What were you doing previously and what inspired you to launch your company?

Presentations.  Over the years, AlexAnndra and I have delivered ad sales presentation systems for ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, NFL, NBA, IBM (3 letter acronyms to keep it short), and even exhibits in Epcot Center.  While working for these A+ presenters, similar needs and functions emerged and coalesced into a strategy called "Presentation Management."   To answer “Why did we launch Shufflrr?”, it would be to make it easy for any enterprise to implement this new communication strategy we call "Presentation Management."

What pain point is your company solving? What gets you excited to go to work every day?

Presentations are a mess. On an enterprise level, there is no consistency:  not of brand, not of message, and not of compliance.  On top of that, salespeople waste hours and hours assembling each slide show. This multiplied by the number of people presenting in your company.   Shufflrr cleans up this mess and streamlines the process.

Name the biggest challenge you faced in the process of launching the company. How did you overcome it?

Every challenge you face in launching a company is critical. Every step, or misstep, can throw you off course.  But the single biggest challenge for Shufflrr would be knowledge.  Knowledge in the c-suite that Presentation Management exists.  Knowledge that Presentation Management saves time across the enterprise, that it ensures brand and content compliance, and that it achieves harmony with their people singing from the same set of slides.

Where do you see your company headed next?

Just as Amazon is retail, eBay is auctions, Salesforce is CRM, Shufflrr is Presentation Management.  We are creating the category and at the same time leading it with the technology solution.  Shufflrr owns Presentation Management.

Give us a tactical piece of advice that you'd share with another founder just starting out.

Do it.  Put action behind your thoughts.   Make that prototype.  Write that code.  Investigate who might buy it.  You never know what will happen. I know all of this sounds a bit cliché, but until there is action, it is only a dream.

Why Tampa Bay?

Embarc Collective and the fertile technology ecosystem it supports.  Additionally, Tampa has a low cost of living, an incredible talent pool, and a winning attitude that continually earns the nickname “Champa Bay."  Shufflrr is proud to be here.

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What were you doing previously and what inspired you to launch your company?

I’m a recent graduate! While wrapping up university, most of my time was spent both owning and operating a local juice bar, Swami Juice, as well as scaling our cryptocurrency company, Quad Coin.

The inspiration for Kaya came when visiting Cocoa Beach for a SpaceX launch that ended up getting canceled. Some friends and I were bummed out while eating lunch by the pier until I saw a bunch of people surfing and was ready to grab a board. We sadly found out all the shops were closed for the day and far from the pier. A light bulb popped up in my mind, and a mission to make watersports more available and efficient was born!

What pain point is your company solving? What gets you excited to go to work every day?

Accessibility is the key pain point that Kaya is aiming to solve. Kayaks and Paddle-boards are expensive and difficult to transport. By using technology we’re able to eliminate overhead costs and create stations in areas that can’t normally accommodate standard rental shops.

Creating a unique solution that allows the opportunity for more people to be active and on the water is what gets me excited to work on Kaya every day!

Name the biggest challenge you faced in the process of launching the company. How did you overcome it?

The biggest challenge for Kaya has been finding an optimal first location. In order to get over this hurdle, we needed to contact as many people as possible, push through all the rejections, and focus on the best opportunities. Ultimately, we might have now solved it through an unexpected partnership with someone who technically would have been a competitor to us.

Where do you see your company headed next?

After finalizing the first location and launching our MVP, I see us revising our product and system in order to create a more efficient solution for all future locations. Then grow the team and scale as quickly as possible along the east and west coast!

Give us a tactical piece of advice that you'd share with another founder just starting out.

Choose a mission you believe in that lights a fire under you. Prioritize well. Always focus on the “one thing” you can do that will make everything easier!

Why Tampa Bay?

Home turf! Tampa is rapidly growing in many ways and there are so many new communities forming. This city is increasingly becoming a great place to launch a startup, and for a company like Kaya, it’s positioned perfectly with year-round weather, beaches, water, and many parks. It’s a great place to be active!

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