This is one of a series of stories about Times of E’s reporting trip to Miami, Fla. Read others here: A Request Went Out to the Tech Community for a Principal for the Day. Only One Person Responded, here: A Historically Black Community Helped a Small Business Survive, and here: Miami is Mostly Talk When […]
Skyler Rossi
Posted inTrailblazers
A Washington, D.C. Florist Steps into her Father’s Shoes, With the Help of Georgetown Students
Alexes Haggins grew up working shifts at her father’s floral shop in Washington D.C. Bernard Haggins taught his daughter how to piece together blossoms, stems, buds and leaves to create stunning arrangements. For more than 40 years, Flowers by Alexes – Haggins eventually named the operation after his daughter – supplied churches and funeral homes, […]
Posted inTrailblazers
Entrepreneurs are Tapping into Employees on a Booming Island Nation With 11% Growth
When e-commerce boomed during the pandemic, Jose Herrera and his two partners were at the ready with a call-center business. They had started Hire Horatio in 2018 after meeting at Columbia University, and quickly pivoted to focus on businesses growing or turning to online operations. To keep costs down and to spur economic development in […]
Posted inTrailblazers
A Lawsuit from Mattel Almost Killed a Board Game Dream, but the Founder Rebounded
Sherry Martin’s first go at the board game business went better than he could have imagined. A year after launching his first game, a word game called “Sentence Says,” he was already completing orders, selling on the shelves of Toys R Us and featured in an Arby’s Kids Meal. But then came a huge setback: […]
Posted inTrailblazers
Advice for Women Raising Money for their Social Ventures
Times of E reporter Skyler Rossi interviewed Marissa Bronfman on Jan. 19 about a new impact fund she’s involved in called Kizmet Impact. The Toronto and Vancouver-based fund will invest in impact-driven entrepreneurs and plans to go public on the NEO Exchange later this year. Kizmet is tracking to be a $50 million fund. Bronfman […]
Posted inInnovation
A Historically Black Community in Miami Helped A New Small Business Survive the Pandemic
Jamila West always wanted to open a bread and breakfast. So when a developer told her about a perfect location, she and her husband, Akino West, jumped at the chance. That was in 2018. The Copper Door B&B operated in Miami’s historically black neighborhood, Overtown, until 2020. When the pandemic hit, the two opened their […]
Posted inPersonal Finance
Problem Solved: Thinking about Shifting to a 4-Day Workweek? Here’s How One Company Did it.
A year into the pandemic, the burnout was taking a toll on Wonderlic’s employees. Staff at the company, which develops pre-hiring assessments and tools for businesses, was no longer motivated, according to its CEO, Becca Callahan. Employees who are parents and caregivers especially struggled – whether it was because kids were home doing school remotely […]
Posted inVC Spotlight
Kizmet Impact Aims To Be One of the First Publicly Traded VC Funds
Name: Kizmet Impact Capital Location: Toronto and Vancouver, Canada Web site: https://www.kizmetimpact.com Size: Raising its first $50M fund What it is: Kizmet wants to be one of the first publicly traded impact investment funds with holdings in startup companies. It will invest in businesses that are focused on social or environmental impact, and in turn […]
Posted inTrailblazers
Problem Solved: How This Massachusetts Dress Store Owner Adapted Her Mindset to Move Online
A dress shop owner adapted her mindset to move to e-commerce
Posted inPersonal Finance
The Surprising Way Uber and Lyft Spur Entrepreneurs
Ride-sharing apps and other easily-accessible gig economy platforms could boost entrepreneurship, according to new research from entrepreneurship researchers at Rice University, Washington University and Boston College. The researchers studied the effects on entrepreneurship by looking at ride-hailing platforms in major U.S. cities and new business registrations available in the Startup Cartography Project. They also studied […]
