The entrepreneurial journey of Sebastian Rogers, known by most as Dusty, began during his youth on baseball fields in Chicago. In recent years, his adventures in business have picked up speed in Dubuque, like a well thrown fastball rocketing toward home plate.
Rogers first made an impact in the city as a coach and owner of a baseball and softball academy. He taught the game while also working full time at John Deere. Then, in 2022, the former Cincinnati Reds draft pick purchased the Dog House Lounge.
“I’d been coming here for 25 years,” Rogers said. “I wasn’t really looking to own a bar.”
Rogers was asked by Sheri Leytem, widow of the late Bob Leytem — the bar’s founder — to take over.
“It was a seamless transition,” he said.
The deal came with several other commercial spaces inside the same building. There were also some residential properties on the site. Rogers formed a real estate company to handle the rentals. Then, he partnered with his four children to open a new coffee shop called the Daily Grind that opened just last month.
“We all decided to do something together,” Rogers said.
The space had been occupied by a donut shop so the family was able to use some of the existing equipment to create the breakfast hub. Rogers’ ability to adapt and take risks was honed during his childhood growing up in a tougher section of Chicago.
“If I had to do it all over again, I would have focused on school more, but I got the best education of all — street smarts,” he said.
From there, he followed his dream to play professional ball. He played in minor league teams for about five years. While at a Reds affiliated team in Cedar Rapids, he got to know the area and decided to settle in Iowa after leaving the game.
In the off seasons, Rogers delivered pizza for Domino’s. He befriended Eric Lockhart, who owns pizza shops in Dubuque and other cities. Rogers was preparing to open his own Domino’s franchise when he got an offer to work at John Deere.
Once there, he formed a bond with Ernest Jackson, an African-American professional who is well known in the Black community for his work as a mentor. Both men helped Rogers on his path to business success.
“I really picked their brains and still do,” Rogers said.
Rogers is just one of many Black business owners who are contributing to Dubuque’s vibrant entrepreneurial landscape.
At age 28, Mike Williams, owner of Elevated Images DBQ, is carving out a niche in the emerging industry of commercial drone photography and videography.
“The drone has always been an extension of myself,” said Williams, a Dubuque native. “The elevated perspective enhances and adds an element to the story. It’s a novel way to capture something that may have been around 100 years but you’ll see it in a different way.”
Williams, now a Federal Aviation Administration certified drone pilot, got his first remote control helicopter at age 10. He also had an early love for taking pictures. By middle school, he was posting videos on YouTube the first year it debuted.
By the time drones outfitted with cameras became available, Williams jumped right in.
“It merged both interests,” he recalled.
Elevated Images has a gallery at 129 Main St. that sells his images, many of them featuring local landmarks placed on diverse media like puzzles and coasters.
Williams has worked around the world, though most of his clients live in the tri-state area. He offers a Part 107 drone piloting course — which is required by federal authorities for commercial drone operators.
Williams captures images of family events, jet skiers on the river and can even fly inside homes or other buildings, which can be useful for real estate sales listings.
“Professionally, we just unveiled an FPV (first person view) drone,” he said. “It’s very small and very agile. It allows us to go places where standard drones can’t.”
Williams also works as an intern for the city government’s Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs and for John Deere. He hopes his business prospects keep rising.
“I would like to make this a full time job,” he said.
Angela and Alex Lee took the plunge into business ownership together. The husband and wife duo were used to taking risks as a unit before that — having met online, dated long distance and then moved to a new city. They took over The Spot Nutrition about three years ago from previous owner Brittaney Tyson.
“At the time, I was a stay-at-home mom,” Angela said. “We weren’t looking to start a business then. It was more presented to us. (Others) saw we had that passion and that drive.”
The Lees, both Chicago natives, had experience working in different fields before buying the business. Angela had been in education and Alex in human resources. He had also owned and operated his own moving company.
The Spot focuses on helping people improve health and provides a gathering space. The couple serves a line of Herbalife drinks and other products. Some of the drinks help with workout recovery, energy, immunity or maintaining a healthy weight.
“We are health and wellness coaches as well,” Angela said. “We just wanted to make a safe space for people and help them make life style changes.”
Having a true family business where they work hard together all day has many pluses and some difficulties, according to the Lees.
“The challenging part is balancing home life and the business,” Angela said. “You’re always pretty much on-call as a business owner.”
“With relationships you have to like and love your partner,” Alex added. “Before we were married, we did long distance (dating) so we didn’t have a lot of time together. We’re best friends and we value our time together now.”
The Spot recently partnered with Maria Ruiz, a personal trainer, to offer training inside their facility. Also, new fitness equipment has been installed, and a mural and other art from local artists is featured inside. The Lees have tried to make the Spot a welcoming place. It was the personal connection with people that attracted them to Dubuque.
“I think coming from a larger town to a smaller town we were able to meet more people,” Alex said. “The biggest difference between being in a big city and here is the community. It opens up a lot more doors.”
Rogers echoed the Lee’s sentiments about the importance of community for business owners. He has made an effort to give back to the community through his coaching and speaking at schools. As an African-American businessman, he encourages young people to swing for the fences.
“Don’t play the race card,” he said. “You have to have a positive attitude and not let people tell you what you can and can’t do. You’ve got to believe in yourself.”