The three young women behind Girls With Guts showed they have what it takes to get a business off the ground in its first year.
The Midtown-based business serves as platform for women battling Inflammatory Bowel Disease.
"We have grown significantly," says Jackie Zimmerman, president of
Girls With Guts. "We have a
fanbase of more than 7,000 people on Facebook now. A year ago we had 2,000."
Zimmerman, a recent Wayne State University graduate, launched the 1-year-old business with the help of
Blackstone Launch Pad. The idea was to create a safe place for women suffering from the disease to find help, information, and new ideas on how to live a healthier life.
Girls With Guts and its team of five people accomplishes that with its online presence and by leading retreats. It held its first retreat last fall in Michigan. It’s planning one to Texas for 70 attendees later this year.
"We are hoping to get as many people down there as possible and help change some lives," Zimmerman says. She adds, "We would like to do two retreats a year."
Girls With Guts now has support groups in five major metro areas, including Detroit, Philadelphia, Nashville, Dallas, and Chicago. Zimmerman and her co-founders hope to add more cities to their network as this year goes on.
Source: Jackie Zimmerman, president of Girls With Guts
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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