Entrepreneur responds to getting fired by launching award-winning business

Lameika Washington began in the safety enterprise as a teenager and worked her way up the ladder, building a lot of funds for other individuals in the approach. 

Just after doing work for a person enterprise for much more than a dozen years, she states, she claimed a salesperson for padding their figures and properly stealing commissions. She assumed she was performing the suitable thing, and suggests corporation leaders appeared to agree, suitable up to the level when they fired her. 

Washington claims she battled despair and even suicidal views, and credits her faith for receiving her by the darkish periods. She says the inspiration to start a firm termed Diamond Stability Products and services arrived to her in a aspiration. 

“You’ve been a diamond in the tough,” she recalls a voice telling her only later did she uncover her birthstone is diamond. 

Very last week, Louisiana Financial Growth named Diamond Safety Products and services its Tiny and Rising Business of the Yr. Washington suggests she started out the business in 2019 and employs about 80 folks, rising fast in a extremely competitive marketplace. 

While Washington specials with labor issues like every person else, she claims positive phrase of mouth from recent staff members will help recruitment. She states her organization pays wages previously mentioned the sector normal, such as positive aspects from working day a person, and staff can be suitable for a tiny increase inside 90 days. 

Asked about lessons uncovered when making the firm, she states she needs she experienced performed far more study in the starting about how to framework the enterprise and experienced much more managerial support with the aspects she didn’t know significantly about. 

Diamond will work in the course of the point out, like at Juban Crossing and Towne Middle. Washington says the organization is poised to increase into Texas and Florida future. 

“It’s been a journey,” she suggests.