How Product Business Owners Can Use Grants to Fund Their Business with Ashley Sutton, Hustle & Hope [Replay]

Sep 9, 2025

In this engaging discussion, Ashley Sutton, founder of Hustle and Hope, shares her journey from corporate marketing to entrepreneurship with her unique motivational greeting card business. She emphasizes the importance of grants in funding small businesses, providing insights on the application process and the resilience needed to succeed. Ashley also discusses how her cards empower personal growth and gratitude while revolutionizing the greeting card experience through added digital resources. Tune in for valuable tips on leveraging community support and strategic growth!

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ANECDOTE

Product That Extends The Card Experience

Ashley describes Hustle & Hope as a two-in-one greeting card company with QR-linked digital guides for each card.
The guides match the card theme, like job-search help for graduation cards.

INSIGHT

Cards Are Emotional, Not Disposable

Greeting cards are emotional, personal products despite being impulse buys.
Adding digital guides increases longevity and perceived value of a card.

ADVICE

Reapply After You Build Readiness

Apply to accelerator programs when your business has the traction and infrastructure to leverage them.
Use rejection as feedback to prepare and reapply stronger the next cycle.

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Hey, friend. I'm pulling an amazing episode from the archives with over 400 episodes here on the Proof to Product podcast.

There is a gold mine of information for you to help you grow your business, and, frankly, it can be hard to take it all in.

Today's episode is a look back at an interview I did with Paper Camp alum Ashley Sutton of Hustle and Hope on the topic of grants. A lot of grants for small businesses are due during the fall season so we thought this was a perfect time to reair this episode.

Ashley is a corporate gal turned entrepreneur. Her career began with marketing and developing the perfect shade of lipstick for Avon to creating buzzworthy toys at Mattel and crafting unforgettable marketing campaigns for leading TV shows for children such as Peppa Pig and PJ Masks. She's also creating the number one best-selling marketing campaigns for authors at Penguin Random House.

As a stationery lover and a consumer products professional, her goal was to channel her career experience into a product with purpose, and that is how she founded Hustle and Hope. The first 2 in one motivational greeting card company that includes free digital guides with every single card. A certified minority and certified woman-owned business, Hustle and Hope has retail placement at Buy Buy Baby, World Market, HomeGoods, Amazon, and over 45 other shops across the US. Today, Ashley shares Hustle and Hope's origin story.

She talks about her experience participating in the Target Accelerator program, and we talk about how she's been utilizing grants for her business, including how she got started applying for grants, what she looks for, and how these grants have benefited her business. She also shares resources in case you want to get started applying for grants for your business.

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