From the hallways at University of South Florida and University of Tampa, to the walls of the accelerator programs throughout the region, Tampa Bay is proof age is just a number when it comes to entrepreneurial talent.
Tampa Bay Inno has compiled a list of standout entrepreneurs and innovators in Tampa Bay, as part of the annual Inno Under 25 list. The lineup features drug detecting jewelry, eco-friendly medical devices and a top secret lemonade recipe that have all come from the minds of the local youth, as well standout employees at larger companies like Orchid Black and Benicomp.
Those on the list were chosen based on nominations and Inno's editorial selection process. Check out all 16 honorees below.
Michaelah Williams, Queen's Lemonade Palace
Age: 12
What she does: Williams founded Lakeland-based Queen's Lemonade Palace and not only makes her own recipes for the lemonade, but has a focus on giving back to the community. She is currently raising funds for Lakeland PAL, the Police Athletic / Activities League that provides athletic programming to help children avoid committing juvenile crimes.
Nandini Agarwal, Samagreen
Age: 20
What she does: It may be more succinct to say what Agarwal doesn't do. The USF senior founded Samagreen in 2019, which produces sustainable and patient-friendly, discreet ostomy bags, a medical device which collects waste from a patient. During the coronavirus pandemic, she founded Emerging Bulls Consulting, a pro bono initiative to help nonprofits deal with economic disruptions caused by the pandemic. The group has recruited 20 students and helped three nonprofits so far. She has been named to the Clinton Global Initiative-University Class of 2020, was part of USF's inaugural Millennium Fellowship Cohort and was named a Frank and Ellen Daveler Entrepreneurship Fellow, a statewide program.
Daniella Diaz, High Tech Connect
Age: 25
What she does: Diaz is the co-founder of High Tech Connect, a community-based organization focused on attracting and retaining tech talent in the Tampa Bay region. Due to Covid-19, she helped pivot High Tech Connect to start HireUp Florida, an initiative to help connect the tech community and fill jobs. She is also an account executive at IT Authorities, a Tampa-based managed services and IT outsourcing company.
Miles Fetherston-Resch, Kids Saving Oceans
Age: 8
What he does: Fetherston-Resch founded St. Petersburg-based Kids Saving Oceans in 2018, which makes T-shirts, hats and more with the proceeds going to nonprofits focused on ocean conservation.
Matt Redler, Panther
Age: 22
What he does: Redler originally founded Chefit in 2019, eventually dropping out of the University of Florida to pursue the business full time. But when the Covid-19 pandemic struck, Redler had to shutter his business which brought professional chefs into people's homes. Three months later, he founded Panther, which works as a middleman to place global talent across 100 countries into companies.
Dan Soviero, Signature Lacrosse
Age: 25
What he does: Soviero founded Signature Lacrosse in 2016 out of his UT dorm room. The idea was to create more affordable lacrosse equipment while maintaining the quality, in order to further the reach of the sport. The company has now earned over $8 million in sales, partnered with pro leagues, colleges and high school and youth programs, and served more than 30,000 clients.
David Steen, Orchid Black
Age: 23
What he does: Steen is an associate partner at Orchid Black, previously known as Morgan Hill Partners. He spearheads new business development and sales for growth services and enterprise clients and manages Orchid Black's internship program. He also supports and leads client-partner initiatives for the organization, which has a focus on early-stage and growth-stage technology companies.
Ian Annase, Zing Drones
Age: 24
What he does: Annase founded Zing Drones, a platform that allows licensed pilots to get paid for making deliveries using the same drones they already own and know how to fly. In May, Annase and one of his co-founders performed the first drone delivery from the ground to the top of a skyscraper.
Nicholas George, Edgly Marketing Group
Age: 23
What he does: George founded Edgly Marketing Group as a way to offer premium video content for the everyday marketing budget. He got his start after creating a video of his friends rollerblading, which caught the attention of 18 Bagels Co. — which eventually became his first client.
Chloe Mazzella, B.A.C Buddy Bracelets
Age: 19
What she does: Mazzella created the B.A.C. Buddy Bracelet before her freshman year at UT after hearing horror stories about what can happen while out drinking. She created a "fashionable and discreet" way for college students to monitor their blood alcohol content level to have peace of mind while drinking. She was also one of only two freshman admitted to UT's Spartan Accelerator in 2019.
Damola Teniola, LiveEDU
Age: 21
What he does: USF student Teniola and his co-founder, Rebecca Oyetoro, created a data-driven learning technique designed to enhance care delivery and help patients and their families with hospital discharge and exit programs. The duo won the Judge’s Choice Award at the 2020 Florida Blue Health Innovation Challenge, which took place on Sept. 16. Teniola is also an engineering intern at Medtronic, a publicly traded medical device company based in Ireland.
Martika Jones, Collag3
Age: 25
What she does: Jones founded Collag3, a company that develops digital marketing tools to enhance clients' marketing strategies. Their product, iLinkPro, consolidates all a client's links into a single link, stating it's "like LinkTree, but better." The product also has a streaming integration to create a fully-formed digital portfolio.
Nick Morris, drvwy
Age: 21
What he does: Morris launched his company drvwy in October 2019, which is a mobile parking platform allowing users to rent out their driveway or other private property space for customers looking for a hassle-free way to park. He is part of the USF Connect Student Innovation Incubator, was a winning finalist in the Daveler Entrepreneurship program and was chosen as USF's sole representative for the Governor's Cup Pitch Competition.
Allie Wolfe, Puresipity
Age: 20
What she does: After winning UT's entrepreneurial expo in 2019 as a freshman, Wolfe turned her idea of a drug detecting bracelet into reality. Her company, Puresipity, offers a locket-style bracelet that lets users test their drinks for commonly used date rape drugs. The user can open the locket, dip their finger into their drink, place the drink droplet onto a test strip in the jewelry and wait for the strip to change color if a drug is detected.
Kayla Wilson, Connecting Care
Age: 24
What she does: Wilson created an application called Connecting Care that aims to help connect patients with medical social workers. The medical social workers help patients access the community services they need, along with emotional or psychosocial support. The ultimate goal is to reduce hospital re-admissions, specifically chronic heart failure patients. Wilson was also a finalist at the Florida Blue Innovation Challenge.
Francisco Oller Garcia, Benicomp
Age: 25
What he does: He is Benicomp's digital operations and marketing specialist, helping the Tampa-based insurance company design innovative group health strategies for its customers with cost savings and sustaining the health of employees.
