039: Building “leaders and feeders” for Miami’s future
Description
Does Miami really have a talent gap?
I sat down with LAB Miami co-founder and #miamitech original Wifi Fernandez to hear the story of how he and his co-founders started Miami’s first co-working space with just a few hundred dollars and some wood furniture.
We chat about how he’s shifted his focus to helping anchor institutions like FIU build Miami’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and of course, his favorite Miami startups.
He also shares his thoughts on something we hear about all the time - the alleged talent gap in Miami.
Wifi has been a leader in our community since the early days of Miami’s tech scene and we can all benefit from his perspective AND support the newest project he’s involved in - Startup FIU.
2:00 - Wifi’s story of starting The LAB Miami with his two co-founders
5:15 - Making through the hard days of The LAB
8:00 - Success stories from The LAB
10:00 - Thoughts on bringing on investors vs bootstrapping
13:00 - How StartupFIU came to be
14:40 - What they’re looking for in their cohort entrepreneurs
16:15 - Mini case study: how the Hialeah Tamale vendor could benefit from StartupFIU
19:00 - Tim & Wifi thoughts on Miami’s overall strategy for entrepreneurial growth
26:00 - Closing questions: best advice, books to recommend, what he’d do with $500 to start a business and new to Miami
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