{"id":87887,"date":"2017-12-13T16:17:00","date_gmt":"2017-12-13T21:17:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/?p=87887"},"modified":"2018-01-18T17:13:08","modified_gmt":"2018-01-18T22:13:08","slug":"umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/","title":{"rendered":"UMW, Growth4VA Spotlight Forbes-Recognized Entrepreneurs"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>One thousand, two hundred and sixty-two. Robert Davis and Abbas Haider have a vivid recollection of that figure. It\u2019s the number of bulletproof undershirts included in their first big order for Aspetto, the business started by the 2012 University of Mary Washington graduates.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<div class=\"tiled-gallery type-rectangular tiled-gallery-unresized\" data-original-width=\"1100\" data-carousel-extra='{&quot;blog_id&quot;:7,&quot;permalink&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/www.umw.edu\\\/news\\\/2017\\\/12\\\/13\\\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\\\/&quot;,&quot;likes_blog_id&quot;:230672515}' itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageGallery\" > <div class=\"gallery-row\" style=\"width: 1100px; height: 491px;\" data-original-width=\"1100\" data-original-height=\"491\" > <div class=\"gallery-group images-1\" style=\"width: 734px; height: 491px;\" data-original-width=\"734\" data-original-height=\"491\" > <div class=\"tiled-gallery-item tiled-gallery-item-large\" itemprop=\"associatedMedia\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/davis-and-haider\/\" border=\"0\" itemprop=\"url\"> <meta itemprop=\"width\" content=\"730\"> <meta itemprop=\"height\" content=\"487\"> <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" data-attachment-id=\"87889\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Davis-and-Haider.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"5760,3840\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;5.6&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;Canon EOS 5D Mark III&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1513159553&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;61&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;1250&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.0166666666667&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Davis and Haider\" data-image-description=\"&lt;p&gt;UMW alumni Robert Davis, left, and Abbas Haider own the Fredericksburg retail shop Aspetto.&lt;\/p&gt; \" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Davis-and-Haider-300x200.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Davis-and-Haider-1024x683.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Davis-and-Haider.jpg?w=730&#038;h=487&#038;ssl=1\" srcset=\"\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Davis-and-Haider.jpg 5760w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Davis-and-Haider-300x200.jpg 300w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Davis-and-Haider-768x512.jpg 768w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Davis-and-Haider-1024x683.jpg 1024w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Davis-and-Haider-680x453.jpg 680w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Davis-and-Haider-1140x760.jpg 1140w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Davis-and-Haider-600x400.jpg 600w\" width=\"730\" height=\"487\" loading=\"lazy\" data-original-width=\"730\" data-original-height=\"487\" itemprop=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/image\" title=\"Davis and Haider\" alt=\"Robert Davis, left, and Abbas Haider own the Fredericksburg retail shop Aspetto.\" style=\"width: 730px; height: 487px;\" \/> <\/a> <div class=\"tiled-gallery-caption\" itemprop=\"caption description\"> Robert Davis, left, and Abbas Haider own the Fredericksburg retail shop Aspetto. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <!-- close group --> <div class=\"gallery-group images-2\" style=\"width: 366px; height: 491px;\" data-original-width=\"366\" data-original-height=\"491\" > <div class=\"tiled-gallery-item tiled-gallery-item-large\" itemprop=\"associatedMedia\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/howell-examines-bulletproof-plate\/\" border=\"0\" itemprop=\"url\"> <meta itemprop=\"width\" content=\"362\"> <meta itemprop=\"height\" content=\"242\"> <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" data-attachment-id=\"87891\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Howell-examines-bulletproof-plate.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"5760,3840\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;5&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;Canon EOS 5D Mark III&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1513159700&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;24&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;1250&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.0166666666667&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Howell examines bulletproof plate\" data-image-description=\"&lt;p&gt;Davis, far right, describes bulletproof insert held by Howell, left, as Paino and Haider look on.&lt;\/p&gt; \" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Howell-examines-bulletproof-plate-300x200.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Howell-examines-bulletproof-plate-1024x683.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Howell-examines-bulletproof-plate.jpg?w=362&#038;h=242&#038;ssl=1\" srcset=\"\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Howell-examines-bulletproof-plate.jpg 5760w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Howell-examines-bulletproof-plate-300x200.jpg 300w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Howell-examines-bulletproof-plate-768x512.jpg 768w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Howell-examines-bulletproof-plate-1024x683.jpg 1024w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Howell-examines-bulletproof-plate-680x453.jpg 680w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Howell-examines-bulletproof-plate-1140x760.jpg 1140w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Howell-examines-bulletproof-plate-600x400.jpg 600w\" width=\"362\" height=\"242\" loading=\"lazy\" data-original-width=\"362\" data-original-height=\"242\" itemprop=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/image\" title=\"Howell examines bulletproof plate\" alt=\"Davis, far right, describes bulletproof insert held by Howell, left, as Paino and Haider look on.\" style=\"width: 362px; height: 242px;\" \/> <\/a> <div class=\"tiled-gallery-caption\" itemprop=\"caption description\"> Davis, far right, describes bulletproof insert held by Howell. <\/div> <\/div> <div class=\"tiled-gallery-item tiled-gallery-item-large\" itemprop=\"associatedMedia\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/tour-of-back-shop\/\" border=\"0\" itemprop=\"url\"> <meta itemprop=\"width\" content=\"362\"> <meta itemprop=\"height\" content=\"241\"> <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" data-attachment-id=\"87892\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/tour-of-back-shop.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"5760,3840\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;5&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;Canon EOS 5D Mark III&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1513160209&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;24&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;800&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.008&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"tour of back shop\" data-image-description=\"&lt;p&gt;Davis, middle, gives tour of Aspetto&amp;#8217;s back shop.&lt;\/p&gt; \" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/tour-of-back-shop-300x200.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/tour-of-back-shop-1024x683.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/tour-of-back-shop.jpg?w=362&#038;h=241&#038;ssl=1\" srcset=\"\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/tour-of-back-shop.jpg 5760w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/tour-of-back-shop-300x200.jpg 300w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/tour-of-back-shop-768x512.jpg 768w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/tour-of-back-shop-1024x683.jpg 1024w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/tour-of-back-shop-680x453.jpg 680w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/tour-of-back-shop-1140x760.jpg 1140w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/tour-of-back-shop-600x400.jpg 600w\" width=\"362\" height=\"241\" loading=\"lazy\" data-original-width=\"362\" data-original-height=\"241\" itemprop=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/image\" title=\"tour of back shop\" alt=\"Davis, middle, gives tour of Aspetto&#039;s back shop.\" style=\"width: 362px; height: 241px;\" \/> <\/a> <div class=\"tiled-gallery-caption\" itemprop=\"caption description\"> Davis, middle, gives tour of Aspetto&#8217;s back shop. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <!-- close group --> <\/div> <!-- close row --> <div class=\"gallery-row\" style=\"width: 1100px; height: 368px;\" data-original-width=\"1100\" data-original-height=\"368\" > <div class=\"gallery-group images-1\" style=\"width: 550px; height: 368px;\" data-original-width=\"550\" data-original-height=\"368\" > <div class=\"tiled-gallery-item tiled-gallery-item-large\" itemprop=\"associatedMedia\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/examining-bulletproof-vest-prototype\/\" border=\"0\" itemprop=\"url\"> <meta itemprop=\"width\" content=\"546\"> <meta itemprop=\"height\" content=\"364\"> <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" data-attachment-id=\"87893\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/examining-bulletproof-vest-prototype.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"5760,3840\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;3.5&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;Canon EOS 5D Mark III&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1513160640&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;24&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;800&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.0125&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"examining bulletproof vest prototype\" data-image-description=\"&lt;p&gt;Davis, lower right, and Haider, upper right, recounted obstacles they&amp;#8217;ve overcome to grow their business.&lt;\/p&gt; \" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/examining-bulletproof-vest-prototype-300x200.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/examining-bulletproof-vest-prototype-1024x683.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/examining-bulletproof-vest-prototype.jpg?w=546&#038;h=364&#038;ssl=1\" srcset=\"\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/examining-bulletproof-vest-prototype.jpg 5760w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/examining-bulletproof-vest-prototype-300x200.jpg 300w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/examining-bulletproof-vest-prototype-768x512.jpg 768w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/examining-bulletproof-vest-prototype-1024x683.jpg 1024w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/examining-bulletproof-vest-prototype-680x453.jpg 680w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/examining-bulletproof-vest-prototype-1140x760.jpg 1140w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/examining-bulletproof-vest-prototype-600x400.jpg 600w\" width=\"546\" height=\"364\" loading=\"lazy\" data-original-width=\"546\" data-original-height=\"364\" itemprop=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/image\" title=\"examining bulletproof vest prototype\" alt=\"Davis, lower right, and Haider, upper right, recounted obstacles they&#039;ve overcome to grow their business.\" style=\"width: 546px; height: 364px;\" \/> <\/a> <div class=\"tiled-gallery-caption\" itemprop=\"caption description\"> Davis, lower right, and Haider, upper right, recounted obstacles they&#8217;ve overcome to grow their business. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <!-- close group --> <div class=\"gallery-group images-1\" style=\"width: 550px; height: 368px;\" data-original-width=\"550\" data-original-height=\"368\" > <div class=\"tiled-gallery-item tiled-gallery-item-large\" itemprop=\"associatedMedia\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/cole-howell-talk-with-davis\/\" border=\"0\" itemprop=\"url\"> <meta itemprop=\"width\" content=\"546\"> <meta itemprop=\"height\" content=\"364\"> <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" data-attachment-id=\"87894\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Cole-Howell-talk-with-Davis.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"5760,3840\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;3.5&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;Canon EOS 5D Mark III&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1513162634&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;24&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;800&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.008&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Cole Howell talk with Davis\" data-image-description=\"&lt;p&gt;Howell, left and Cole, middle, talk with Davis.&lt;\/p&gt; \" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Cole-Howell-talk-with-Davis-300x200.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Cole-Howell-talk-with-Davis-1024x683.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Cole-Howell-talk-with-Davis.jpg?w=546&#038;h=364&#038;ssl=1\" srcset=\"\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Cole-Howell-talk-with-Davis.jpg 5760w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Cole-Howell-talk-with-Davis-300x200.jpg 300w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Cole-Howell-talk-with-Davis-768x512.jpg 768w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Cole-Howell-talk-with-Davis-1024x683.jpg 1024w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Cole-Howell-talk-with-Davis-680x453.jpg 680w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Cole-Howell-talk-with-Davis-1140x760.jpg 1140w, \/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/Cole-Howell-talk-with-Davis-600x400.jpg 600w\" width=\"546\" height=\"364\" loading=\"lazy\" data-original-width=\"546\" data-original-height=\"364\" itemprop=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/image\" title=\"Cole Howell talk with Davis\" alt=\"Howell, left and Cole, middle, talk with Davis.\" style=\"width: 546px; height: 364px;\" \/> <\/a> <div class=\"tiled-gallery-caption\" itemprop=\"caption description\"> Howell, left, and Cole, middle, talk with Davis. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <!-- close group --> <\/div> <!-- close row --> <\/div>\n<p>\u201cWe had to count each one of them and box them up,\u201d said Haider, whose downtown Fredericksburg retail store provides high-end anti-ballistic clothing as well as fashionable men\u2019s suits and accessories. \u201cWe had to rent a warehouse to house those shirts because we didn\u2019t have the space.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis and Haider have come a long way since they gave birth to the Aspetto business model in a University of Mary Washington marketing class. They now sell globally to military, government buyers and celebrities, and they were recently named to Forbes\u2019 prestigious \u201830 Under 30\u2019 list of the country\u2019s top young entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are so proud of you,\u201d said UMW President Troy Paino, who joined Speaker William Howell and Delegate Mark Cole for a tour of the business. Davis and Haider, who conceded they did not know each other before being paired for the marketing class project, engaged in lively banter with their guests, recounting obstacles they have overcome in growing the business, from pulling all-nighters to driving 18-wheelers. While they have plans to expand Aspetto, they said they are committed to remaining in Fredericksburg near their alma mater.<\/p>\n<p>That the partners based their business in Virginia provides a boost to Growth4Va. \u201cAbbas Haider and Robert Davis exemplify the initiative\u2019s four tenets,\u201d said Paino, about the commonwealth\u2019s bipartisan campaign for economic growth. The strategies include: making Virginia the top state for talent, ensuring the state is known for innovation and entrepreneurship, preparing students for great jobs, and making Virginia\u2019s colleges affordable and accessible.<\/p>\n<p>Launched by the Virginia Business Higher Education Council, Growth4VA promotes reform and reinvestment in Virginia\u2019s top-ranked higher education system. Supported by Virginia\u2019s business community, the University is partnering with the commonwealth\u2019s higher education institutions to help grow the state\u2019s economy, expand educational and job opportunities for all Virginians and regain Virginia\u2019s No. 1 ranking for business.<\/p>\n<p>A liberal arts institution that focuses on technology and immersive learning, UMW wholeheartedly endorses Growth4VA, said Paino.<\/p>\n<p>The University has been recognized for low student debt and value. LendEDU, an online marketplace for student loan refinancing, has rated UMW among the nation\u2019s best for low debt and for value. In a ranking of 1,161 colleges and universities, LendEDU rated UMW 35th among public colleges and 82nd among colleges overall for the lowest student loan debt per borrower.<\/p>\n<p>UMW\u2019s partnership with Growth4VA is designed to expand the impact of the university\u2019s innovative, cost-saving programs and to open new opportunities for collaboration with leaders across the commonwealth.<\/p>\n<p>Haider and Davis are the embodiment of UMW\u2019s commitment, Paino said, to \u201chelp secure Virginia\u2019s reputation as a national leader in innovation and talent.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>One thousand, two hundred and sixty-two. Robert Davis and Abbas Haider have a vivid recollection of that figure. It\u2019s the number of bulletproof undershirts included in their first big order for Aspetto, the business started by the 2012 University of Mary Washington graduates.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":65,"featured_media":87888,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"umw_cb_additional_links":[[]],"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_advisory_expires_time":"","_advisory_meta_include":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[704],"tags":[],"topics":[5144],"class_list":{"0":"post-87887","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-top-stories","8":"topic-news","9":"entry"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.9 (Yoast SEO v26.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>UMW, Growth4VA Spotlight Forbes-Recognized Entrepreneurs - News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"UMW, Growth4VA Spotlight Forbes-Recognized Entrepreneurs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"One thousand, two hundred and sixty-two. Robert Davis and Abbas Haider have a vivid recollection of that figure. It\u2019s the number of bulletproof undershirts included in their first big order for Aspetto, the business started by the 2012 University of Mary Washington graduates.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/UniversityofMaryWashington\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-12-13T21:17:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2018-01-18T22:13:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/NewRelease_Aspetto_2_crop.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1140\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"460\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Marty Morrison\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@UMaryWash\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@UMaryWash\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Marty Morrison\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Marty Morrison\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/22f4edfad5bbf9805c6ee36473a05291\"},\"headline\":\"UMW, Growth4VA Spotlight Forbes-Recognized Entrepreneurs\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-12-13T21:17:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2018-01-18T22:13:08+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/\"},\"wordCount\":505,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2017\/12\/NewRelease_Aspetto_2_crop.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Top Stories\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2017\/12\/13\/umw-growth4va-spotlight-forbes-recognized-entrepreneurs\/\",\"name\":\"UMW, Growth4VA Spotlight Forbes-Recognized Entrepreneurs - 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