Women Business Owners (WBO) Announces Finalists
for 2011 Nellie Cashman Award

Five remarkable, inspiring and generous women entrepreneurs vie for the prestigious honor

SEATTLE - The Women Business Owners (WBO), Puget Sound's leading organization for women entrepreneurs, has named the five finalists in the 2011 Nellie Cashman Woman Business Owner of the Year Awards Competition ('The Nellie'). The Nellie recognizes and honors women business owners who have enhanced the status of women entrepreneurs through their vision, perseverance, and fearless leadership in business and the community.  To qualify a nominee must own at least 51% of the business, gross more than $1million in annual revenue and have three or more employees.

Candidates for The Nellie are judged based on their entrepreneurial spirit, ethics and community spirit, financial and management skills, and the difficulty and risk they have endured to achieve their success. The 2011 Nellie winner will be announced at a gala awards banquet on Thursday, October 13, 2011 at the Fairmont Olympic Hotel.  Tickets for the gala are available at:  https://womenbusinessowners.org/doc/nelliecashman_register_open.php

The five finalists for the 2011 Nellie are:

  • Jessica Bishop, StudentPainters.net
  • Rosanna Bowles, Rosanna Imports, Inc.
  • Janelle Bruland, Management Services Northwest
  • LisaChissus, CFM Consolidated, Inc.
  • Rae Anne Rushing, The Rushing Company, LLC

Full bios of the finalists are available at: http://womenbusinessowners.org/doc/nelliecashman.php

Jessica Bishop, CEO, StudentPainters.net

Northwest born and raised, Bishop paid her way through college as a student painter and graduated debt free from the University of Washington in 2000. She went on to immediately start StudentPainters.net  with her own savings.  One of her key motivations in starting the business was so that she could help and teach the same skills to her employees.  She has delivered on that in spades. A proud "mama bear" to her StudentPainters.net family, Bishop has graduated hundreds of young entrepreneurs from the StudentPainters.net management training program.  Today StudentPainters.net includes territories in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. 

Rosanna Bowles, CEO/Owner, Rosanna Inc.

Bowles is a Northwest-educated, self-made entrepreneur. Marrying her passion for art history and design, Bowles began Rosanna Inc., out of her basement with a home equity loan of $15K. Nearly three decades and millions of dishes later, Bowles has emerged as a global trendsetter in the homewaresindustry and has established her product as an internationally acclaimed brand.  Her designs can be found at Harrods in London, the Bon Marche in Paris, and she has developed proprietary design work for the Metropolitan Opera, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Starbucks Coffee.  The publication of her first book, Coming Home, has established her as a lifestyle expert as well.  

Janelle Bruland, CEO and President, Management Services Northwest

Bruland purchased a small janitorial company with 10 employees in 1995. Management Services Northwest has since become a one call source for complete facilities management, and is a now a regional employer in Washington, Oregon and Idaho with more than 240 employees, and 300 vendor partners. Bruland oversees all aspects of her company with her principal focus on strategic planning and business development. She is active within the industry, serving on the board of several facilities services trade organizations and an active community volunteer.  Among her recent awards are Fastest Growing Private Company, Best Places to Work, and the Washington State Small Business Person of the Year.

 

Lisa Chissus, President and Owner, CFM Consolidated, Inc.

CFM Consolidated, Inc. is a diverse manufacturing business located in Fife, WA. CFM customers are all over the world: including the United States, Canada, Australia, Russia, Dubai, and Tasmania. Chissus has been the president of Cascade Plastics, Flex-a-lite and MariSource for more than 10 years and has just recently taken over sole ownership of all three under the CFM Consolidated umbrella.  Chissus is the third generation of her family in the Flex-a-lite business. She has been recognized as an industry leader in the automotive performance aftermarket, and received her utility patent in both the United States and Canada.

Rae Anne Rushing, President/CEO, Rushing Company

As a teen parent with a small child and only a GED equivalency high school diploma, Rushing entered the University of Washington system through the Equal Opportunity Program (EOP), specifically the Economically Disadvantaged Student Division (EDSD).  Today she leads the Rushing Company, a Seattle-based mechanical engineering, electrical engineering and sustainability consulting firm with 33 professionals.  A born entrepreneur, at age six Rushing was selling her Halloween candy in June. Today she brings that same foresight, energy and passion to every aspect of Rushing. Her primary focus is strategic planning and management of engineering and construction services.

About Women Business Owners

Women Business Owners (http://womenbusinessowners.org/) is Puget Sound's leading organization for women entrepreneurs. Our mission: to propel resolute women entrepreneurs to embrace their fullest vision of success. Beyond a great business referral network, WBO is a resource for inspiration, education, enduring relationships, and leadership development.