Entrepreneur Spotlight: Thomas Burnette, Owner of Mix Masters

Entrepreneur Spotlight: Thomas Burnette, owner Mix Masters LLC

Thomas Burnett began his entrepreneurial journey with a passion for food sustainability and the culinary arts after seeing how much waste there is in the food industry. As a graduate of Second Helpings Culinary Job Training Program and Ivy Tech Community College's Culinary Arts Program, Thomas launched his business Mix Masters LLC to pursue cooking and baking as an entrepreneur selling through farmers markets, cafes, and catering.

Though Thomas had the technical experience of making quality food, he was looking for assistance with business operations and planning. Thomas was connected to the Indy Chamber's Business Ownership Initiative (BOI) which provides free one-on-one business coaching, small business loans, and workshops to entrepreneurs at every stage. Thomas met frequently with his BOI business coach to review his financial projections and business plan. He shared, “One of my favorite things about BOI is the personal relationship between you and your business coach. It’s sort of a student-mentor business relationship that you can carry for life."

Thomas also participated in a 6-week business course through BOI's ReEntry Entrepreneurship Development Initiative (REDi). Thomas described the REDi program as a more intense look at the core issues in your business, helping entrepreneurs move their product from paper to life.

While Mix Masters is still in the planning stage, Thomas has big plans to grow his business into a community resource. Keep up with Mix Masters developments by following the Facebook page.

Learn more about BOI's free one-on-one business coaching, workshops, and business loans up to $50,000 at indychamber.com/entrepreneurship.