The story below is a preview from our May/June 2024 issue. For more stories like it, Subscribe Today. Thank you!
Local photographers share their picks for inspiring entrepreneurs through portraits.
Courtesy of Jennifer Hayward
Monica Slate
There was a time when Roanoke was known for its sprawling railroad yards and industrial factories. These days, though, it’s become a place where small businesses thrive. To celebrate that, The Roanoker invited five local photographers to share a special portrait of an entrepreneur who inspires them … and then to tell us what makes those folks special. Here’s what they shared…
Taylor Reschka
Miguel Liendo sports his trademark grin and a favorite “I Love Arepa” shirt, as captured here by Taylor Reschka — a photographer who runs “The Hitched Hustle,” a podcast about entrepreneurship alongside his wife, Stephanie Reschka.
The Restaurateur & Cultural Connector: Miguel Liendo
Ask Taylor Reschka why he chose to feature Miguel Liendo as his subject, and he doesn’t have to ponder long: “There’s not a person on this planet, I think, who’s more determined to be happy,” says the photographer and podcaster. “And when you’re thinking positive, positive things comes out of it.”
Reschka first met Liendo during a shoot for the restaurateur’s downtown pizzeria, Leonore, and he immediately fell for the Venezuelan’s infectious personality. “He’s representing his culture, his food,” Reschka says. “He’s so excited to share.”
Liendo is the perfect evangelist for Venezuelan cuisine, which he gradually introduced into his menu to accompany the more familiar Italian fare. He says he gets a thrill out of seeing folks try his favorite dishes from home, like arepa – a stuffed pocket-style sandwich made of cornmeal flour. “If you don’t eat arepa, you’re not Venezuelan,” Liendo says with a laugh.
But if you find yourself captured by Liendo’s joyful energy, make no mistake: the entrepreneur has known loss.
Liendo was the last in his family to make his way to the United States — he was preceded by his mother and siblings, all who work locally in the food industry. Miguel was living in Colombia, he says, when he learned that his mother’s cancer had metastasized, and he made a swift decision to relocate to Roanoke.
Courtesy of Jason Collins, Simple Times Photography
Photographer Taylor Reschka
“I came just to be with her for as long as she was still with us,” he remembers. “And I was lucky; it was two years we had together.”
By the end of those two years, Liendo knew he was here to stay. “I loved living here,” he says simply. “The people are so nice, and it was a perfect place to raise kids.”
But perhaps the biggest surprise was his pivot to becoming a restaurant owner.
“Trust me, I never thought I’d get into the restaurant business,” laughs Liendo, who got his start helping his siblings Grace Niday and Ruben Liendo manage Grace’s Place in Grandin. “But I fell in love with the business; I fell in love with the food; I fell in love making it.”
Leonore – named for Miguel’s late mother — has steadily grown its base of arepa-fans since it opened on Campbell Avenue in 2012, and last year, Liendo launched a second location in Salem. “I believe Roanoke is a great place to start anything,” he says. “People are just supportive.”
To find out more about Leonore, go to leonorerestaurant.com.
The Jewelry Designer & Style Maven: Roxy Broom
Rachel Rivas McKee
Roxanne “Roxy” Broom is pictured here at The Bird Cage Boutique, the much-loved clothing shop founded by her mother. “I’m so wowed by her in everything she does,” says photographer, videographer and social-media manager Rachel Rivas McKee, “and I think this portrait shows that she’s in control and doing the thing … and she’s having a good time doing it!”
Liendo isn’t the only entrepreneur who’s travelled far to build a thriving small business in Roanoke. Roxy Broom – owner and jewelry-maker at Roxanne Kelly Designs, and general manager at The Bird Cage Boutique, a women’s clothing store founded by her mother – grew up in northwest England before relocating to Roanoke as a child.
Courtesy of Rachel Rivas McKee
Photographer Rachel Rivas McKee
“When my mum started [the family business], she definitely wanted all of the American dream,” remembers Broom. “It’s not as easy to own a business in England, and being here in America allowed us to do that. It’s just been great.”
Photographer Rachel Rivas McKee says she chose Broom as her subject for her willingness to listen closely to her clientele. “They really build relationships with their customers,” she says of Broom and her mother, Bird Cage owner Gwenda Kellett. “They have some people who come in no matter what … who stay loyal because of that personal connection.”
Broom is quick to agree: “We had a client who shopped with me for a couple years prior to COVID. She came in the first week we reopened, and she said, ‘I’m going to come in every week, and I’m going to make sure you’re still here.’ And I’m not joking – she still does it!”
And those moments of community support are “a huge reminder of why we do what we do,” she says, “because people really do want to shop local and find that personal connection.”
To find out more about The Bird Cage Boutique, go to thebirdcageboutiques.com.
The Salon Owner & Community Builder: Monica Slate
Jennifer Hayward
Jennifer Hayward, a brand photographer, created this artistic portrait, “Goddess Rising,” as a nod to the vulnerability and self-acceptance that salon owner Monica Slate aims to create in her goddess gatherings and community events. “When I imagined this photograph, before it came to fruition, it was always Monica who I envisioned could bring it to life,” she says.
When photographer Jennifer Hayward first met Monica Slate – owner of A New Slate salon on Church Avenue – she sensed an immediate connection: “From our first conversation, I knew that we’d create beautiful photos together,” she says.
Courtesy of Nikki Daskalakis
Photographer Jennifer Hayward
So when the City of Roanoke put out a call to local artists for portraits of community changemakers, Hayward jumped at the chance to feature the friend she’d grown to admire. She posed Slate in a field of lush flowers, wearing ethereal white angel wings, as a nod to her subject’s vulnerability, authenticity and her commitment to building a community of self-acceptance through her “goddess gatherings” and events at the salon. “She’s grown into an entrepreneur and a person who’s been able to open her doors to the community of women in our area and provide a safe space for them – an inspiring space,” says Hayward.
And that’s exactly what Slate hopes to achieve — whether folks are sitting in the salon chair or donning flower crowns for “A Night of Yaya.”
“Sometimes people have hard days,” she says. “They just need to feel safe and relaxed, and that’s what I want to give them.”
To find out more about A New Slate, go to anewslatesalon.com.
Want to see more phenomenal shots of some of our region's innovative entrepreneurs, including Cirqulation's Lynsey Wyatt, photographed by Aaron Spicer, and She's International Boutique's Diane Speaks, photographed by Chris Tribble? Check out the latest issue, now on newsstands, or see it for free in our digital guide linked below!
The story above is a preview from our May/June 2024 issue. For more stories like it, Subscribe Today. Thank you!