CYCLING TO SUCCESS

DANA DOBROWOLSKI ’10 OPENED NORTHEAST CYCLE

(9910 Frankford Ave, Philadelphia) in June 2019 just a quarter mile away from Holy Family’s Northeast Philadelphia campus. Dobrowolski, who enjoyed fitness cycling long before she opened the business, saw a market for her studio in the heart of her alma mater’s community.

“I felt we didn’t have any boutique, tight-knit fitness classes in Northeast Philadelphia,” explains Dobrowolski. “It was mostly big-box gyms. I saw an opportunity there for something that I am passionate about doing – and I was sick of driving 30 or 40 minutes and paying an outrageous price to take a class!”

Dobrowolski graduated from Holy Family with a degree in Accounting, and she also works as an investment accountant for a real estate fund in addition to owning and operating Northeast Cycle. “In some ways, the jobs merge together,” Dobrowolski says. “Other times they are as far apart as they can be – some days I am talking to wealthy investors who want to invest in our real estate fund, and other days I’m on my hands and knees tightening bolts in a bike. But a lot of the managerial and financial aspects come together and I can apply my skills in both positions.”

While Dobrowolski was able to open the business quickly – “I had the idea, and within eight months we had opened our doors,” she explains –Northeast Cycle was open for less than a year before the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in its temporary closure by public order. Since the business reopened, Dobrowolski notes that Northeast Cycle is seeing a resurgence in interest. “During the pandemic, a lot of people bought their own bikes and now they feel they can’t justify spending money on in-person classes,” she points out. “While we lost some business there, we are definitely growing and seeing new faces all the time. We had a lot of people who bought bikes tell us that it just wasn’t the same and that they sold their bikes and they’re now back.”

Dobrowolski credits her instructors with keeping the business vibrant. “They create an environment where each class we have can be completely different. You’re never getting the same experience twice. They are just as passionate about the business as I am. That’s extremely helpful because it wouldn’t be what it is if it had to be just me.”

AN INSTITUTION IN NORTH PHILADELPHIA FOR DECADES,

Denise’s Delicacies (2916 N. 22nd Street, Philadelphia) was founded by Denise Gause and is now owned and operated by her nieces, Cynthia Benton M’10 and Keshia Davis. Benton and Davis continue their aunt’s work at her full-service bakery, creating baked goods like cakes, doughnuts, pies, and cookies for special events – or just an everyday sweet treat – throughout the region.

“My aunt started the business out of a passion that she had for baking,” shares Benton. “She was working full-time and baking for her friends and family on the side, and she then started baking out of a commercial kitchen. When the opportunity presented itself to her to buy a building, she purchased the building on North 22nd Street, which was the neighborhood she grew up in.”

Gause decided to retire after fully rebuilding the bakery after a devastating fire that shuttered her beloved business for over a year. After the rebuild, Benton and Davis came on board to prepare to take over the bakery and took full ownership in 2018.

After earning a Bachelor of Science in Accounting at the University of Delaware, Benton completed her Master of Business Administration degree with a concentration in finance at Holy Family in 2010 and served in several financial services roles before taking over her aunt’s business.

While Denise’s Delicacies was already a successful business, that posed a different approach for the new ownership than if they had started a new business.

“Acquiring an already-existing business has its challenges, just like how starting a business has its challenges,” Benton points out. “One of the things that happened when we took over the business is that the train had already left the station – we had to keep up with demand and trends that were already going on.”

Just over a year after taking over the ownership of Denise’s Delicacies, the business, like many others, was closed again for an extended period because of COVID-19 restrictions. Like Benton, Davis also has a background in business and finance, and the two were able to navigate the challenges of the pandemic by utilizing their business knowledge to apply for available aid to support the business and their employees – and also received help from the Philadelphia Flyers.

“We were one of the first five recipients of the Flyers’ Hometown Assist Award, which is a $100,000 advertising campaign,” says Benton. “We were also selected as the Featured Winner, which meant we also received press coverage on all the local news channels. It was the first year that the Flyers did this program, and I understand that they are continuing with it, and the Philadelphia 76ers are now doing something similar.”

With the doors reopened, Benton is now looking forward to sharing delicious baked goods of Denise’s Delicacies with the community and beyond. “We’re expanding in wholesale, big box stores,” Benton says. “We have a partnership with Brown’s Family ShopRite. We are currently in three stores and are looking to expand into all 14. We’re also looking to get into more e-commerce and utilize technology to get our products even further.”

Benton is proud of the growth of Denise’s Delicacies since she and Davis acquired the business, and has a belief that other aspiring entrepreneurs can follow the same path if they have the passion to do it. “If you can see it, you can do it,” Benton shares. “It will take hard work because I believe that the business environment that we’re in now is considerably different than we were in just a few years ago. I believe that it allows aspiring and current entrepreneurs to tap into their creativity. There are lots of resources that don’t necessarily cost a lot of money. There will certainly be challenges along the way, but keep your head down, keep working at it, and if it’s something that you truly feel passionate about, I believe that it will happen.”