Entrepreneurs & Business Strategy

Bridge Angels highlights individuals and their small or startup businesses in the Tampa Bay area. While we cannot endorse or recommend any company, we highlight these as a service to our readers and to these businesses that might need your support but otherwise go unnoticed. We hope you enjoy learning more about these local leaders

Bridge Angels is a new feature in Tampa Bay Business & Wealth highlighting individuals and their small or startup businesses in the Tampa Bay area. While we cannot endorse or recommend any company, we highlight these as a service to our readers and to these businesses that might need your support but might otherwise go

Expect Laurie and Frank Powell to be a hit at cocktail parties—if they ever have time for them. One day, they could be producing a conference of energy startups pitching the U.S. government Shark Tank-style. Another, they could be powering an animation festival for tens of thousands of people roaming the exhibits in wild costumes.

Embarc Collective is gearing up to open its doors in the former District 3 Space in downtown Tampa in March. The Tampa tech hub, backed by Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik, is largely inspired by 1871, a similar nonprofit organization in the Chicago area. Lakshmi Shenoy, CEO of Embarc Collective, was recruited from 1871,

Monica Eaton-Cardone is many things — a wife, a mother, a businesswoman, a philanthropist – but one thing she is certainly most not, is easily intimidated. With a career spanning multiple industries and many companies, most of her own making, she most recently made a name for herself in Agile technologies, with a dispute mitigation

Photos by Michael McCoy Ben Heldfond’s most prized possession is a book, one that resonates with the story of his life. A first edition of The Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, written by AA’s founders, Bill Wilson and Bob Smith. Heldfond, who is 24 years sober, is forthcoming about his story of recovery. Heldfond is

By Jo-Lynn Brown Photos by Penny Rogo Jeff Gigante is starting a new journey with his newest concept, Forbici. This transition is pivotal because Gigante is arguably one of Tampa Bay’s busiest restaurateurs, with eight restaurants  under the Ciccio umbrella and a long list of philanthropic endeavors. The restaurant group employs more than 1,300 workers

How do women approach their short and long-term financial decisions? According to a recent report by the international financial services firm UBS, they don’t. The report, titled “Own Your Wealth,” was commissioned and published by UBS and was the catalyst for its first Florida Gulf Coast Women’s Leadership Retreat in Sarasota. It found that 56

Upon meeting Eric Newman, what strikes you immediately is his affable and humble demeanor. As the president of J.C. Newman Cigar Company, the oldest premium cigar company in the United States that is still owned by the founding family, according to a 2012 Cigar Journal story, Newman could take himself pretty seriously. But he doesn’t.

In a city where companies like Mother Kombucha make headlines for entering big box grocery stores and businesses are rated based on “bike-friendliness,” the St. Petersburg Saturday Morning Market, which resumes in October, reflects a notion that is central to the city’s business community: capitalism rewards value-based businesses committed to community action and corporate responsibility.