3 Year Reflection: I Moved to Tampa Bay to Build the Startup Community
Three years ago I made the migration from NYC to Tampa Bay to bet on the vision of Lakshmi Shenoy and what is now Embarc Collective, a new non-profit support model serving early-stage startups. Once a “long-term career goal” to build the startup community in my hometown, I could not have imagined the impact we’ve made. Since June 2018, we’ve built an organization from scratch serving nearly 100 companies, convened a community around 80+ tech transplants, and witnessed the “great tech Twitter migration” to Florida.
The blog post I wrote on why I was lured to Tampa has since led to 40K social impressions and 30+ cold DMs from people also considering my path (it’s now the number 1 search result for “Tampa startup community”). As a three-year follow-up to my first post, I’m sharing how the experience has exceeded my expectations and where I believe our community can still grow.
The lifestyle is one worth living.
Aside from obvious perks like no state income tax and a low cost of living, I was surprised at just how young, active, and vibrant Tampa is. With a median age younger than New York City, this isn’t your grandma’s Florida.
“Big-city” brands like Soul Cycle, Shake Shack, and the Edition Hotel can be found next to local concepts like boutique fitness studio Union Three and Soho House-style members club Stovall House. Multi-billion dollar developments Water Street and Midtown Tampa are underway to keep up with the hundreds of people relocating to the region daily. It’s energizing to be a part of a city experiencing such unprecedented growth.
I love bringing visitors to see the magic of a sunset boat cruise or stroll the Riverwalk that hugs downtown. And if being on the water isn’t your thing, our champion sports teams might do the trick. “Champa Bay” brought home the 2020 Stanley Cup, Super Bowl LV, and had MLB and USL teams that made their respective finals.
The tech migration is in full force.
Each week, Lakshmi and I speak with people moving to Tampa Bay from cities like San Francisco, New York, Chicago, and Boston. Every transplant brings their experience, network, and (in some cases) investment capital that will make a long-term impact on our community.
One of the top remarks I hear from recent transplants is just how friendly and accessible our community is. Whether your goal is to discuss incentives with local elected officials, meet a potential corporate customer, or join events with fellow newcomers (like our standing breakfast at Embarc Collective, join us), you are welcomed to a seat at the table.
I’ve already seen how quickly transplants get involved with local startups. Steve Parkis (former Zynga executive in SF) is an investor and advisor in Leasecake, Ideal Agent, and DocClocker and Ty Blachly (former Chief of Staff at Snap in LA) joined the advisory board of Openly, to name a few.
But, there’s still room for growth.
While so much has been done to build the region over the past decade, there are still key areas of development that the community is actively working toward. I recently tuned into a panel discussion by Tampa Bay Inno that identified a few:
- Growing the sheer density of local startups (and diverse founders), which will attract even more companies, talent, and capital to our market.
- Creating career pathways with nationally competitive earning potential, which will reduce brain drain to bigger cities.
- Leveraging local public figures to evangelize Tampa Bay in their national social circles, which will help validate the move for others.
I see this roadmap for improvement as room for opportunity and Tampa Bay is up for the challenge. We are a community of builders. People who want to put in the work. Contribute. Be a part of a bigger vision. Whether you are locally born and raised or just made the move, you can play a hand in the future of our tech community.
Three years later and I’m still incredibly excited to show up for my city every day. I give thanks and credit to Lakshmi for providing me the opportunity to be a part of this vision.
For those of you who have not yet made the trip, the invite still stands — we have sunshine, award-winning beaches, champion sports teams, 60+ craft breweries, + a growing community of entrepreneurs ready to change the world. Don’t hesitate to reach out.
