Skip to Main Content
Doing More Today
  • News
  • Community
    • Associates in Action
    • Community Engagement
    • Small Business
    • Economic Development
  • Insights & Innovation
    • Economic Commentary
    • Insights
    • Innovation
  • Financial Wellness
    • Financial Wellness
    • Fraud Prevention
  • See the Good
    • Culture
    • Good Company
    • Good Towns
    • Good Pets
    • Ecards
    • Recipes
    • Riding Forward
Subscribe Now
Regions Bank

Regions Bank: Doing More Today: Good stories. Better insights. More possibilities.

Share
Share on Facebook
Share on X
Share on LinkedIn
Share via Email
Subscribe
Category: Good Company

Good Company: Buena Vista Consulting Sowing Seeds so Others Grow

Motivated by her own struggles, Buena Vista’s CEO provides a blueprint for success for others.

By Nicole Wyatt | May 19, 2021

The struggle to succeed in business is known by entrepreneurs.

Edilene “Etti” Johansson saw that firsthand growing up in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Her father, who grew up on a farm, moved to the city to find his independence as a business owner.

“He worked very hard, and to buy his first truck and become a truck driver was a big deal. It was a dream,” Johansson explained.

Watching his drive to succeed, his engagement with people and his connection to the community, would eventually motivate Johansson in her professional life.

Johansson is the CEO of Buena Vista Consulting, a one-stop shop for customers on the outskirts of Atlanta to get help with their accounting, payroll and insurance needs for their own small businesses, plus, they can get human resource training and even lending assistance.

“Always the goal is to get people out of the struggle. They try to get their business ahead, make a difference. They try to make a better living for their families,” said Johansson. “They know so much about their business, but they do not know how things work in the financial world, so that’s what got my interest.”

Johansson understands the struggle. She moved from Sao Paulo to Atlanta when she was 22 years old. She didn’t know how to speak any English, so while she waited hours for a ride after she finished work for the day as a receptionist at an accounting firm, she would study the language.

I have seen her grow, but she also makes sure that the people she impacts grow.
Dwayne Coleman, Regions Bank branch manager in Suwanee, Georgia

Eventually, Johansson took an interest in accounting, so she added that to her studies. Years later, that work would pay off when the brothers that owned the accounting company she worked for started dividing.

“One of them said, ‘I would like you to take care of accounting and payroll, so choose what furniture, whatever equipment you need, and we will take it to your house, and you can work from home,’” Johansson shared. “So that’s how I started.”

“I have seen her grow, but she also makes sure that the people she impacts grow,” said Dwayne Coleman, Regions Bank branch manager in Suwanee, Georgia. “We work together. With her business model, what’s number one is helping her community be better, and that’s number one for Regions – serving the communities that we bank but bringing value to those communities.”

“I think Dwayne pretty much almost mirrors the way I do my business. He thinks how he can assist you, how he can be a solution for your business,” Johansson said. “Maybe it’s not an immediate business with the bank. Maybe don’t have something that you can close the deal right there, but he’s always looking for your wellbeing in the long term. That has made a huge difference in my business, and I have referred him some customers, because the impact that he has, it is something remarkable.”

Johansson’s growth over the years includes expanding the focus of her business to more than accounting and payroll. Recognizing while it is an important service offering, she wanted to help others grow their businesses as she grew her own.

“I started doing training and studying how to help with human resources, how to hire people, how to motivate people, how to be in compliance with the Labor Department and all the other issues,” Johansson said. “Many times, businesses don’t have the tools or the time, because they are busy with their customers, their market and their product. That’s where I feel very proud, because I study, and I take my time to learn what’s necessary for their businesses to succeed.”

Seeing the businesses in her community flourish with the help of her own is an honor she doesn’t take for granted.

“A lot of people, they dream of having their business, and they have that entrepreneurial spirit and they want to get ahead, but they don’t know all these other parts that are so important, so I feel compelled in doing more and getting more involved,” Johansson said. “I’m proud to be here in America, and I’m very grateful every day.”

Good Company - Buena Vista Consulting

Share
Share on Facebook
Share on X
Share on LinkedIn
Share via Email
Subscribe

Trending Articles

  • 1.

    2025 Regions Tradition Closes with Come-From-Behind Win

  • 2.

    Regions Recognized for Excellence in Mortgage Servicing

  • 3.

    Angela Santone Joins Regions Bank as Chief People Officer

  • 4.

    Regions Bank Named 2025 Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award Winner

  • 5.

    Service and Support: Regions Bank Launches Disaster-Recovery Options for Consumers, Businesses

Related Articles

Regions Tradition attendee painting on mural.
Category: Culture

A Paint-by-Numbers Benefit from the Regions Tradition

Monica Gross Lopez, Digital Experience Researcher, Hinton Taylor, Strategic Planning...
Category: Community Engagement

Putting Job Skills to Work for the Greater Good

Chuck Odom and Rex Bittle inside a Regions branch.
Category: Small Business

Small Town, Big Service

Steve Sticker at Regions Tradition 2025.
Category: Culture

Aussie Richard Green is Halfway Home to a Regions Tradition Win

Atarsha McMillian, owner and founder of Camden & Blue, with...
Category: Small Business

Small Business Gifts Others

Steve Alker taking a swing with a crowd of onlookers...
Category: Culture

Bringing the Tradition to Life: Diebold Nixdorf

  • 2025 Regions Tradition Closes with Come-From-Behind Win
  • The Ice Man Cometh
  • Soaring to New Heights at Bailey’s Premier Services
  • No Ordinary Story
Regions.com | About Regions | Investor Relations | Privacy & Security | Website Terms of Use | Contact Regions | Careers at Regions
© 2025 Regions Bank Member FDIC |
All Rights Reserved | Member FDIC | Equal Housing Lender | Online Privacy