By Samantha Leader<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Tracy Higginbotham has had entrepreneurship in her blood since she was a little girl. She watched generations of successful women business owners in her family, including her mother and aunt.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
She decided to follow in their footsteps, earning a bachelor of science degree in business administration from SUNY Oswego and completing postgraduate studies in business management.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
At 30 years old, Tracy decided to leave her job with Lemoyne College and pursue her passion in event planning. She had two sons, a 3-year-old and a 3-month-old, and her goal was to stay active working while being home with her children. Inspired by her mother, on Aug. 8, 1995, she launched Five Star Events, event-planning company. She ran Five Star Events from 1995-2005.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Many things go into being a successful entrepreneur, but according to Tracy, sales plays a big part.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cYour job when you start is half service and half sales,\u201d Tracy said. \u201cI took a 10-week sales course when I started Five Star Events. It taught me how to present myself in press releases, marketing and sales.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
One of the biggest parts of keeping a business going is networking. In 1996, in order to help in that endeavor, Tracy joined WBOC, a local group that helps women entrepreneurs. At the time, the group only included only eight women. She quickly rose to lead the group.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cDuring this time, there weren\u2019t many women entrepreneurs, so banks, universities, mortgage companies, etc., weren\u2019t interested in investing in women,\u201d she said. \u201cMany women would call me from Syracuse, Utica, other towns, looking for advice.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Eventually this led Tracy to leave her event planning business behind to start WomenTIES (Women Together Inspiring Entrepreneur Success) in 2005. The goal of this organization was to bring together women entrepreneurs from all regions and help them market their businesses.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cWomenTIES provides people with connections to women based businesses to do work with, instead of men,\u201d she said. \u201cWomen still don\u2019t make as much as men. Therefore my goal is to get the names of these women-based businesses out instead of going directly to a man-based one.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
WomenTIES is going on its 14th<\/sup>year of holding regional events offering advice to women from Albany, Rochester, Binghamton, Syracuse, the Mohawk Valley and beyond. The company now has more than 300 members (local, state, and national) and 60 regional volunteers.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cBeing your own boss makes it possible to stay active working while having children,\u201d she said, \u201cTechnology makes it possible for women to stay in touch with their business, marketing and sales all out of the house.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n It takes three years to be financially successful in entrepreneurship. After three years, a person can increase their fees and do more business, according to Tracy.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cEvery women has the ability to be an entrepreneur, but the three main things to remember are to surround yourself with other women entrepreneurs doing what you\u2019re doing for support and celebration; strengthen your sales skills, realizing it can be a roller coaster, but it will be a positive experience; and lastly, surround yourself with pink flowers,\u201d Tracy said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Samantha Leader Tracy Higginbotham has had entrepreneurship in her blood since she was a little girl. She watched generations of successful women business owners in her family, including her mother and aunt. She decided to follow in their footsteps, earning a bachelor of science degree in business administration from SUNY Oswego and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2341,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[101],"tags":[816,817],"class_list":["post-2340","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","tag-tracy-higginbotham","tag-womenties"],"gutentor_comment":1,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/TracyCHigginbotham2015.jpg?fit=3840%2C5760&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1162,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=1162","url_meta":{"origin":2340,"position":0},"title":"Tracy Foss","author":"Staff","date":"October 27, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Paying Hope Forward By Jasmine Gomez | Photography by Mary Grace Johnson On a family road trip to her in-laws\u2019 house in Boston for Thanksgiving, Tracy Foss began to wonder if something was wrong. Her daughter, Madeline, was remarkably thirsty. She just couldn\u2019t seem to get enough water. The family\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Featured"","block_context":{"text":"Featured","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?cat=99"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/SWMTracy-27-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C793&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/SWMTracy-27-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C793&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/SWMTracy-27-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C793&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/SWMTracy-27-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C793&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/SWMTracy-27-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C793&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":618,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=618","url_meta":{"origin":2340,"position":1},"title":"Gabriela Escalante","author":"Staff","date":"March 30, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"A Woman of Entrepreneurial Solutions By Alison Grimes | Photography provided by CNY Latino\u00a0 Entrepreneurship comes in many forms. Syracuse University\u2019s Whitman School of Management refers to the practice with a three-word slogan: \u201cDream, believe, pursue.\u201d Gabriela Escalante, Syracuse University alumna, current entrepreneur-in-residence at the Whitman School of Management and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Features"","block_context":{"text":"Features","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?cat=101"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Z_CNYL-April-17_01.jpg?fit=1200%2C901&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Z_CNYL-April-17_01.jpg?fit=1200%2C901&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Z_CNYL-April-17_01.jpg?fit=1200%2C901&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Z_CNYL-April-17_01.jpg?fit=1200%2C901&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Z_CNYL-April-17_01.jpg?fit=1200%2C901&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1763,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=1763","url_meta":{"origin":2340,"position":2},"title":"Nappa Family","author":"Staff","date":"April 30, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"It Takes a Family\u00a0 By Lorna Oppedisano | Photography by Alice G. Patterson\u00a0 \u201cWhen you\u2019re a mom and you have kids with cystic fibrosis, you wake up in the morning and every day is unpredictable, because your day could change from minute to minute,\u201d Cindy Nappa said. Cindy\u2019s connection to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Featured"","block_context":{"text":"Featured","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?cat=99"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Tracy-Marino-cystic-fibrosis-org-syracuse-0011-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Tracy-Marino-cystic-fibrosis-org-syracuse-0011-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Tracy-Marino-cystic-fibrosis-org-syracuse-0011-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Tracy-Marino-cystic-fibrosis-org-syracuse-0011-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Tracy-Marino-cystic-fibrosis-org-syracuse-0011-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":858,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=858","url_meta":{"origin":2340,"position":3},"title":"DeAnna Germano","author":"Staff","date":"June 30, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Local Talent for Rent By Lorna Oppedisano | Photography by Alice G. Patterson When DeAnna Germano was in high school, her boss at Kabuki, a sushi restaurant in Skaneateles, told her she should pursue a career in the culinary arts. With thoughts of being a lawyer or joining the United\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Featured"","block_context":{"text":"Featured","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?cat=99"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/deanna-wasiewski-chef4rent-0007.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/deanna-wasiewski-chef4rent-0007.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/deanna-wasiewski-chef4rent-0007.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/deanna-wasiewski-chef4rent-0007.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/deanna-wasiewski-chef4rent-0007.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3175,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=3175","url_meta":{"origin":2340,"position":4},"title":"An Issue Near and Dear to Her Heart","author":"Staff","date":"February 4, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"By Ken Sturtz \u00a0 Two years ago, the fashion design firm Jackie Ferrari built from scratch was on life support after having been battered in the pandemic. Millions of dollars in orders vanished overnight. She was forced to furlough most of her two-dozen employees, including her son-in-law, an experience so\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Cover Story"","block_context":{"text":"Cover Story","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?cat=100"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Jackie-Ferrari-0001-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Jackie-Ferrari-0001-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Jackie-Ferrari-0001-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Jackie-Ferrari-0001-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Jackie-Ferrari-0001-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1537,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=1537","url_meta":{"origin":2340,"position":5},"title":"Nancy Aureli","author":"Staff","date":"February 1, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Creating Community Resources\u00a0 By Lorna Oppedisano | Photography by Alice G. Patterson \u201cI need a change,\u201d Nancy Aureli thought, as she sat at a training by FranklinCovey, the company behind The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Earlier in the day, Nancy \u2014 a geologist who worked 50- to 60-hour\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Featured"","block_context":{"text":"Featured","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?cat=99"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Nancy-Aureli-0003.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Nancy-Aureli-0003.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Nancy-Aureli-0003.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Nancy-Aureli-0003.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Nancy-Aureli-0003.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2340","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2340"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2340\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2342,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2340\/revisions\/2342"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2341"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2340"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2340"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2340"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}