When I was a kid growing up in a Soviet Union and I was mad at my parents, I called them… “CAPITALISTS!!!” Those were fighting words back then, certain to get me grounded. It is therefore that much more ironic and iconic that, in my thirties, I find that I myself embarked on an adventure in capitalism as an entrepreneur and a founder of my first venture, Golden Wellness, Inc.
My path to becoming an entrepreneur, is a long and winding one, but the essence of it is that it has brought me not wealth of money (though that would not be too bad), but a wealth of understanding about who I am, who I can be, and how I can change the world for the better. The first and central piece of understanding stems from the fact that United States, with its this economic system, as imperfect as it is, when coupled with democratic institutions, as imperfect as they are, allow dreamers like me, as imperfect as we are, to form, stretch toward and realize our dreams.
At Golden Wellness, we empower independence for people with physical limitations through safe, accessible & effective fitness products and services. In 2006, out of frustration at not finding the right equipment to train people with disabilities, I came up with an idea for a fitness equipment that would be safe, accessible, comprehensive, and compact, everything that existing equipment is not. The result is the Fitness Arch, an innovative patent-pending piece of fitness equipment that can be used with a chair, wheelchair, scooter and even a fitness ball to do total body strength, cardiovascular, flexibility and balance exercises in both sitting and standing positions without the fear of falling.
The Fitness Arch, made mostly out of steel pipe, is not just a pipe dream anymore! We have launched the Fitness Arch in December of 2008 and have since sold our first few units! This, of course is just the beginning and the challenge of forming and running a start-up is far, Far, FAR harder than inventing a fitness machine. A fellow entrepreneur once remarked to me that Entrepreneurship is defined as “a string of near-death experiences.” I agree and yet nothing makes me feel more alive!
I have formed Golden Wellness in October of 2005. I remember the day when I stepped into Wells Fargo Bank and asked to open a business account. Excited and scared I transferred the first $100 into the account. “So what’s your business?” asked a bank teller. “A successful one!” I retorted.
I wish it was that easy to make the business successful but through the ups and downs of starting my own business, I have learned to look at the business as an classroom and each setback and each victory as lessons in life. Such a mission would not have been possible under any other economic and political structure and I consider myself blessed to live in this not-so-perfect union!
In this weekly blog, I hope to document my adventures in capitalism finding the lessons in the experience while bringing some laughter and some food for thought to others who want are stretching for their own dreams and their own adventures in capitalism.
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