Liv Lux Magazine

By Beata Mostafavi of Mlive.com

FLINT, Michigan — By his twenties, James Thigpin Jr. had decided to turn his passion for graphic art and photography into a profitable venture.

The recent University of Michigan-Flint graduate, 24, now runs Flint-based Closet Studio, a business that specializes in branding and serves more than 40 clients.

“Entrepreneurship is important because you don’t want people to tell you what you can and can’t do in life. You want to make your own lane,” Thigpin said.

“I think artists don’t think they can make a living at what they do. I’m doing what I love and still able to feed myself. You have to go for it.”

It’s the type of entrepreneurship energy organizers of Saturday’s Young Entrepreneurs Summit hope to revive and foster in Flint.

Thigpin was among dozens of aspiring young entrepreneurs, from high schoolers to college grads, who attended the networking event at the Riverfront Banquet Center downtown.

“We were the Silicon Valley of our day, with the carriage industry and auto industry,” said Joel Rash, program coordinator for the Yes Flint and Genesee Network, which organized the event.

“This is where innovators came to start a company and have an impact. With the success of General Motors, we got away from that entrepreneurship heritage and 100 years after GM formed, the economy has changed drastically.

“We feel the entrepreneurship spirit is still here and we want to nurture that spirit.”

The event was set to feature a keynote speech from Flint native and former Michigan State University basketball star Mateen Cleaves, as well as information in areas such as fashion, graphic arts, videography, photography, music and online business.

“I just like having creative control,” said recent Mott Community College graduate Donyale Walton, 24, of Flint who started fashion publication Liv Lux after spending five months interning at Marie Claire in New York.

Walton, who has attended Fashion Week twice and has served as a fashion expert for NBC News, said she hopes to use her knowledge to promote affordable fashion in her home city.

“I think now that jobs aren’t as abundant, people are going back to what they’re passionate about and what makes them happy,” she said. “It’s about finding out how you can do what you love and still support yourself.”

Entrepreneurs learned about local resources, including innovation and business incubators at both UM-Flint and Kettering University.

“In a time when our economy is having such challenges, it’s important to identify other opportunities from an entrepreneurial perspective,” said Kenyetta Dotson, outreach coordinator for Yes. “We don’t want people to feel hopeless. You do have the power to create your own opportunities.”

THANK YOU BEATA!!!