Bolatito Alabi is the proud owner of Aura Wellness, a honey and wellness gifts distribution business dedicated to promoting the wellness of its clients. An alumna of LAEDA’s Entrepreneurial Development Training Program (Session 73), Tito, as fondly called, has combined her passion for health and wellness with the skills she gained through LAEDA and Product Management training to grow her business.
We had the pleasure of sitting down with Tito to hear about her journey, her experience with entrepreneurship, and how LAEDA’s training programs helped shape her path.
1) LAEDA: Entrepreneurship is a very challenging path to take with many different possible directions. What made you decide to become an entrepreneur?
My journey to entrepreneurship I would say started with my mom. She had multiple stores retailing all brands of household products and it was quite fascinating watching her juggle all these stores even as a mom so I think it’s justified to say I inherited entrepreneurial skills from her naturally.
However, I recollect vividly when I decided to explore the business side of me. I remember right after high school during one of my holidays, my dad got me a temp job at the annual trade fair in Nigeria. I was one of the hostesses attending to participants and business owners to ensure they had all the assistance needed to set up. At my daily lunch hours, I’d walk around to see different business setups, the passion and determination each business owner demonstrated in wooing customers and the smile and fulfillment that comes out of making sales. At the same time, I saw anxiety on the faces of those trying so hard to win customers over. It was quite remarkable and memorable for me. I developed friendships with some business owners particularly at the Coca-Cola stand. That was the beginning of my trade skills. The Marketing Director became my good friend, during one of our conversations, he asked if I would like to be a distributor. They’d supply minimal products for starters then I can grow if I wanted to be a full time distributor. I was excited, I literally jumped at the opportunity and so began my first experience at being an entrepreneur. I signed up while waiting for my admissions to college, I started getting delivery of cases of Coca-Cola at home and I started to sell to my neighbors, my mom’s friends, and around my neighborhood. Long story short, I became known around my neighborhood when they needed my product. It was quite an exciting experience for me. I was so passionate about it because I felt good about myself knowing that I was making money from my sweat. I became less dependent on my parents which gave them the opportunity to focus on my younger siblings.
Eventually after college I had my own beauty salon, selling clothes and I was also into events management. I employed an assistant to manage the salon while I worked my 9-5 as Human Resource Manager. At some point after college, I decided to take a stand at the annual trade and thought, why not be at the Trade Fair where it all began.
As my career grew, my decision to become an entrepreneur also gnawed at me. Having been in the corporate world for almost two decades before relocating, I started to think of what I want to do at the end of my corporate journey, all the skills that I’ve built over the years, how can I put them together and make them work for me in building my own business. My career started in the bank, then I transitioned into HR and was HR manager for almost 10 years before relocating to join my ex husband. I have a Post graduate diploma in Mass communications and then I took e-commerce training which led me into the world of online business. So given all these skills and knowledge, I felt the need to put them together and make them work for me as an individual and make my own mark in the business world. At least that was my goal before life gave me a curve ball upon relocating to the US.
2) LAEDA: Why did you choose your industry?
I’ve always been passionate about anything connected to the internet. Computers, technology, and digital spaces genuinely excite me. What really pulled me in was the world of e-commerce—the idea that you can build a business online and reach people all over the world, including customers you may never meet or who may never walk into a brick-and-mortar store, yet still walk away satisfied with the service they receive. That possibility has always fascinated me.
I’m also a lifelong learner. I’m constantly researching, asking questions, and wanting to know more. Since I had already started in the clothing business, expanding that passion into an online space felt like a natural step. Seeing people shop from my store online and connect with my brand was exciting—and it still is.
That said, I didn’t set out with a fixed idea of what my business had to be. What I did know was that I wanted an online store. Along the way, I learned an important lesson: you can’t build a successful business based only on what you love. You also have to understand what people want and what the end user truly needs. Research became my guide, helping me make informed decisions instead of emotional ones.
I love clothing and beauty—that’s my passion—but running an online business is different from operating a physical storefront. It requires thinking from the customer’s perspective and understanding how your products actually benefit them. I didn’t choose my industry first; I chose curiosity, research, and the excitement of e-commerce. As I grow older, I have come to realize the importance of health and wellness. The more you nurture your body, the more it serve you and enhances your longevity. This informed my decision to build Aura Wellness.
3) LAEDA: Tell me about your experience while attending EDTP. What have the major takeaways been from the program? Have you had any “Ah-ha!” moments? How did the program help you?
My experience at LAEDA was truly life-changing. It was the business school I didn’t even realize I needed—but I’m so grateful the opportunity came my way and that I chose to embrace it. At the time, I was navigating a very challenging period in my life, and the program gave me purpose, focus, and a renewed drive to become a successful entrepreneur.
EDTP was where my real business development journey began. I learned the foundations of business planning, time management, accounting, and business development—skills that continue to guide me today. Writing my business plan was one of the most challenging parts of the experience. Balancing a full-time 9:00–5:00 job and heading straight to class afterward every day required serious commitment and discipline. It wasn’t easy, but it was absolutely worth it.
The facilitators were incredibly detailed and thorough, pushing us to truly understand what it takes to build a sustainable business. One of the most rewarding parts of the program was connecting with other aspiring business owners who were on similar paths. Meeting like-minded individuals reminded me that I wasn’t alone in my journey, and that sense of community added so much value to the experience.
Our business presentations were both fun and serious, giving me real insight into how to present ideas confidently to stakeholders. Writing the business plan manually—long before today’s AI tools—was tough, but I’m thankful for that process. It forced me to think critically and deeply about every aspect of my business.
My biggest “aha moment” came from a simple but powerful lesson in discipline. I arrived one minute late to class one day and found the door already closed. I missed the entire session. That moment stayed with me. It taught me that success requires discipline, consistency, and respect for the process. If you want to be a successful businesswoman, it starts with showing up—on time and fully prepared.
That lesson has stayed with me ever since, and it remains one of the greatest takeaways from my EDTP experience.
4) LAEDA: Tell me about your journey on the road to business start-up. What have been some of the challenges, successes, failures, etc.?
My business journey has been anything but easy—especially without financial support. Starting a business and getting it off the ground while maintaining a demanding 9–5 job was incredibly challenging. Funding and time were my two biggest obstacles. While I knew what needed to be done and how to do it, I had to face the reality of my situation and work within my limits.
After completing the program, LAEDA approved a small startup loan to help me get started. While I understood it was meant to establish my creditworthiness, the immediate repayment requirements made it difficult to gain momentum in the early stages of my business. As an online entrepreneur, the costs added up quickly—subscriptions to essential platforms, marketing tools, and digital services required to run and promote the business. Marketing alone demanded significant investment, and without a strong financial support system, the returns were not enough to sustain those expenses. Over time, this placed additional strain on my personal finances.
Running a business entirely on your own can be mentally and emotionally exhausting. When you don’t have a support system or someone to share ideas with, the pressure can feel overwhelming. Eventually, I made the difficult but necessary decision to take a step back—to protect my well-being and focus on what mattered most.
Success, to me, is not giving up. While I’m not yet where I want to be in my business journey, I know I’m still on the path. Taking a pause allowed me to reset, refocus, and invest in myself. I’ve since pursued additional professional training as a Product Manager and transitioned into the IT field. I now have a stronger understanding of the internet, digital strategy, and the marketing side of e-commerce.
Today, I feel better equipped—more knowledgeable, more strategic, and more prepared—to apply what I’ve learned and move forward as a stronger, more confident business owner. This isn’t the end of my journey; it’s a new beginning.
5) LAEDA: Could you tell me a little about where your business is today?
After taking a break from the business world, I was able to repurpose my goals. In between taking additional classes in Product Management, training as a Business Analyst, and working in IT, I’ve built stronger skills in research, business planning, and marketing strategy.
I’ve learned how to write a solid business plan, create a clear roadmap, and develop an effective marketing plan. With all of that experience and knowledge under my belt, I can confidently say—I’m ready to plunge right back into the business world and take my entrepreneurial journey to the next level.
I have my stores on Shopify – Aura Home Store – (https://aurahomestore.net) and Aura Wellness, I have more in-depth knowledge about the business world and skills to be a better business woman, right now my business is more of a startup so to answer your question, my business is starting out all over again slowly but surely. I’m in the home and wellness business. I’m focusing on the aesthetic of the home and everything that makes the home peaceful and endearing. I sell home accessories like wall art fixtures, chandeliers, rugs and other home decors. Now Aura Wellness is the icing on the cake. We brand different flavors of honey into wellness gift packages. The home should be a sanctuary for love, safety, wellness and peace. If my product can add values to my customers in that regard, then my business is going great, as I plan to make it an overall success. Aura Wellness is set to launch by February 1st.
6) LAEDA: Do you have any advice for future (or existing) entrepreneurs?
My advice to future entrepreneurs is to be determined, never give up on your dreams, have a clear vision, leverage on all resources you can find, plan and just be resilient. The journey may be rough and tough in the beginning and life may throw you curveballs but at the end of the day if you’re determined that this is your path; this is what you want to do then never give up. For existing businesses the goal is to continue learning. You never give up on learning because the world is constantly changing, everything is changing business wise and in today’s world of AI there’s a lot to learn. I had to bring myself up to speed on that so my advice will be to never give up on learning more and more and if you think you don’t have the capacity to learn more then engage people that can support that aspect of the business because when you learn then you can adapt and apply all those knowledge into your business so that when you commission people to do things for you or you contract people to work for you, the fact that you have the understanding and the knowledge of what they need to do would save you a lot because if they’re doing what’s not relevant to what you require then you can step in and say no I know what I asked for and I know what I should get.
Funding is a big deal, leverage on grants and continue to liaise with LAEDA for guidance on unknown opportunities. Take stress days out when you need it. Ensure your books are in order, this will give you a holistic overview of where you are in business. Finally, find someone that inspires you, motivates and believes in your business goal. This is great for mental stability when the going gets tough.
Finally, I hope the system continues to support small startups and make it easier for business owners to excel and grow.
Aura Wellness Honey can be reached at:
Shop: https://aura-wellness-1053.myshopify.com/
Phone/Text: 856-534-9289
Email: sales@aurahomestore.net
newuniquetrending@gmail.com
About the Entrepreneurial Development Training Program (EDTP):
The Entrepreneurial Development Training Program (EDTP) is a free, nine-week business skills training course offered in Camden, NJ in the Spring and Fall each year. Qualified entrepreneurs receive 72+ hours of training from industry professionals, business planning, and continued technical assistance. For more Information visit us at laeda.com or refer an entrepreneur using this form.