Keshia Case
Motherhood gives birth to new, creative business ideas.
At 29, Keshia Case (M.A. '04/School of the Arts) has seen the world. Now, she’s showing it to others – without ever leaving the Richmond, Va., area.
“Alex and I went to Scotland today,” Case says from her home, as 1-year-old son Alex plays at her feet. They had just returned from “Around the World in Eight Days,” a parent-child program developed by Case to teach children about different countries. “I want to teach all these cultures to my child, of all these places I’ve been to,” she says. “This is a nice way where he gets to hear the music and language, but we don’t have to get on an airplane or spend the money.”
The program also allows Case to be a full-time mom while putting her two master’s degrees to work – an M.A. in art history with an emphasis on architectural history from Virginia Commonwealth University and a master’s in human relations that she completed while living in Naples, Italy.
“I wanted to do something that I could take my child with me,” Case says.
Since Alex was a newborn, Case has conceived her own business opportunities, pairing up motherhood with moneymakers. Her first endeavor was “Then & Now: Richmond,” a book contrasting late-19th-century photographs with contemporary views of the same city sites. She followed that up with About Town Tours, walking tours of museums and historic neighborhoods, which has since grown to a mixed bag of kid-friendly cultural events. There’s even a club — About Town Moms — with member-only discounts and activities. In addition to building community, the club helps build Case’s bottom line.
“I started with a business loan of $5,000 and that’s all, and I’m trying to make it work on that,” she says.
Success hasn’t failed her so far. Club membership has grown to 85, and Case continues to add to her offerings, expanding her customer base – and Alex’s cultural experiences.
“People will always be like, ‘He’s so good,’” she says. But that’s not surprising given the places he’s been, Case adds. “He was days old when he went to his first museum.”
