In this episode of Main Street Hustle we visit the Florida Keys to meet Captain Dale aboard “Sirius” his 36 foot Sailing Catamaran. Capt. Dale started working a second job as a Captain for a local tour company to help pay for his daughter's college education. But when an opening in the market appeared, Captain Dale was able to turn his side hustle into a thriving small business.
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In this episode of Main Street Hustle we meet Jonathan Spinner whose company Spinn Construction specializes in luxury high-end renovations and design builds in New York City. Jonathan collaborates with leading experts and craftsmen across architecture and design disciplines to create beautiful spaces that stand the test of time.
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Vinum Executive Chef and restaurateur Massimo Felici’s passion for food started as a young boy growing up in New York. He started his career in the Restaurant business in Manhattan. Through the following years he kept on moving up the ladder over many other fine Italian establishments in New York such as, Cipriani's, Giambelli, Da Umberto, Meza Luna (in California), Canastels, and more.
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Don Saladino is one of the most in-demand and respected trainers in the business. For over 20 years, he has coached top actors, athletes, musicians, and business executives. He is also responsible for some of Hollywood’s most coveted physiques. Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Liev Schreiber, Sebastian Stan, Morgan Hoffman, Hugh Jackman, and David Harbour, to name a few.
LinksThere are plenty of entrepreneurs and business owners who skydive, swim with sharks, or race cars to let off steam in their downtime. And that’s great. But what if you don’t want to save the adrenaline rush for your days off?
What if you want to build a business around the very thing that gets your blood pumping? Should You Take the Plunge? Some people will tell you it’s impossible. Most people will tell you not to quit your day job. But here are two successful thrill-based business owners who will tell you a different story: My husband was only 28 years old when he was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor.
A few weeks earlier I had quit my job to help him focus on growing our rental business. But suddenly, instead of helping him manage properties, I was helping him get through brain surgeries and rounds of radiation and chemo—at a hospital nearly 100 miles away from where we lived. Our world was completely upended. Thankfully, he survived the Hell that is brain cancer. And even though we were absentee owners for nearly two years, our business survived, too. But what if this happened to you? Could your business survive without you there to oversee its day-to-day operation? So, you have a business idea. But will it be a smashing success, or a total flop?
There’s no magic ball to tell you with 100% certainty you have a winner. But there are proven ways to test your business idea before you sink your life-savings into a product or service that no one will buy. Testing your idea will cost a little up front—in both time and money—but it’s well worth it. Because it will hurt much less to find out now that your product isn’t viable, rather than later. Unless, of course, you’re Jeff Bezos and you don’t mind losing $170 Million on a failed idea. Otherwise, here’s how to validate your business idea before you go all in. Most people think that you need to be well-educated, well-funded, and have a one-of-a-kind idea to start a successful business. But, that’s not true. You can be a successful entrepreneur without any of those things.
Here’s proof:
Imagine yourself in this situation:
Your company is scheduled to work a special event on a cruise ship departing the next day from Florida. You and your team are in California. Everything is going as planned. Everyone made it to the airport on time, nobody is sick, you even have time to gather at the bar for a pre-event discussion. Then the information display board for your flight begins flashing “Delayed.” You rush to the gate to find out what has happened. You’ve a bad feeling in your gut. Fast forward to the next morning and your weary, red-eyed team is ready to board the ship. There’s a problem, though: your luggage didn’t make it to Florida with you. Employee advocacy is the new influencer marketing. Or, so says a new study from Sprout Social.
And, as cliché as it sounds, that statement is true. Today, businesses of all sizes—from retail giants like Macy’s, to smaller service-based companies like Boostability—are empowering their employees to be brand ambassadors. And they’re getting incredible results because of it. Here are four ways employee advocacy is helping these companies succeed, and why you should consider empowering your staff to be brand ambassadors as well. What do Kenny Rogers (a retired Major League pitcher), Michelle Beck (a small-town vocational teacher), and Magnus Walker (a famous fashion designer), have in common?
They all share a passion for automobiles. And because of that passion, they’ve restored and showcased vehicles at America’s largest monthly car show, Caffeine and Octane. “People are so different,” says Bruce Piefke, the entrepreneur behind the show. “But cars bring them together. For me, that’s what makes the show great—all these stories where people connect.” And he’s used these kinds of true-life-car-love stories to transform the once struggling event into—not only one of the most lucrative car shows in the U.S.—but also a thriving media brand. Here are three ways Piefke uses storytelling to fuel Caffeine and Octane’s success and how you can apply them to grow your business.
"Put yourself in a position, treat people right, and maintain your reputation. You never know what opportunities will come from that."
When Bruce Piefke took over a monthly Atlanta car show from Auto Trader magazine it was generating more in expenses than revenue. In three years Bruce grew Caffeine & Octane from 3,000 to a record 20,000 attendees in a month. He signed on some big sponsors and spun off a hit tv show. More...
"I've had my share of wrecks. I've broken bones. I've had my ego bruised many times."
Entrepreneurs naturally want things to go fast. In this episode of Main Street Hustle we meet an entrepreneur who really knows how to go fast. Elaine Larsen - a two-time Jet Dragster World Champion tells us that in racing and in business the faster you go, the safer and smarter you have to be. For Elaine and her co-owner husband Chris, this means setting strict workplace rules and putting each employee through a rigorous training program. Everyone at Larsen Motor Sports knows everything there is to know about the race car, about safety, and about being a brand ambassador. More...
"This is the dream. Brewing beer. I work for myself."
For years, Chris Coyle was brewing beer at home for friends and family. In 2013 he stepped out of the garage to open his own brewery and taproom. With no experience in business, no experience running a bar, and no experience brewing beer on a larger scale, Chris and his wife sold off what they could and got to work opening the New Smyrna Beach Brewing Company. What they didn’t know is that a Federal Government shutdown would keep them closed with no money coming in for two months. more...
"The hustle is real."
In this episode of Main Street Hustle we sit down for coffee with Kristan Serafino, a celebrity Hair Stylist and mens grooming expert whose client list reads like a who’s who of Entertainment A listers. Now, Kristan won’t divulge her clients names but a simple search of her instagram feed or a review of her online portfolio shows her work with Ryan Reynolds, Daniel Craig, Matthew McConaughey, Shawn Mendes, Norman Reddus, Kelsey Grammer and Michael J. Fox, just to name a few. Her work has appeared on the covers of just about every fashion magazine including GQ, Esquire, Vogue, Vanity Fair, and Cosmopolitan. She’s been an on air guest at QVC and a brand spokesperson for a line of beauty products. You can follow Kristans work on instagram and twitter @serafinosays. More...
"It wasn't like I was trying to make a company.
I just wanted to test having a race."
After finishing a half marathon, avid runner Nick Zivolich wondered if he could produce an endurance race that would be just as big and professional as the corporate races without the exorbitant entry fees. His races would be accessible to all levels of athletes. At the time, this former high school track competitor wasn’t concerned with building a business so much as playing big with a hobby he’d had for years. So he followed his gut on how to best reach his audience, killing just about every rule in the book. It worked out pretty DAMN well and The Best Damn Race had runners scrambling for tickets on Day 1. More...
"People think the band rolls into the place, plays a show, and then everyone is swirling martinis aftewards."
In this conversation, we learn how the band jumps from playing small jazz gigs in New York to touring performing art centers around the world, and what you can learn from an airline pilot about being a good band leader. We pick up the conversation backstage at The Lyric Theater in Stuart, Florida. More...
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Recent PostsCapt. Dale Kamerzel
Jonathan Spinner Massimo Felici Don Saladino Ditch the Desk: 3 Tips to Build a Successful Thrill-Based Business. Could Your Small Business Survive Your Emergency Absence? Is Your Business Idea a Winner? (Here’s How to Find Out) The Only 3 Things You Need to Become a Successful Entrepreneur 5 Essential Tips for Staying Cool Under Pressure 4 Reasons to Train Your Employees as Brand Ambassadors Archives
April 2019
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