By Karen-Janine Cohen – Guest Contributor Growing up in Haiti, Macdeur Alabre (FIU MBA ’21, FIU BBA ’19) – known to most as “Mac” – was pretty sure he would be a doctor. After all, law or medicine were family traditions. But then the entrepreneurial bug found him after a […]
Growth Stages
Why 99.98% of entrepreneurs benefit more from ‘Maximum Potential Strategy’ Than MVP
By Dileep Rao – Guest Contributor The current thinking in high-potential venture development, and what many business schools teach, is mainly focused on the opportunity and venture capital method. This thinking has popularized pitch competitions and led to the concept of the minimum viable product (MVP). When strategy is considered, […]
How small retailers are reaching customers in more ways than ever before
The death of the small retailer has been greatly exaggerated. A new study shows that, contrary to popular belief by some economists and analysts, there is tremendous fluidity and plenty of options when it comes to how small businesses reach customers. The extent that small retailers are using their options may […]
FIU students band together to help struggling restaurants – and learn a lot about starting and growing a small business
Restaurants already have one of the highest failure rates among industries. Add to that a pandemic crisis that has dealt a huge blow to the eateries just trying their best to keep the lights on. Three Florida International University seniors — Albertina Manosalva, Analys Rodriguez and Camila Navarro – have set […]
From $375 to billion-dollar beauty company: How Joe Martin built Boxycharm.com without venture capital
By Dileep Rao – Guest Contributor Joe Martin started his first business in 2004 with $375 when he was an international student at a community college in Florida. He built this business to more than $10 million in annual sales by 2012. He used $500,000 in profits from this business […]
How he built it: This FIU Business alumnus is growing the ‘Uber of Accounting’
By Ellen Forman Back in 2015, Richard Laviña (MAcc ‘13) was rising through the ranks at accounting giant PwC. He was offered a job at the firm’s national headquarters in New Jersey, required for all partnership candidates, which meant leaving his Miami home and family. Hitting what he called “a fork in […]
How StartUP FIU Procurement pivoted programming during pandemic and the lowdown on big plans ahead
It’s been nearly three years since Florida International University launched StartUP FIU Procurement to help minority-led small businesses grow and navigate the world of government and anchor institution contracting. Let’s check in with StartUP FIU Procurement Director Barbara Cotto and see how they are doing. The small business incubator was […]
5 tips for starting and growing an F&B business
Knowledge is power. With that in mind, GrowBiz tuned into the second of a series of panel discussions hosted by Florida SBDC at FIU and StartUP FIU Food in which small business owners and branding experts shared their advice about starting an F&B business. (You can read about the first […]
How do you step up your startup? Start here.
“Entrepreneurship — it’s not for everybody. You have to be able to weather uncertainties, and you have to fail your way to the top.” That’s according to George Ray III, a consultant for Florida SBDC at FIU, who specializes in assisting startup entrepreneurs and franchisees. Some pretty famous entrepreneurs had […]
How to move your business idea all the way to a company
On Growbiz we talk alot about growing your business, but what about if you are just starting out on your entrepreneurial journey? What if you have a great idea? The real question to be answered is, can it be a great business? First, you have to really understand and evaluate […]
