The Business Owners Dinner Table

In this episode at we speak with Melina Simon. Melinda and her husband are a filmmaking duo that is based in San Diego California. She is an Emmy-winning producer and editor who has turned her passion for filmmaking into a successful and growing film production business.  We dive into how they got started in the film industry and what it takes to make a story come to life. This episode unveils the behind the scenes in screen writing, editing, and producing in addition to  funding projects. She shares her experience developing a feature film in addition to acting in it. We learn the behind the scenes, which comes with challenges, and learning lessons. Melinda has taken her passion and creativity and built a successful and growing production company.

Nancy and Darren Barker started their very own business out of their garage in 2004. In this interview we learn about their story of how they transformed their passion for cooking into a thriving nationwide company.  The Chefs Corner Store has a mission of offering premium cooking wear brands through their company. Within this episode we dive into how they found their niche in the cookware industry and their experience launching and scaling the business. I ask the question of what it takes to start a company in your garage, and turn it into a nationwide successful business.

Rich Lopos is the President and CEO of Nassau County Police Activity League. He elaborates on the functions of his organization and how they benefit the Nassau community. A major part of his role is the behind the scenes and paperwork in order for the activity league to function. Rich discusses the importance of teamwork within his job. In order to serve the community well, all perspectives must be shared and acknowledged. His unit works as a team to serve the community. Their mission is to support youth and keep youth off the streets.

Jackie Tiongco is a senior student at Anderson University. She has created a name for herself in the world of sports photography on campus. She was handed a camera for a class project and never looked back. Jackie has become a highly experienced photographer with a massive portfolio of her diverse work. She discusses learning from her peers and learning from failure. She adapts to her environment and strives to capture special moments. Jackie addresses the nuances of being a photographer and how to set herself apart from others.  Jackie elaborates how she is constantly learning through failure. From freshman year to senior year, Jackie has discovered her passion and true talent behind capturing moments through film as art. She has turned this passion into a photography business, and has since created her very own website. She speaks on what the future after graduation looks like and where she will focus her creative energy on moving forward.

Caitlin Chupek is the founder of the flow room yoga studio in Anderson South Carolina. In 2024 Caitlin moved from Southern California and opened her own hot yoga studio in Anderson. Passionate about improving the health and wellness industry in South Carolina, she brought her own style of yoga to the south. She offered something special with her magnetic energy and powerful classes. Her studio was a hit and she created a close knit community through the practice of yoga. In 2025, sadly the Flow Room came to a close. Caitlyn announced that at the end of the day ends could not be met financially to keep the studio up and running. Financially, the goal of running a yoga studio is never to make money, but in her case it wasn't even enough to keep the doors open. This was an emotional event after her relentless work and sacrifice to build her studio from the ground up. She not only built an amazing studio, she built a loving community and family. She speaks about the community she created that still surrounds her and supports her today.

Erin Bailey is the owner of the Rancho Murieta Health Club. This is a gym located in the small town of Rancho Murieta California. Erin was co-owner of the gym when it originally opened, and has since become sole owner of the gym. A main focus of her business is catering towards a small town and facilitating community through her work. Her gym offers a small town, personal feel, that you just can't get from a large corporate gym. Erin shares how her family background inspired her to pursue a future in business. Her story shares insights of taking on ownership and learning the ropes through trial and error. She discusses her mission to maintain the small town, personal atmosphere of The Murieta Health Club. Her gym has a massive impact on the Rancho Murieta community and offers personalized one on one training and a diverse range of exercise classes.  Personally, Erin is a neighbor and long time family friend. Over the past few years I have started going to her gym regularly. In doing so, I learned more about her role as a business owner and fitness trainer. I personally saw how special her gym is to the Rancho Murieta community. She has a personal relationship with her clients in addition to her generous support of the community. At her core, Erin has the community's best interest at heart and always aims to support the community in any way she can.