Sprouts Cooking School offers hands-on cooking classes for children. Hoosiers looking for activities for the younger members of their family can visit this cooking school that teaches children culinary skills in a safe, supportive environment.
“At Sprouts Cooking School, we’re passionate about building a strong foundation for a lifelong love of cooking, nurturing adventurous palates and encouraging families to cook together,” according to the website.
Stephanie Drewry, founder and owner of Sprouts Cooking School, originally launched her business in her home. Drewry later moved to their first official storefront in Carmel in the summer of 2017. As demand grew, Drewry opened a second location in Zionsville in 2022 with the same look and feel as the original location.
Sprouts Cooking School provides engaging class themes to encourage children and their families to spend time in the kitchen. The school provides classes featuring guided instruction in a group setting where kid chefs and bakers will learn culinary fundamentals and skills.
Sprouts Cooking School has locations at 13190 Hazel Dell Pkwy Unit 100 in Carmel and 11145 N Michigan Road, Suite 140 in Zionsville. For more information, visit https://sproutscookingschool.com/ .
Staff Writer Malik Simon created this highlight. If you would like your business highlighted in the Indiana Minority Business Magazine, contact him at 317-762-7847 or via email at maliks@indyrecorder.com.
Founded in Broad Ripple in 2018, Kicasso Sneaker Art Bar is a custom design studio where every pair is an original. The canvas is sneakers, but Hoosiers aren’t required to be artists to participate in this sneaker art experience.
Designed for participants aged 5 and up, Kicasso Sneaker Art Bar features four self-guided sneaker art classes, including Kicasso-brand shoes, BYOS (Bring Your Own Shoe): Canvas, Converse shoes, and BYOS: Leather. Each class is led by an experienced instructor to help “bring out the creative side in you,” according to the website.
Each class provides all the materials and supplies needed, including paint, brushes, aprons and shoes – except for the BYOS: Leather shoe design class, which requires participants to bring their own pair of shoes, such as Air Force 1s, as they’re easiest to customize, according to the website.
Kicasso Sneaker Art Bar also hosts a variety of public events in addition to classes, including themed sneaker art experiences at Upland Brewing. Upcoming events currently include May The Fourth Be With You, Pre-Pride Week, Let’s GO! Pokémon and Hoosier Gameday sneaker art experiences.
Guests can also book the studio for private events such as birthdays, team-building or corporate events, and girls’ nights out.
For those who want to enjoy the sneaker art experience at home, Kicasso offers a sneaker art kit with canvas and leather shoes or a supplies-only option to DIY. This can be paired with the virtual class option led by a team member over Zoom.
Kicasso Sneaker Art Bar is located at 6416 Ferguson St. For more information about upcoming events or to book a class, visit kicasoindy.com. To get in contact, email info@kicassoindy.com or call 317-245-3394.
Contact Arts & Culture Reporter Chloe McGowan at 317-762-7848. Follow her on X @chloe_mcgowanxx.If you would like your business highlighted by the Indiana Minority Business Magazine, email chloegm@indyrecorder.com.
MudiaCaters is an Indianapolis-based catering and lifestyle brand that blends nutritious eating with wellness support and personal growth resources.
(Photo/MudiaCaters)
Operating from 3039 N Post Rd, Suite 1359, MudiaCaters emphasizes a holistic approach to health, encouraging clients to nurture both “the body and the mind” through its offerings.
The company’s website highlights its mission to help individuals “unlock your healthiest self, inside and out,” promoting tools, content and community engagement that support healthy habits and resilient lifestyles. While specific menu items are not detailed online, MudiaCaters positions itself as a resource for food lovers who want nourishing meals paired with mindset and wellness guidance.
MudiaCaters operates by appointment and offers contact options by phone or email for inquiries about catering services, partnerships or wellness content. The business also invites visitors to subscribe to its newsletter and follow its social media channels for updates and resources designed to support overall well-being.
(Photo/MudiaCaters)
Founder Mudia Ogbeifun brings her background in food science and personal wellness journey to the brand, aiming to create relatable and inspiring connections around food literacy and healthy living. Community-oriented programming and future collaborations are part of MudiaCaters’ goals as it expands its reach and impact in Indianapolis and beyond.
Contact Health & Environmental Reporter Hanna Rauworth at 317-762-7854 or follow her on Instagram at @hanna.rauworth.If you would like your business highlighted by the Indiana Minority Business Magazine, please email newsroom@indyrecorder.com.
Medi Pedi Indy is a salon that specializes in advanced, waterless e-file pedicures for clients looking for medical footcare. The salon provides eco-friendly and non-toxic solutions and services to customers.
“Our mission is to provide advanced footcare in a therapeutic, aesthetic and hygienic environment,” as stated on Medi Pedi Indy’s website. “We strive to provide nurturing and individualized care while educating each guest on the health and wellness of their feet.”
Monica Bradley, founder and CEO of Medi Pedi Indy, is a licensed manicurist with 26 years of experience and has always had a passion for pedicures. Bradley has received training from the MediNail Learning Academy, which was founded by Dr. Robert Spalding, DPM.
Bradley also offers her expertise in teaching and helping other aspiring nail professionals. She offers online group masterclasses, private hands-on, and virtual training as well as coaching, mentoring and consulting services.
The salon also offers services such as a Medi Pedi, a noninvasive treatment that focuses on the hygienic and aesthetic care of the toenails and soles of the feet. The waterless e-file pedicure aims to reduce exposure to waterborne bacteria and cross-contamination associated with foot baths.
Medi Pedi Indy is at 7230 Arbuckle Commons Suite 228, inside the Elevate office building. For more information visit https://www.medipediindy.com/ .
Staff Writer Malik Simon created this highlight. If you would like your business highlighted in the Indiana Minority Business Magazine, contact him at 317-762-7847 or via email at maliks@indyrecorder.com.
Dennis Bland, president of the Center for Leadership Development (CLD), sat down with the Recorder to discuss the mission and legacy of the organization. CLD is a nonprofit that has served the Indianapolis community for nearly five decades by providing minority youth with an opportunity to cultivate leadership skills, character and professional growth.
CLD, whose mission is to be a talent pipeline, is also celebrating its 49th year of service. Established in 1977, CLD has exposed youth to educational and career opportunities. The CLD Principles for Success are character development, educational excellence, leadership effectiveness, community service and career achievement, according to the website. CLD uses these five principles as fundamental pillars for providing youth with the values needed for professional and personal success.
Founded by S. Henry Bundles, CLD was initially funded by Lilly Endowment. The Indiana University School of Business, now the Kelley School of Business, was also an integral part of the organization’s inception. Bundles, an IU alumnus along with community leaders such as Schuyler Otteson, then-dean of the Indiana University’s school of business and Dr. Frank Lloyd established the organization, which has since contributed to guiding generations of community leaders and professionals.
This Q&A has been edited for length and clarity.
Can you explain a little bit about yourself? And a little bit about your position in the organization?
Dennis Bland: I am a native of Indianapolis, Indiana. I grew up attending Indianapolis Public Schools. I was actually involved in this organization during my senior year in high school, which would have been five years after the organization started. After I went to college, and after college, I began volunteering at the Center for Leadership Development. I’ve had some role in the Center for Leadership Development literally since my return to serve as a volunteer. So, as they say, once they get a hold of me, it never let me go. It’s probably more accurate to say, once it got ahold of me, I never let it go. Through college, law school and the practice of law, I was becoming more heavily involved in the Center for Leadership Development until the year 2000, where I left the practice of law, came to the Center for Leadership Development full-time, and have been here since 2000 as an employee.
What do you feel like has been the most challenging part of managing the organization and completing its mission?
Bland: When you’re starting a new organization, you’re trying to find resources even as you try to plant your feet and try to establish credibility. And so, you are trying to build credibility. The challenges, I’m imagining, in the early and mid-seventies was people questioning the need for an organization with a mission of helping African American youth thrive and excel. Then there’s always the challenge of receiving the funding and resources that you need to not just operationalize an entity or a business, but to sustain that business and grown that business. It always comes with its share of challenges.
The last thought I would share in terms of a challenge is …the idea of how you stay mission focused and how you remain mission focused in the midst of changing times, changing environments, changing prioritizations in community and society and mores.
Can you find a way to sustain your business, sustain your work so that it can be viable and helpful and impactful even as years go by, as decades go by? Even as generations start to change, can you create a quality of experience that is high quality and impactful enough to let people want to do it and people can see themselves as needing to do it.
What are some of the partners the organization has been working with, and how has that helped develop that strategy of training minority youth to be professionals?
Bland: Again, to the point about the challenge of sustaining a business there would have been some businesses where they’re prominent, they’re supportive and, you wouldn’t imagine at five years later,10 years later, 20 years later, those businesses would no longer be in existence, that it wouldn’t be in existence in the community. That’s certainly been a part of our experience where you have these good relationships and partnerships and then they’re moving their headquarters or shuttering , so you just never know what the future holds, so to be able to sustain the organization even as you have funders come going in and out that’s real.
There have been companies that have just been right there like Elly Lilly comes to mind, so from this standpoint of creating internships, creating opportunities for young people to come and just be exposed to Fortune 500 businesses. The word exposure literally means to reveal art to open light. And so, companies like Eli Lilly and OneAmerica Financial have created opportunities for young people to get exposure to get internships. So, they have a chance to really meld their education experience with their life outside of education and seeing what adulting looks like in the professional workforce, because we have been able to sustain these relationships over time.
That’s been something that has also helped the stability and credibility of our organization is companies saying they would vouch for the CLD in terms of the work that we’re doing, and actually getting students ready, so that one day they can assume some of these positions of leadership and some of these professional roles.
CLD president Dennis Bland during the ribbon-cutting at the Center for Leadership Development on December 8, 2023. (Photo/Noral Parham III)
Is there anything that you would like to add about the CLD or other longstanding businesses?
Bland: One thing I have learned in my work for the CLD is that our mission is cultivating African American youth to thrive to become. As I like to say there’s a lot of potential, but the people who really warrant gold stars are the people that can cultivate and move potential to credential.
I want people to know that if you have an entity, and its impact when it has some level of impactfulness and quality to it, just don’t take it for granted. Support it. Support it through student’s involvement, support it through contributions. When you have a charitable organization, basically communities vote as to whether or not you want that business to be around. If people choose to support it, it will be around. If people choose not to support it, then it will not be around.
That’s kind of like the sense of community-shared responsibility. All the more reason if you have a resource that’s giving answers and solutions that’s meeting young people where they are, make sure that organization is always supported.
Don’t wait until you lose an institution before you begin to appreciate the value of the institution.
The Mobile Notary Network is a minority-owned, Indianapolis-based business providing professional mobile notary and loan signing services across central Indiana.
The company brings convenience and reliability to clients by traveling to their preferred locations, eliminating the need for in-office visits.
Founded by Joseph Haskins, Jr. with a mission to deliver accurate, efficient and customer-focused service, the network specializes in a wide range of notarial acts. Services include general notarizations, loan document signings for the real estate and mortgage industries, power of attorney, wills, trusts and affidavits. The company also offers specialized services such as remote online notarization, providing flexibility for clients who prefer virtual options.
Each notary agent is commissioned and trained to handle sensitive documents professionally and with attention to detail. The Mobile Notary Network serves individuals, businesses, law firms, title companies and health care facilities throughout the Indianapolis metropolitan area and surrounding counties.
The business operates on a foundation of accessibility, integrity and responsiveness, ensuring clients can complete essential paperwork on their own schedule, whether at home, work or another convenient location.
Regular customers may recognize some old favorites on the new Foster’s Café and Catering’s menu.
Foster’s Café and Catering, run by award-winning Hoosier chef Brady Foster, hosted the soft launch of its new food truck at Arts for Lawrence on March 15, 2026. Formerly known as Circle City Soups Lawrence, Foster has taken the lead at the Ivy Tech restaurant location, making this business venture his own, according to the website.
Foster’s Café and Catering offers a diverse selection of food across its cafe, food truck and catering services. The cafe menu includes a variety of salads, soups, sandwiches, rice bowls and loaded fries in addition to daily menu specials and food truck location and hours, which are updated on the Foster’s Café and Catering Facebook page.
The catering menu is more expansive, ranging from breakfast, lunch and buffet menus to boxed lunches, a taco and nacho bar, seasoned rice bowls, cheese grits, sliders, hors d’oeuvres, and beverages. There’s also an executive menu option that features elevated meats, such as ribeye steak, salmon, cod, and lobster, and sides like seafood macaroni and cheese, broccolini and French green beans.
For catering clients, Foster’s also offers delivery and drop-off services in addition to set-up and staffed buffet services.
Foster’s Café and Catering is located inside Ivy Tech Community College, 9301 E. 59th St. Follow along for updates on the food truck at facebook.com/fosterscatering.
Contact Arts & Culture Reporter Chloe McGowan at 317-762-7848. Follow her on X @chloe_mcgowanxx.If you would like your business highlighted by the Indiana Minority Business Magazine, email chloegm@indyrecorder.com.
AD & B LLC is a multi-service property management and cleanup solutions company focused on helping residential and commercial clients manage real estate challenges and maintain clean, functional spaces. The business combines traditional property management support with practical site services like dumpster rental to offer flexible, cost-effective solutions for a variety of needs.
At its core, AD & B LLC provides comprehensive property management services designed to give investors and landlords peace of mind. The team handles essential day-to-day responsibilities, including addressing tenant concerns, collecting rent, coordinating property showings, and screening potential renters. By overseeing these ongoing tasks, the company allows property owners to focus on growing their portfolios or pursuing other priorities without the administrative burden that often comes with rental management.
Beyond property oversight, AD & B LLC offers reliable dumpster rental services that support both residential cleanup and commercial projects. Their rental fleet includes dumpsters suited for a range of cleanup needs — from partial residential and business cleanouts to debris removal on construction sites. With competitive pricing, prompt delivery and a focus on customer satisfaction, the dumpster rental division aims to make waste disposal straightforward and efficient for clients.
(Photo/AD & B LLC)
In addition, the company’s website features a “Listing Leaders” section that connects users with real estate resources and available properties in the Northwest Indiana region, expanding its value as a community resource.
Whether you’re a property investor seeking reliable management or planning a property cleanup project, AD & B LLC combines hands-on service with flexible offerings to meet diverse needs. Learn more at adbllcmanagement.com.
Contact Health & Environmental Reporter Hanna Rauworth at 317-762-7854 or follow her on Instagram at @hanna.rauworth.If you would like your business highlighted by the Indiana Minority Business Magazine, please email newsroom@indyrecorder.com.
The Teal Canary Art Studio has provided Hoosiers with a creative space offering events and artistic inspiration since 2013. The studio offers services such as private lessons and open or private group events.
Amy Barile is the owner and resident artist at Teal Canary Art Studio. Barile earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Indiana State University in 1997 and has been an artist for more than 30 years. The studio now serves as her gallery, where her artwork is displayed and available for purchase.
“I am blessed that I can partner my love of painting with my deep desire to be involved, reach or help people in my community,” Barile said. “The opportunities have been given to me in many forms; philanthropy, home-school teaching, fundraising and now through this creative studio, Teal Canary. Seeing each student bring their visions to life is something that I cherish each and every day.”
The studio can accommodate up to 30 artists at a time, giving guests ample room to complete their pieces.
The Teal Canary Art Studio is at 199 N Madison Avenue SH1. For more information visit https://www.tealcanary.com/ .
Staff Writer Malik Simon created this highlight. If you would like your business highlighted in the Indiana Minority Business Magazine, contact him at 317-762-7847 or via email at maliks@indyrecorder.com.
A local company is reimagining how we experience the spaces we inhabit, one distinctive scent at a time.
Screll Fresh LLC, based in downtown Indianapolis, has developed a line of room deodorizers and air fresheners designed to do more than mask odors. The company’s fragrances aim to transform environments — whether in cars, homes or workplaces — into spaces people genuinely enjoy occupying.
“From the first whiff a mental debate ensues as to whether one has been missing out on the various ways aromas can enhance an environment,” the company’s website states.
Screll Fresh offers a diverse lineup of scents, each priced at $12.50 per unit. The collection includes fragrances designed to evoke specific feelings and atmospheres:
Whiff Appeal delivers tropical island vibes with citrusy notes reminiscent of exotic beaches. Toasted Coconut offers a dominating citrusy freshness. Blue Diamond provides an exquisitely plush, exotic fragrance.
For those seeking something more playful, Blue Razz Bubble Blast brings a sweet, candy-laden, juicy fragrance that evokes nostalgic candy shop memories. Sugar Candy Fusion offers a tantalizing cotton candy rush that stimulates childhood treat cravings.
Other offerings include Miami Beach Water, described as a “vacay” fragrance that magically whisks users away into a sexy vibe, and Melanated Cucumber, a fresh scent with succulent, tantalizing stimulation.
Screll Fresh focuses on customer experience. The company emphasizes professional customer service, with staff prepared to assist via email or phone should any issues arise.
The company also offers a 100% satisfaction guarantee, encouraging customers to reach out with questions about products or shipping.
Based at 49 West Maryland Street in downtown Indianapolis, Screll Fresh LLC serves customers through its website and welcomes phone inquiries. Business hours are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with weekend orders accepted online or by phone.
For bulk orders, the company requests that customers allow three to five business days for processing.
Screll Fresh invites customers to join their mailing list for 10% off their first purchase, offering an entry point into what the company describes as “the ultimate odor eliminator” experience.
Screll Fresh LLC is a minority-owned business serving Indianapolis and beyond. For more information or to explore their full fragrance collection, visit screllfresh.com.
