LoAdebar named Emerging Business of the Year by Urban League of Greater Chattanooga

Norma Maloney has been making energy bars for two decades, but Tuesday marked the first time her company -- created at the behest of the divine spirit -- won an award.

Maloney didn't officially launch LoAdebar until 2011, five years after the Lord gave her the name for her enterprise.

Norma Maloney

"God spoke to me," Maloney, 64, said shortly before the Urban League of Greater Chattanooga awarded her with the Emerging Business of the Year award. "It's a call; it's not a job."

Maloney and one employee keep LoAdebar going in Ooltewah. The company makes organic energy bars from hand with 15 ingredients, such as brown rice syrup and seeds from pumpkin to chia. They are in more than a dozen shops in the area, including Whole Foods.

The Urban League also named Skye Strategies the Woman-Owned Business of the Year and Uncle Larry's Restaurant the Minority Business of the Year during the Third Annual Entrepreneur Power Luncheon at the Chattanooga Convention Center.

Maloney, a born-again Christian, started her enterprise by making food bars for her cyclist husband. Her recipe evolved over the years, and in 2006 she bought the "dummy books," as she calls the Complete Idiot's series she turned to for starting her company. She also sought guidance from local business organizations.

She knows the exact date the Lord talked to her: Sept. 19, 2006. "It was an audible voice inside me," Maloney said.

Her company is now breaking even with under $100,000 in revenue, she said.

During Monday's Urban League luncheon, Kevin Harrington of infomercial and "Shark Tank" fame stressed the importance of mentorship, which he said is good for entrepreneurship.

"Part of being an entrepreneur is helping entrepreneurs," he said.

That's something Harrington, 58, has been doing his whole life. He has reportedly helped launch 500 products resulting in more than $4 billion of sales.

Leverage something unique to you -- and it need not be revolutionary -- to build business, and make it into a product, he said. He calls it "unpacking your IP," short for "unpacking your intellectual property."

"When you sleep at night, you're still making money," Harrington said.

For example, fitness icon Jack LaLanne drank fresh carrot juice regularly to stay healthy, which led to his namesake juicer. Also, he said, don't limit with whom you enter partnerships.

"Who woke up with the resources you need?" Harrington said. "Don't be afraid to go to a competitor to form a venture."

Contact staff writer Mitra Malek at mmalek@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6406. Follow her on Twitter @MitraMalek.