Kids in Harmony, Des Moines

“I am passionate about improving peoples’ lives through music.” Shelly Peterson knew she wanted to be a music therapist after graduating University of Northern Iowa with a degree in music. To make her dreams a reality, Shelly obtained a master’s degree in music therapy, became board certified, and started her own business from the ground up. Shelly began her private practice, Kids in Harmony, with a goal to serve children of all ability levels, including special needs, and their families.

“We strive to make our treatment unique to the individual, their needs and their family situation. Ultimately we want our clients to improve their lives through music and we want them to utilize what they’ve learned in their everyday lives.”

Shelly attended consultations at America’s SBDC Iowa in Des Moines to create a business plan and learn how to interpret and understand financial aspects. She credits her understanding of business to the SBDC; “There are so many things we learn in school for music therapy. It is difficult to provide the foundation in business at the same time. I have been in business for almost 10 years now because of the education I received regarding running a business from the SBDC” She has continued to see consistent increases in revenue each year and has hired two contractors due to the increased growth of her business in Des Moines and Fort Collins, CO.

“The SBDC has been there to support, encourage and educate me about all things small business and all along my business owner journey. Whenever I have reached out, someone has responded to me quickly and supported me to the best of their ability whether I was just starting out, maintaining or growing my business.”

Shelly looks forward to new opportunities in 2017 in expanding her early childhood music classes to communities as well as to more daycare settings in order to “reach and impact more people’s lives.”

For more information about Kids in Harmony, please visit their website at http://www.kidsinharmonymusic.com/  or Facebook page at  https://www.facebook.com/Kids-in-Harmony-LLC-133289876745145/.