Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Hill.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I began this journey of building an empire at a crucial moment in my life, me dying of a serious illness (cancer). When I first found out I was ill, I decided since I had six months to live, I would simply allow myself to die. A year went by and I was still on this planet despite my diagnosis.
Synchronicity sent me people who wanted to help me heal, wanted me to live and wanted me to see how powerful I truly was. I was diagnosed in 2012 and by 2016, I received notice that I was fully recovered and showed no signs of even having the illness.
This journey of awakening and enlightenment caused me to create a company and a line of mobile applications for women, men, and teens like never done before.
I am the founder and CEO of Love and Legacy Enterprises, an Atlanta Georgia based LGBTQ company established in March 2017, specializing in mobile applications development, which focuses on reproductive health, fitness, and wellness.
My purpose in life is to spread knowledge and positivity. Through my mobile applications, I will be able to teach others how to care for themselves in a more holistic way starting with the reproductive system.
I have been asked why I look so young even though I am 40 and asked why I do not look like I birthed three children back to back so many times, in 2013, my son gave me an idea to create a mobile application that could teach and train others on my methods used to remain so youthful and vibrant. I spent hours a day helping others verbally, through video, or through email/chat.
I literally get stopped a minimum of three times a day to explain myself and lifestyle to others. Three people a day meant three users per day and that is when the light bulb came on to how I can get the word out and save myself time.
The end of 2016, I closed the doors to my 8-year virtual administrative business to create, develop, and launch never done before mobile applications specializing in health, fitness, and wellness, specifically designed for women, men, and teens.
I have invested my last $25,000 into Love and Legacy Enterprises because I believe I can help the world one person at a time by opening people up to new possibilities of living by utilizing mobile devices and mobile applications to reach millions of users.
It is my responsibility to make sure the world experiences the most helpful interactive health and fitness mobile applications to hit the app market, no matter what!
The first mobile app we are releasing has 2.1 million users in our market demographic of women 18 – 65, a’JJ Trainer mobile application. We are an Atlanta Georgia based LGBTQ company established in March 2017, specializing in mobile applications development, which focuses on reproductive health, fitness, and wellness.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Struggles for me:
Terminal Illness
Personal Life
Misguidance
Business Credit
No Support
No Funding
Being an LGBTQ company
Being a Minority
Being a Female CEO
Being a Female in Technology
Lack of Business Resources for StartUps
Struggles are inevitable no matter what you do in life, especially if you are a woman in business. Media makes it look easy to get a business established, nowadays media shows women more powerful than ever, but we rarely see the struggles faced in raw footage, until Sarena Williams showed the world women are strong even when weak.
It has not been easy getting people or men, especially men who do not understand technology to believe a woman can build an empire from concept phase through the legacy phase. This has been a huge hurdle for me that has affected funding, support, and resources greatly.
Lack of belief means lack of support when support is not available a lot can be affected if you are not willing to go above and beyond making sure you achieve all of your milestones goals and timeline plans. I have been forced to run Love and Legacy Enterprises by myself since opening in 2017. I did higher college students and tried to establish my executive team with huge failure and disappointment.
First, be careful highering students to get you started without being registered as a business in the student intern program. Students are not always as loyal and may not feel the desire to complete their job duties as someone would who understands the value and purpose of having a job, I paid them and they bounced. after that debauchery, I contracted the Bell Community Consultants for business management services and advisement, the best decision I made yet.
Secondly, making sure your executive team has the credentials and background needed to be considered for funding is crucial. I thought a personal background did not matter due to media showing so man people in business with shady backgrounds Just because the CFO or CTO has the credentials, education, and experience does not mean investors will ignore a criminal record, credit rating, or civil report. Yes, if they invest a lot of money 9 out of 10 they are checking. This doesn’t matter if you have other means to fund your business but when getting loans or wanting to obtain an investment it matters, the same goes for you also.
Even though I invested $25k of my own money, I still need more funding but investors, incubators, pre-accelerators, accelerators, angel investors, investors, and partners will usually not be interested in your business at startup phase even if they say they specialize in startups and those who will be interested will cost $200+ to become a member. These prices are very steep when in the startup phase.
From my experience, thus far, none of the “startup” funding available is available to those in the idea or concept stages, even if you have a product in production almost ready to launch. Funding is available in abundance for startups who have at least $15,000 in revenue, decent personal credit and in the process of building business credit, with a score of 600 +, some form of collateral, two years tax return, a resume, business plan, and references.
I was unable to use my money for collateral due to my credit and having no revenue, so I used the $25k to get the business started and sustain it until we get funded, which is why we have an office space and completely established business with trademarks and copyrights.
Personal struggles can really affect a entrepreneurs life but it can be damaging to the business is allowed to interfere. I have learned through personal experience anything damn thing can happen. I was told I was well in 2016, then 2017, I opened Love and Legacy Enterprises, I met the love of my life 2017 and got into a major car accident that year also that took me out medically for almost a year. June 10, 2018, I did my first promotional video and photoshoot with the love of my life by my side by June 25, 2018 I was in a Chicago hospital ICU for four days due to the love of my life attempting to take my life by beating me into a concussion, hematoma, skull fractures, lacerations, brain trauma, broken hand, whiplash, speech impediment and walking disabilities due to neurological issues from my brain being damaged. I tried to break things off and he tried to take my life. I was in a city where I knew no one I would contact, I almost died, and the detective said since I was from Atlanta they really didn’t want to be bothered with my case. While in that hospital bed, feeling all that pain, seeing all the people coming in and out to assist me medically, hearing that detective tell me I was not important enough, and knowing I put my own self in that position, I realized I could walk away from this revengeful with an F, the world attitude or I could take lemons and make me some damn lemonade.
The doctors and all of the medical specialist throughout my medical, physical, and psychological care and recovery were amazing, but for some reason, I did not listen to any of them when they said go home and rest. Instead, I went home and worked as I have never ever worked for Love and Legacy Enterprises success before and I did it with a broken hand and brain trauma. I chose to move on, leaving the hate, revengefulness, and heartbreak behind and put all my energy and time into giving the world the VA’JJ Trainer mobile application.
My speech and walking came back quickly, the more I worked and pushed forward. Once they changed my cast I was able to move my hand better so I was able to complete computer tasks faster, plus get more done. As much as I worked, I also had a lot of physical therapy & medical appointments to attend. This routine went hand and hand and still does because I am still building my body back to what it should be currently.
Over the last eight months, I have come to realize we have complete control on what we choose to do when placed in a situation and I chose to focus on what I wanted and have been slowly manifesting just that. Being in therapy and continuing my metaphysical studies has allowed me to deal with all my recent years of trauma with an understanding there is a silver lining in every experience good or bad. It may sound like I’m crazy but I got sense knocked into me that day June 25, 2018, and I chose to take the experience, remove myself from a bad situation completely and grow from it. My advice to women is to always push forward no matter what you do, never stray from your goals, take time to assess how you put yourself in an unbecoming situation and realize you will never be a great entrepreneur if you do not take time to learn yourself. Knowing yourself will allow you to separate what is important and what is not when choosing business over personal. Focusing on what you do want while dealing with and moving on from what you don’t want is the best personal policy I could learn.
Overall, my journey thus far has been the most exciting journey for me outside of raising my three children. Despite my business setbacks and having to restrategize plans more often than I would like to admit, I love what I do, I love what I am providing the world, I love helping people, and I’ve come to realize I love being dedicated to Love and Legacy Enterprises because I still have yet to get a paycheck and I wake up every day like I am making a million dollars an hour lol. Although there have been some issues with some men not taking me seriously as a female entrepreneur, I now understand, they will eventually respect me, so they can think I am a joke if they want to, I will have the last laugh!
Women need to come together and this is the biggest issue with women in business. The lack of female to female support is shocking and we are now in an era where this is going to change. Building a network of females that support each other in their business goals is being done everywhere, so Love and Legacy enterprises teamed up with The Bell Community Consultants Organization in an effort to provide the City of Atlanta and surrounding areas with a woman business network that works with startup who from idea phase to successfully being funded. Sileta Hodge Founder of The Bell Community Consultants and I created the Pump Her Up Now Network which launches later this year. Collaborating is the way to win, so team up where you can!
People will tell you not to move forward, even that little voice in your head will have you doubting if you are strong enough or capable of pulling this off, so you must no matter what believe in yourself even when it seems like you shouldn’t. Life is full of challenges, but how you choose what to focus on is what makes you or breaks you as an entrepreneur. Choices, I literally can write a book about making choices. Because of my choices to push forward no matter what I now have a team, I am launching our first Indiegogo Campaign on Friday, March 1, 2019 to raise funds an alternative way since standard options are not currently available to me, my collaborations have gained brand awareness, we are opening the PHUN Network, Our STD clinic will open in 2020, and we have secured a mobile app development company that works with our budget so our first mobile application the Va’JJ Trainer will be out Spring 2019.
Be your best self, live your best life and remember to always bet the unicorn!
Please tell us about LOVE AND LEGACY ENTERPRISES.
I am the Founder and CEO of Love and Legacy Enterprises, I am responsible for building the company, promoting brand awareness, generating a successful team, creating our core values and business culture, along with developing trust within our community. With endless tasks to accomplish daily, my biggest achievement was my greatest task of all, the creation and development of the Va’JJ Trainer mobile application. I am very proud of how much the Va’JJ Trainer will assist women with daily training and goals while being even more excited to have the basic version of the app releasing late spring.
Were there people and/or experiences you had in your childhood that you feel laid the foundation for your success?
I was an orphan who was emancipated at 16 years old and have been paying my own bills and taking care of myself ever since. Losing my mother at three then losing my father to drugs, alcohol, and prison by seven taught me to depend on me and only me. Being self-sufficient is what my childhood taught me was most important in life. I have survived more than most while being saved from other atrocities I’ve seen others face.
I have learned we are all victims which allowed me to possess empathy for others that led me to create a business just to help others and develop a line of mobile applications that will assist users with everyday health fitness and wellness. My need to survive life as a child grew into a desire to live life as an adult, this drive caused me to never stop even when told I am crazy. The ambition I feel inside allows me to focus on building love and legacy, but also give me many opportunities to connect with people in ways I would not have appreciated if I didn’t have the childhood I experienced.
Overall, my childhood and the last 22 years have taught me I can do anything, survive anything, and accomplish anything I set my mind and heart to, so I know Love and Legacy Enterprises will be successful at getting our mobile application onto millions of devices and into millions of peoples daily routines.
Contact Info:
- Address: 260 Peachtree St NW
2200
Atlanta, Ga 30303 - Website: www.lovenlegacy.com
- Phone: 6785515081
- Email: L.HILL@LOVENLEGACY.COM
- Instagram: @love_n_legacy @thevajjtrainer @vfitsports @pumpherupnow
- Facebook: lovenlegacy
- Twitter: loveenterprises
- Other: linkedin @lovenlegacy
Image Credit:
Love and Legacy Productions
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