The Center for Entrepreneurship of the WWU hosted an online zoom webinar for the Winter 2021 Entrepreneurship Speaker Series on Thursday, April 8th, in which Lisa Bee, CEO of Sweetwaters Coffee & Tea, was introduced.
The Entrepreneurship Speaker Series, as stated by the President of the Center for Entrepreneurship, “provides students with an excellent opportunity to interact with entrepreneurs from the community who share their experiences in running a successful business.”
Sweetwaters Coffee & Tea was founded by Bee and her husband in 1993 and now has locations in 13 different states, from Michigan to Texas. The couple started their business in Ann Arbor, Michigan and are now working to grow it into a national franchise brand. Sweetwaters Coffee & Tea is a coffee house that combines classic café elements while embracing globally influenced coffee and tea in a positive and friendly environment. Read more about their business here.
Dr. Sanjib Chowdhury, a professor at EMU, says the bee is an inspiration.
“Lisa Bee is one of the success stories in our community. She was an aspiring entrepreneur and started her business after graduating from college. A lot of our students are Sweetwaters customers and they know this place and they are going to see and talk to her now and see how she became such an inspiring entrepreneur right after graduating from college, ”said Chowdhury.
During the webinar, Lisa Bee shared her experiences in starting her own business and discussed some of the difficulties and difficulties that arose from growing Sweetwaters into a national franchise brand and running a business during the pandemic. Bee also talked about the new app the company has created to allow customers to pre-order and collect points for rewards. Check out the app here.
Finally, the webinar included a Q&A section where attendees could request additional advice for aspiring entrepreneurs. Lisa Bee shared some of the most important characteristics of being a successful entrepreneur, including passion, creativity, and determination.
“I believe that [event] We will expand our goal of providing our students with activities and knowledge within the curriculum and inspiring our students, ”explains Chowdbury Lisa Bee in the Speaker Series.
