Gabby Creery, CEO of Metropolis Coach and a successful graduate of Rising Capital Community Business Academy (CBA), says she is ready to take her business ambitions to the next level thanks to the education she’s received on how to run a business.
In reflecting on the graduation ceremony of 104 budding entrepreneurs during a ceremony at St. Peter’s University last month , Creery said the program has helped her get a handle on how to set up and run a business, and has provided her with the tools she needs to take the next step.
“I want to get a place of my own,” she said, noting that her business currently operates out of temporary sites in Jersey City.
Metropolis Coach is a company that offers classes and workshops in diverse fields and subjects. She started the company in 2012 after successfully graduating the Rising Tide Capital organization’s 12-week program, which is dedicated to providing high-quality business education to low-income entrepreneurs who want to start and grow successful businesses but lack the skills, training or resources to do so.
“You wouldn’t believe how many people are getting involved.” – Gabby Creery
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A school for would-be entrepreneurs
Launched in 2006, the CBA program has educated nearly 1,000 low-income entrepreneurs. The upcoming graduation ceremony includes graduates from the fall 2013 session, including the first-ever Spanish Language CBA class.
“We’re seeing an increase in interest from communities in other parts of the country who are struggling with the same issues and want to harness the power of entrepreneurship to build their neighborhoods from within,” said Alex Forrester, chief operations officer of Rising Tide Capital. “We’d like to share our model with them, but we can’t do so without a robust outcome measurement system that can be scaled.”
Creery, who said she is a coach at heart, started her business focusing on recreation and sports, but has since branched out into other areas. She said she started out coaching soccer and swimming, but also wanted to incorporate her other interests.
Her company also provides PSAT, SAT and other test preparation tutoring.
Her business currently operates in booths at Indiegrove and Three Little Birds in Jersey City, as well as coaching at recreation fields throughout the area.
“But I really want a place of my own,” she said, ideally a place that would have its own swimming pool for instruction.
She attended this year’s graduation because several friends had taken the course.
“You wouldn’t believe how many people are getting involved,” she said. “It has a great mission and vision. It teaches you the nuts and bolts for building the foundation for a business, such as a business plan.”
As a result of her classes there, she was able to move forward with her business.
“I’ve been coaching for about 10 years, but I didn’t know how to run my own business,” she said.
She said she learned about hiring and other things that she really didn’t know how to do before.
“I don’t think I would be looking for a physical location without the business plan I developed during the course,” she said. A business plan is one of the key ingredients needed for applying for business loans, which is something else she learned, she said.
Raised in Colorado, Creery moved to New York to pursue a career in acting, and then moved to Jersey City, where she began a career in sports coaching. She said a lot of artists go through the Rising Capital program because they usually do not have the skills they need to otherwise market themselves.
Creery currently has one assistant in her business, and contracts out for coaches to handle various subject areas. But she envisions a time when she will be hiring others.
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.