Jay Goltz

After graduating college, and against the advice of just about everyone, Jay Goltz decided to open a custom framing shop on Clybourn Ave., a then abandoned factory district on the edge of Lincoln Park. He worked in a frame shop while in school and thought he could provide a better experience for the customer in both design and service.

Within a few years, Jay grew Artists Frame Service into the largest custom frame shop in the country- about twenty times the average.

Over the next twenty years, Jay expanded by adding Jayson Home, Bella Moulding, and Gallery 1871. His business now employs 130 people and occupies an entire city block on Clybourn Ave. (now a vibrant shopping district) and an 85,000 sq.ft. warehouse and factory. Less than one percent of businesses grow to this size, especially in one generation.

Jay's story is also unusual because his businesses encompass retail, manufacturing, direct sales, and e-commerce. He has never had a full-time job or a mentor, so he learned by making "every mistake in the book". The problem was that there was no book he could find that covered all of the realities of growing a business, from management to finance to marketing, so he decided to write "The Street-Smart Entrepreneur:133 Tough lessons I Learned the Hard Way". He was featured in the book, Small Giants, which lead to a cover story for Inc Magazine. He went on to be the lead blogger for the NYT small business blog for five years and is frequently featured in the business media. He recently joined The 21 Hats podcast team where he talks about what it really takes to run a business. His speech reviews always include the words "real", "take home value" and "inspiring".