playful eating experience. With cafés located inside family destinations (museums, science centers, zoos, theme parks, etc.), it is meeting the demand for healthier food choices while making healthy food more fun!

Lindsay Wilson is the co-owner of Ink Factory, located in Chicago, Illinois. Ink Factory is a team of artists that are re-defining both creative communication and marketing by helping organizations communicate visually, capture ideas and engage audiences through visual note-taking.

Denise Doczy-DeLong is CEO of Singleton Construction, LLC, located in Canal Winchester, Ohio. Singleton Construction specializes in open-store remodels for national retailers in apparel, grocery, discount, drugstore, hotel, and pet/farm industries in 42 states. In business for the past 23 years, Singleton Construction is 100% woman-owned in a male-dominated industry.

Kimmi Wernli is CEO of Crazy Richard’s Peanut Butter Company, located in Dublin, Ohio. Crazy Richard’s products are made with the highest-quality ingredients, with no added sugars, or additives. This family-owned business puts people first through producing healthy, high-quality products and through their philanthropy work with the Healthy Kids Happy Future Project.

ABOUT THE PROGRAM:

The Sharapova Women’s Entrepreneur Program consists of 7 Women Business Owners that have been selected from a nationwide call for applicants by Sharapova, in partnership with NAWBO and the NAWBO Institute. The program will run for 12 months and is a cohort-based virtual/in-person hybrid program that will include mentorship, peer-to-peer support, mastermind and educational components to be delivered on a monthly basis by NAWBO and the Sharapova Business Resource Team led by Traub Consumer.

Through the Sharapova Women’s Entrepreneur Program and NAWBO partnership, the female businesswomen selected will receive support and resources from Sharapova’s longtime marketing and business development teams as well as the NAWBO Institute. Each of the women selected will receive support from a range of both NAWBO and Sharapova’s personal business resources in growing their business and in reaching their business goals.

About Sugarpova: Sugarpova continues to have double-digit growth year after year since its launch. Currently, the brand has retail penetration in 22 countries all over the world and is sold in a variety of retail partners and online. The founder is an international tennis champion, Maria Sharapova, whose sweet tooth and love for little indulgences motivated her to create a candy company specializing in premium chocolates collection and products, giftables and in gummies and chocolate sweets of quality and craftsmanship. For more information, visit http://www.sugarpova.com

About NAWBO

Founded in 1975, the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) is the unified voice for more than 10 million women-owned businesses in the United States representing the fastest growing segment of the economy. NAWBO is the only dues-based organization representing the interests of all women entrepreneurs across all industries and with chapters across the country. NAWBO is a one-stop resource to propelling women business owners into greater economic, social and political spheres of power worldwide.

Press contacts:
Lisa Pisano
Modern Global Communications
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Merideth Gilmor
Modern Global Communications
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917-860-5792