Dayton’s Generation Z workforce is brimming with creativity and bold individuals who aren’t afraid to tackle small businesses and bring the community together.
Dayton Inno’s annual Inno Under 25 list recognizes young innovators shaping the future of the small business landscape in Dayton.
This year’s list includes a nonprofit created by a young woman and her mother when she was just a school-aged child. Others are taking on social justice issues while bringing new concepts to the Dayton region. But for all of them, the future is bright.
Get to know this year's Inno Under 25 honorees:
Chloe Miller, age 22, small business owner
Recent Miami University graduate Chloe Miller has already co-founded several small businesses along with her sister, Chelsea. The two own Vinnie + Velvet and Fizzy Sips & Sweets, both located in downtown Franklin.
Vinnie + Velvet is a boutique consignment store. Fizzy Sips & Sweets is a juice, soda and bakery shop. Both businesses opened in 2023.
Earlier this year, Miller also launched an online boutique called Lucky Star.
In addition to these ventures, Miller works as an administrator at Chamber45005, the business chamber primarily serving Franklin and other parts of Warren County.
“She promotes, supports, and improves the prosperity of the Chamber members and the vibrancy of the 45005 community,” said Khristi Dunn, Chamber45005 board member and clerk of council in Franklin.
In 2023, Vinnie + Velvet won “Best New Addition” by the Warren County Visitor's Bureau. And earlier this year, Fizzy Sips & Sweets was awarded the 2024 Small Business Award by Chamber45005.
“Chloe has opened three successful businesses in the past year and half, graduated from college, and brought a fresh new approach to our local chamber,” Dunn said in her nomination. “She is just getting started and we are excited for the great things she will do in her career.”
Website: https://www.vinnieandvelvet.com/
Missy Oei, age 22, business consultant
Missy Oei graduated this spring from the University of Dayton where she studied entrepreneurship and marketing. During her college career, she sought many opportunities through UD and the Arcade Innovation Hub to engage with the entrepreneurial community, said Will Foster, a portfolio manager at The Entrepreneurs’ Center.
“She is someone who is driven by impact, which is evident from the action she took during her years at UD,” Foster said in his nomination.
Oei competed twice in the UD Flyer Pitch competition with business ideas to offset the negative environmental impact of “fast fashion” with sustainable fashion solutions.
“By putting herself out there, she discovered numerous opportunities to connect with the community,” Foster said.
While in college, Oei interned with Lunnie, a Dayton maker of leak-proof nursing bras. She also was a part of UD’s Stitt Scholars Program which pays for student internships.
Oei now works full time as a consultant for Several Thousand Alliance, a business consulting firm run by UD alumni Chris Brill.
“Moving from Chicago to Dayton was no small feat, but she embraced the transition with enthusiasm,” Foster said. “Missy's story is one that highlights how supportive and captivating the business community is in Dayton and the impact that it can have on an ambitious college student, leading them to find their passions and pursue them fiercely.”
Website: https://www.severalthousand.com/
Dayton 2024 Inno Under 25
Carson Phillips, age 20, small business owner
Carson Phillips has been growing his small business since the age of 11. That’s when he started completing lawn and landscaping services with his father. By the time he finished high school, the duo had 40 clients.
“I started out doing this kind of work as a hobby and way to earn small amounts of money for things I wanted at the time,” Phillips said.
After high school, Phillips created a limited liability company to purchase his father’s equipment and take over the family side business. Phillips Mowing LLC offers services of mowing, trimming, mulching, overgrowth removal, paver installation, snow removal and salt spreading.
Phillips continued to run the business while he earned an associate’s degree in business management and entrepreneurship at Sinclair Community College.
“Within the next year and a half, I nearly doubled the customer base, expanded our scope of services, added new machinery to the ever-growing fleet, achieved my first six-figure revenue year, and graduated with my associate’s degree half a year early while being invited to the National Society of Leadership,” Phillips said.
The company will continue to grow in the future as Phillips adds additional team members. He currently has a part-time employee.
Website: https://phillipsmowing.com/
Jenae Sosebee, age 25, clothing line creator
Jenae Sosebee has a passion for community health and social justice. She wears several hats in the Greater Dayton community. Sosebee is currently a graduate student at Wright State University working to get her license to be a mental health counselor. She also works as a program coordinator for the Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association.
In her work at GDAHA, she connects people in need with medical and social services through the Dayton Regional Pathways HUB.
Sosebee also runs her own clothing line.
Hoodlum Hoodies was founded by Sosebee to offer hooded sweatshirts with satin-lined hoods to protect textured and fine hair from breaking. She sells new hoodies, upcycled hoodies and will customize hoodies you already own.
“Her hoodies are for everyone but especially benefit women of color,” said Tif Huber, director, Help Me Grow Brighter Futures at GDAHA. “She has always longed to serve her community through her work and has always had a creative streak with a focus on reusing items and making them useful again.”
Sosebee said the idea for Hoodlum Hoodies came out of a practical need, as well as to be a symbol of support for Trayvon Martin and all black lives lost to injustice.
“Hoodlum Hoodies is a clothing line made to both create new fashion ideas and serve as a powerful symbol of solidarity,” Sosebee said. “Each hoodie serves as an important reminder to stand together against racial injustice.”
Website: https://www.facebook.com/people/Hoodlum-Hoodies/100078011072260/
Callista Neff, age 22, nonprofit leader
Callista Neff was just a young child when the idea for her family’s nonprofit organization was first sparked. While at the hospital at the age of 3, her twin brother was comforted by a stuffed bear donated by local schoolchildren. Neff and her mother later got the idea to make a greater impact in the community by getting her friends and family together to stuff and build more bears for children.
That’s when Bears4Children’s was created by Neff (formerly Callista Hess) and her family. Now in its 17th year, Bears4Children’s continues to provide bears to patients at Dayton Children’s Hospital and other local hospitals. In that time, over 4,100 bears from Build-A-Bear Workshop have been donated to children spending the holidays in the hospital.
Bears4Children’s has a goal to donate 700 bears this year. The donation period runs from Thanksgiving to Dec. 23 at Build-A-Bear Workshop at the Mall at Fairfield Commons, or online at buildabear.com. Find instructions on how to donate online at bears4childrens.com.
Each year, the effort grows and now includes dozens of schools, police and fire departments.
In 2023, Neff was awarded the Outstanding Youth in Philanthropy Award from the Association of Fundraising Professionals of Greater Dayton.
Neff, president of Bears4Children’s, also works full time as social media coordinator at Wright State University. She graduated from the university in 2023 and is now working on her MBA degree there.
Website: https://www.bears4childrens.com/
