Utah Business proudly presents this year’s cohort of our Leaders of the Year award. These 12 honorees represent accomplishments of Utah’s business community in 2024 and were selected by the Utah Business editorial team.
Brad Bonham
Entrepreneur-in-Residence | State of Utah
Brad Bonham is convinced the world’s next biggest idea resides in Utah. His mission? To make sure the entrepreneur this idea belongs to has the tools they need to bring it to life.
“It’s not just the biggest idea,” Bonham says, “it’s the biggest and smallest idea. How can I give people the opportunity to break out for themselves and establish themselves as an entrepreneur to achieve their version of success?”
It’s a question Bonham has been contemplating since becoming the first-ever entrepreneur-in-residence for the state of Utah, an appointment made by Governor Cox in 2023. In the volunteer role, Bonham advises on entrepreneurship education, culture and resources within the state — as well as makes recommendations on how to enhance the state’s entrepreneurship ecosystem.
In April of 2024, Bonham unveiled the Startup State Initiative, a program designed to help startups, small businesses and entrepreneurs at every stage of business by bringing together the state’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and simplifying government processes. A key part of the initiative is startup.utah.gov.
“Startup.utah.gov was originally intended to consolidate resources. What it morphed into is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs to utilize,” Bonham says. “I’ve really tried to make it a weapon in the fight for entrepreneurial success.”
Bonham grew up watching his father start and run businesses, learning lessons along the way. In college, Bonham ran side hustles, buying and flipping car wheels and watches. The gigs gave him firsthand experience while allowing him to exercise his curiosity in analyzing trends.
“I was developing my own pattern of which products I wanted to go after … and that’s when we found furniture,” Bonham says. “It just so happened, especially in that period of time, furniture had extremely high margins.”
This discovery ignited the start of Walker Edison, a ready-to-assemble furniture business that became one of Utah’s fastest-growing companies.
“Walker Edison was the business highlight of my life,” Bonham says.
The success of Walker Edison has taken Bonham around the world, liaising with business leaders and consumers alike. But it’s Utah entrepreneurs that have his heart.
“Every time I go to a college or university here, the entrepreneurs are some of the brightest, smartest, hardworking and fearless individuals I have ever encountered across the world — and they’re right here in Utah,” Bonham says.
As Utah’s entrepreneur-in-residence, Bonham has spent nearly two years traveling the state to convene with entrepreneurs from all walks of life — and business sizes — to identify how Utah’s government can enhance the entrepreneur experience.
Utah is the highest-ranked state for starting a business, and Bonham can’t wait to see what its entrepreneurs do next.
“There are men and women here who have unbelievable ideas who don’t know where to go to start that idea,” Bonham says. “My impact, hopefully, as an entrepreneur-in-residence, is taking away some of those obstacles and enabling them to be more successful than they otherwise would’ve been.”