Blog Posts Celebrating the Entrepreneurial Spirit
Saddle Creek was proud to co-host the inaugural Lakeland Entrepreneur Awards last night to celebrate small businesses in our local Florida community along with our partner, Catapult, a community-centered co-working space in Lakeland, Fla.
David Lyons’ Entrepreneur of the Year
Congratulations to the winner of the David Lyons’ Entrepreneur of the Year Award, Jennifer Smurr! The owner of Born and Bread Bakehouse was recognized for successfully managing a business while demonstrating a strong entrepreneurial mindset, a creative approach, willingness to take risks, passion and perseverance. Her mouth-watering pastries have attracted an ever-growing customer base in the Lakeland community.
Other Entrepreneur of the Year Award nominees included Grant and Marissa Nieddu, State of the Spark; Laura Helm, Ashton Events, Haus 820, The Collective; Robyn Wilson, Poor Porker; and Chris McArthur, Black and Brew, Patriotic Coffee Roasters and A Cow Named Moo.
The award is named in honor of David Lyons, Saddle Creek’s founder, who passed away in 2015. Entrepreneurs were near and dear to his heart. In 1966, he saw a need for local warehouse space and opened a 12,000-square-foot facility with a friend and partner in Lakeland, Fla. His strong value system, entrepreneurial spirit and engaged employees helped to ensure its success. Today, the family-owned omnichannel supply chain solutions company boasts 45 locations and nearly 3,000 associates nationwide.
Lyons was a firm believer that you can always do more than you think you can. He once said, “If you don’t have dreams that go beyond what you think you can do, you’ll never get there.”
Today, we applaud Jennifer Smurr for dreaming big!