PHOENIX -- Wednesday night, dozens of people with their business cards in hand and business ideas in their heads, filled the bottom floor of a Phoenix office building to network with each other and share plans for new businesses.
They are part of
Club E, or Club Entrepreneur, a "glimmer of hope out there in the business community," according to Peter Burns, the club founder.
The group, which also communicates on the website,
meetup.com, holds monthly meetings where long-time entrepreneurs can meet with new business owners and people who are just starting to dream up ideas for new businesses.
"It's about helping other people and other people helping you," said Gabriela Cojanu, a new business owner who found inspiration within the club after being laid off from her job.
"I was very excited to learn from...everybody in that room that is also starting a business," she said.
"I wanted to learn from them, and I wanted to see what opportunities can come out of it," she added, explaining that she attended a business start-up workshop as a result of becoming associated with Club E.
Cojanu now runs a company called
webactualize.com , a company, she said, that helps small and mid-size businesses grow online using various online marketing techniques.
"It is not an easy process," she said, explaining the process of starting a business.
"It definitely is much easier to do it with other people and have help and support and use other people as sounding boards and use other small business owners to coach you and mentor you. So, that's what I had," she said.
She said she didn't have to spend any money to join the club or to receive advice from others.
"The main goal is to bring people together," said Burns, who indicated the group has more than 3,500 Valley residents involved.
"We practice open source entrepreneurship - which is nothing more than the free exchange of ideas, relationships, access to money, access to technology," he added.
"Some may have it. Some may need it, and we bring them all together here at Club E," he said.
