Entrepreneurial Spirit | Big Benz Towing & Repair

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Dozens of entrepreneurs in the Mahoning and Shenango valleys navigated the challenges of the pandemic to launch a new venture, proving the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well.

For Growth Report 2, The Business Journal spoke with owners of six local businesses who shared their experiences. They include Devyn Bellamy of Geras Home Solutions; Amy Javens of Cycle Life Studio; Lindy Lauro of Lindy’s Lunch; Monique Davis of Beloved Guardians Home Health Care; Sara Lee Grandelis of Lotus Art Center; John McDonald and Joe Driscoll of Easy Adapter Inc.; and Benjamin Warren of Big Benz Towing & Repair.

Each will be spotlighted separately online.

Beloved Guardians Home Health | Benjamin Warren

Benjamin Warren has been in the towing and automobile repair field for pretty much his entire life, he says. Last year, he moved his wife, three children and business from New England to the city whose name he shares and where he is from.

“All my family lives here,” he says.

Big Benz Towing & Repair, which Warren operated in New Hampshire, marked its opening on U.S. Route 422 last September.

So far, his first year in business has gone as well as can be expected in a city like Warren, where the economy isn’t as strong as it is in New England. More people here have less money, which makes operating a business “a little tough,” he says.

But he is determined to “adapt and overcome.”

Even so, he says Big Benz is “right on track” to meet its targets.

“No matter what kind of pandemic or whatnot is going on, people still have to get around,” he says. “They’re always going to fix their cars. Their cars are always going to need a tow when they break down. Those are things you can’t get around no matter what.”

Read more of these stories of entrepreneurship in George Nelson’s story in Growth Report 2.

Pictured: Benjamin Warren relocated his family to open Big Benz Towing & Repair.

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.