Let’s face it: startups as individual companies can be low-impact businesses that don’t create a lot of energy in town.
Naturally, there are some exceptions to this (see Fattmerchant).
However, for the most part, a startup community has more impact when the businesses are united and pushing toward the same goal.
One thing that brings public officials to the scene? JOBS, JOBS, JOBS.
If company fundraises aren’t publicized, why would anyone think it’s a good idea to build a business here?
More than any other sector, perhaps, fundraising relies on storytelling.
When a company wins $5,000 at a pitch competition or raises $20 million from a VC firm, it’s time to celebrate.
The human story has entrepreneurship embedded within it.
You have the thrill of victory (hello, funding round). It’s the agony of defeat (hello, pivot – or worse). You have everything in between.
One guiding principle behind stories I have told about entrepreneurs is that entrepreneurship is hard.
You can be on top of the world one week and then have to shut down the next.
Traditional business education programs can prepare students for the grind of entrepreneurship.
Structured instruction combined with real-world experience gives students a strong base from which to launch.
But budding entrepreneurs can also learn from the people who go through the lessons.
Interstate 4 through downtown Orlando has been a pain to drive as construction pushes forward.
But at least the light at the end of the tunnel is promising.
Once complete, the highway that bisects Orlando will be one of the most technologically advanced roads in the country.
Central Florida has become a top destination for the fast-growing esports industry.
The area added Full Sail University’s esports-specific venue last year to hundreds of hotel ballrooms.
Add in the Amway Center and you have a variety of venues for event hosts to consider.
Every year, Orlando hosts one of the largest military tech trade shows in the world.
The weeklong celebration often sees the debut of innovations that eventually make their way to the warfighter.
I/ITSEC’s decision long ago to come to Orlando helped form a robust defense industry cluster.
Each of the military branches’ tech research teams have a presence here.
Some of the largest companies, including Lockheed Martin and Cubic Corporation, have a workforce here.
Those companies’ presence here also has created an ecosystem that includes hundreds of contractors, as well.
They wanted to be close to the action to bid on high-value contracts.
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Consumer technology has grown in Central Florida.
As more businesses emerge in business sectors like hospitality and finance, it has created some positive momentum here.
Fattmerchant, which builds financial tech for banks, has attracted attention from several investors.
Meanwhile, its CEO Suneera Madhani, meanwhile, has emerged as one of the city’s more-respected entrepreneurs.
UniKey, meanwhile, has created technology for the city’s robust hotel industry.
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Central Florida has the ingredients to establish itself as a virtual and augmented reality hub.
That’s because several university programs, a strong gaming community and manufacturing training sites could push toward that.
As more industries come around to the technology as an effective training tool, Orlando’s potential will grow.
That’s good news for Orlando.
Orlando’s indie video game scene has become one of the most-cohesive communities in the city.
Part of the reason is Indienomicon, which has organized game builders here for more than five years.
The organization has helped organize a series of events that have built the community’s camaraderie.