Entrepreneurs of the Year (2018): Proficient at coping with rapid change — and so much more
Reeling in venture capital. Figuring out online solutions to bring down costs. Incentivizing employees and renegotiating contracts. Prioritizing future growth.
Those are things the entrepreneurs in this year’s edition do very well. But what they may do best is cope with rapid change.
5miles has not only managed to outlive several of its competitors but also to expand.
The company, founded in 2014 to create a localized mobile marketplace, gained speed after picking up a sponsorship with the Dallas Mavericks earlier this year. It also has made headway in the auto category, helping auto dealers automatically upload inventory into the 5miles marketplace, as well as in the housing and job-listing categories.
In 2016, it landed $30 million in venture capital and, last year, launched CyberMiles, a blockchain network for e-commerce. To date, the company has more than 14 million downloads. It ended 2017 with $10 million in revenue and 100 employees.
“We’ve been really lucky the last four years,” Lucas Lu says. “We are reaching the break-even point. So … it’s a very good time for us.” — Danielle Abril
Read more at dmagazine.com/publications/d-ceo/2018/july/entrepreneur-of-the-year
