Hello, Friends and Colleagues-

Historically,  the events/catering industry has been a very person-to-person business from the very first customer phone call to the catering van driving away after an event. When COVID-19 began sweeping through the United States, just about every business was forced to stop any in-person encounters, unless it was deemed essential for the community.  The events/catering industry came to a grinding halt and even future bookings were eventually forced to cancel. With no revenue coming in for the foreseeable future, Riccardo Mazzeo, CEO of Three Tomatoes Catering, had to strip the company budget and surmise how long it could withstand the shutdown.

Much like the narrative in mythology of the phoenix rising from its own ashes, Nando Mondragon has transformed himself and the circumstances of his past to forge a new path forward. As a youth, he was on a course to inevitable destruction. Prison time was the catalyst for reshaping his future. Fast forward to today, he is a seasoned entrepreneur, artist, and avid community activist. He is taking the tattoo industry to the next level by working to change stereotypes, streamline business operations for tattoo artists, and create a first-ever accredited tattoo academy!  Listen as Nando chronicles some of the significant events and soul searching that led him to who he is today and the causes he is working for.

Do you ever come across a business and think, “Well duh! It’s a great concept, why didn’t anyone grasp on to this idea a decade ago?” In this case, I am talking about REACTIV.  The company was founded in 2019 by Ryan Boykin and Jason Shepherd, two clever entrepreneurs in the real estate industry.  They thought of a simple way for individuals or startup companies to rent space on a short term basis (as short as a couple of hours), as well as to help landlords to monetize areas of their real estate assets that (for multiple reasons) may not have been getting the attention they deserved.  Listen, as Ryan tells us more about REACTIV and how simple and invaluable it is for both tenants and building owners.

In this episode, we hear from Paige Goss, who is breaking the mold in the IT industry! 

Bob Clark, the host of the OnFire B2B Podcast interviews Matt Brower, Founder and Managing Broker at Column Commercial Partners. In this mini episode Bob asks Matt how he quantifies and drives results at Column Commercial Partners (and all other business endeavors).  We hope you find this helpful and we thank Bob for the opportunity! 

Marketing and advertising is big business.  Behind the business is an entire academic field of study focused on consumer behavior! This is where Dr. Peter McGraw thrives.  He is a Behavioral Economist and Professor of Marketing and Psychology at the University of Colorado Boulder.

Ozobot just might have one of the coolest (and cutest) products for K-12 learning anywhere! It’s an edtech company, meaning most of their customers are primary and secondary schools. Ozobot collaborated with educators and school systems around the world to design a tech tool and lessons that are integrated into core curriculum for math, reading, science, and more. Plus, with two ways to code–on screens with blocks and screen-free with colors–the company’s robots put the A in STEAM and give children the tools to create with technology. Nader Hamda, Founder and CEO of Ozobot, explains how his own children inspired the initial concept for Ozobot.