Sophia Mimendi and Emily Bruns started a camper van business in 2019. Their business, Aclipse Campervans, gained momentum in early 2020.
Then the pandemic hit.
Bruns said they realized what they were doing was special. Getting to be the first people to listen to their customer’s travels and hear stories about the places they visited. Connecting with people made them want to keep going.
“We were reacting to what was happening (during the pandemic) but we had no idea what we were doing,” Bruns said. “We were deep in the weeds on how to get a handle on this.”
Enter Nancy Aichholz and Aviatra, Covington’s accelerator for female entrepreneurs. Aviatra held its annual meeting Thursday, where it went over the successes of 2021.
“I remember saying to the board, ‘Will we be here when this is over?’” Aichholz, president and CEO of Aviatra, said at the annual meeting. “Silly me, everyone wanted to start a business during the pandemic.
Aviatra Accelerators connects female entrepreneurs with the resources they need to be successful.
“We were a little bit freaking out, but also at the same time, we really believed in what we were doing, and we thought after this or through this, being outside is the safest place to be,” Bruns said. “Even though it was scary, and people were canceling their trips that were booked, we just decided let’s just keep moving, let’s keep pressing forward and everything will work out.”
Mimendi and Bruns won first place in Aviatra’s “Flight Night” competition, and they received $6,000.
“It was so great, we did get through it, and we learned a ton,” Brun said.
The co-owners held a broader view of what they were trying to do with their company through the consulting with Aviatra, Brun said. They were then able to apply for the Main Street Ventures grant, which they received, to help provide additional funding for their business.
“Having something like that for women is so important,” Bruns said. “It’s really unique what you guys do, and we are very grateful.”
Aviatra directly helped over 200 women, hosted 500 hours of mentoring, and created over 100 jobs in 2021. Since the start of the company in 2010, women have received $10 million in follow-on funding and have generated over $1 billion in revenues.
“I hope that you will continue to grow and support each other… take the opportunism with you, it has never been a better time to start a small business in this part of the country,” Ohio Lt. Governor Jon Husted said at the annual meeting.
Outgoing chair Trey Grayson agreed.
“This is why we’re here,” Grayson said. “There are a lot of Emily’s and Sophia’s in Cincinnati.”
