 Founder Jamaica Trinnaman for her episode of the I Am Salt Lake Podcast. So we all know the new year is all about bettering ourselves and setting goals for the year to come. But how many of us have reducing personal waste as a goal? A scary fact is currently the US produces about 234lb of plastic waste per person per year. Are you sitting there calculating all of the products you bought this year? Because we are! These figures become worse as the earth faces an escalating waste crisis driven largely by plastics piling up in developing countries and the oceans.
So what can YOU do about it? While these figures seem vastly overwhelming, there are things that you, your family, and friends can do to make your own personal impact. We believe our February Small Business of the Month, Hello!Bulk Markets is an amazing resource for those living in Utah who want to start taking steps towards being waste-free. With two convenient locations, Hello!Bulk provides the goods without all the plastic and waste of a normal grocery store. Simply bring your own containers, fill em up with everything from bulk foods to body care or even cleaning products and then pay using their easy self-checkout prompts you to enter your "tare" so you only pay for what you put into the containers. Hello!Bulk Markets started as a “seed” in the mind of founder, Jamaica Trinnaman, keep reading as we hear her story! UMLF: Tell us about yourself and your background: Jamaica: My name is Jamaica Trinnaman and I'm the Mom of three wonderful boys, two of which are grown and have flown the nest and one 14 year old that is still at home. My college degree is actually in Art (painting to be specific) and I hope to have more time for painting again someday, but for now I've given myself permission to concentrate on the business. UMLF: What inspired you to start HelloBulk? Jamaica: I loved shopping in the bulk departments in the stores I worked in for a few reasons:
UMLF: For people who are starting to focus more on their own sustainability practices, where are the easiest places to start? Why is it important? Jamaica: What we suggest is that when you purchase items at the grocery store consider the end of each container. Is it something you can reuse? And if you are willing to start refilling even just a few basic items, like your body care, that’s great! Start simple….even little things make a huge difference if they are done consistently. UMLF: With Valentine’s Day coming up, do you have any gifts or goodies you would recommend? Jamaica: I would just say “Support Local”! When you seek out locally produced items and locally run businesses you are casting a vote for a better community! * Some of our favorite items that would make a great gift at Hello!Bulk are their cute reusable bags, shampoo bars, high-quality teas or their sustainability starter kits. UMLF: Every business has its highs and lows. Tell us about a challenge you faced as a small business owner and how you overcame it? Jamaica: Everyday has had its own successes and challenges. I joke that my real job title is “Creative Problem Solver”. I’ve learned that running a small business is really just about buying one month at a time to figure things out! The highs, in my case, have come from being appreciated by my amazing customers and meeting people in my community doing great things. The lows have come from working to the point of exhaustion, and feelings of isolation….unfortunately at times the business becomes your everything. You forget to nurture relationships outside of your business identity and next thing you know everything you do and everyone you spend time with has something to do with the business. It’s important to give some TLC to yourself and prioritize the people that help you to feel grounded outside of your successes and failures of the business. UMLF: How do you believe the Utah Microloan Fund has helped you and your business? Jamaica: As someone who isn’t a fit for traditional bank funding, and doesn’t have the support of a spouse, my funding options are especially limited. Without organizations like the Microloan Fund, my business wouldn’t have a chance to grow. To plan your visit Hello!Bulk Markets hit up:
Also be sure to give them a follow on social media!
 Wesley Anderson of Elm Studios They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but what about watching captivating film? Salt Lake business Elm Studios is made up of a progressive team of creatives that represents the next generation of artists & storytellers. Their mission is to deliver breathtaking visuals and stunning sound to captivate your audience. The guys behind Elm are seasoned in an array of genres including documentaries, branded content, short films, commercials, music videos, and more. Owners Evan Moore and Wes Thompson even shot and produced our promotional videos to promote who we are and what we do here at the Utah Microloan Fund! Elm Studios is our January Small Business of the month, keep reading to learn about the guys behind the lens, their process and why they got into the art of music and film.
UMLF: Tell us about yourselves and your background: Evan - I originally started Elm as Elm Productions in 2010. The goal at that time was throwing concerts and promoting music. Film had always been sort of a side hobby but nothing I ever pursued seriously. From 2010 to 2013 it was a struggle throwing concerts and trying to manage unsigned artists. Constant ups and downs of making money, losing money and trying to build a team of people I could depend on and trust. In 2013 I decided that it was a safer route to have a music venue where I could still host shows but not have to be the person to put all the money on the line. Instead, people would pay to utilize my venue, so no matter what, I would always make at least some money. And when it came to throwing my shows, since I had my own space, I could cut down on my costs to throw shows. The warehouse I rented was large enough that i also had space to sub-lease to artists. The warehouse was known as "The Project." It was a venue and art collective. A couple of my renters at the collective were photographers and videographers and I had the chance to work with them which sort of ignited a passion for filmmaking. In 2015 my landlord sold the warehouse to developers which forced me to shut down the venue/art collective and go elsewhere. As they say, when one door closes, another one opens. I sold all of my assets in the concert venue and invested all of that money into filmmaking equipment and began pursuing a career in filmmaking. Now, five years later, my filmmaking career is far more successful and fulfilling then my concert promotion, venue and art collective ever were. UMLF: What inspired you to start Elm Studios? We were both working at an art space called The Project from 2014 to 2015. We met each other there and collaborated on a handful of projects together. Mostly Wes would give music to me (Evan) to use in my videos. The Project closed its doors in June of 2015 and I started to look for my own warehouse and invited Wesley to join me in sharing the space. We then found a 2,500 square foot warehouse and at first we were just splitting the rent. By the end of 2015 we had been doing so much work together that we decided to officially partner up and start Elm Studios. A short time later we applied for a loan through the UMLF and were approved. UMLF: What is your creative process behind starting a new video project? Evan: While there is a step by step process going from pre production to post production, the creative process is usually different depending on the project. Sometimes we're working with an agency where the creative part has already been completed. Then we step in and do the job of creating whats in the script. Other times, clients come to us to bring their project to life. UMLF: What projects are you looking forward to in the future? Evan: We are most known for our involvement in music, but lately we have been working on more short films, feature films and tv series. We have also started to produce our own content and shop it to distributors and producers for major funding. UMLF: Every business has its highs and lows. Tell us about a challenge you faced as a small business owner and how you overcame it? Evan: We were location scouting for a job in a very remote area of the mountains and had a bunch of gear locked in our truck. We parked on the side of the road and hiked away from the truck and were gone for a couple of hours. We returned to find two smashed out windows on the truck and $15,000 worth of gear was stolen. Among the gear was a hard drive that contained a copy of footage that had not been duplicated. It was the only copy. Fortunately for the equipment, we were prepared and had insurance in place that replaced all of it. We had to pay out of pocket to cover the cost to re-shoot. UMLF: How do you believe the Utah Microloan Fund has helped you and your business? Evan: No other entity would loan to us or even look at us. The UMLF gave us the funds we needed to invest in the equipment we needed to produce the best video and audio possible. Facebook: www.facebook.com/elmstudiosslc Instagram: www.instagram.com/elmstudiosslc Website: https://whoshootsyourfilms.com  Salt Lake residents rejoice, a new restaurant is now open at 565 E 2100 S in Sugarhood! Chef and restaurateur Jen Gilroy is at it again with her newest project Elevo, located in the old Firehouse BBQ building along 2100 S. In addition to her restaurant Porch (which serves elevated Southern fare & craft cocktails in the Daybreak area), Elevo is the new sheriff in town after Jen made the hard decision to close down her much-loved Meditrina. Learn more about this exciting new addition below! UMLF: So it feels like the end of an era with Meditrina closing. How does it all feel? Jen: It was a really difficult period, but I’m actually relieved to move on. The last three years have been an uphill battle and I am excited for something new. UMLF: Tell us about your new place and what guests can expect: Jen: Guests can expect the same excellent food, beverage, and service standards we have held at Meditrina and Porch. This new concept is a coffee shop and cafe with a wine bar twist! UMLF: We love a good twist and we love the new name, what’s the story behind it? Jen: ELEVO is Latin for “raise.” For me, it plays into the whole “raise energy with coffee or raise spirits with wine” :) UMLF: Love it! So you’re in a totally different area, tell us why you are excited to move to Sugarhood? Jen: I live in Sugarhood. I love it so much. It is central and diverse without the chaos of overdeveloped Sugarhouse farther east. UMLF: Any other exciting tidbits you can share with us? Jen: A couple of Meditrina favorites will be featured on the menu—namely the Famous Mushrooms & Brie! Facebook: www.facebook.com/elevoslc Website: https://elevoslc.com/  |
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