Something fishy is going on this weekend in North Miami.
For the fifth consecutive year, aspiring and established business professionals will be attending the annual Teach to Fish North Miami Business Summit.
Starting a business? Looking for funding? Planning on ways to expand your existing business? North Miami Vice Mayor Kassandra Timothe says this is the place to be.
She notes how the summit has grown since its inception five years ago.
“It’s becoming a huge regional conference where people come from all over to learn how to do business with the city, invest in the city — and not just in North Miami, but just how to do business overall,” Timothe said. “So it’s a conference for aspiring entrepreneurs, for those who are already in business and those who are looking to upscale.”
Entrepreneurs celebrate receiving grants at a previous year’s summit.
(Hip Rock Star Advertising)
Presented in partnership with the city and the North Miami Community Redevelopment Agency (NMCRA), the summit will feature three days of workshops, networking and expert panels. Timothe said she’s bringing in CPAs, technical advisors and business attorneys.
“We make sure that we get all the experts in the room to provide business owners with the resources and the tools that they need, and they can get that specialized help one on one,” Timothe said. “We have experts in branding. We have experts in AI. We know AI is taking over the world, and if your business is not using AI, you’re probably not in this century, right? So making sure that we’re giving all the business owners the tools, the resources, the help that they need to succeed.”
The summit will also bring back the live pitch competition, which was introduced last year with $100,000 awarded to up-and-coming entrepreneurs.
This year’s summit will repeat its pitch competition.
(Hip Rock Star Advertising)
“We’ve given out over $500,000 in grant awards through the CRA … So many businesses are coming in, they’re applying for grants, they’re getting help,” said Timothe.
How the summit came together
The Teach to Fish North Miami Business Summit started five years ago with a simple question.
Timothe recalled canvassing for votes when she was running for council:
“I remember knocking on doors, and there was a lady who — she was maybe in her 70s — and she (said), “Kassandra, I really want to start a food truck company. How do I start?’ I said, ‘I don’t know.’”
That question became a campaign promise by Timothe to create a business summit so that would-be entrepreneurs would have somewhere to find answers.
After she was elected as District 2’s first Black and Haitian councilperson, The Miami Foundation informed Timothe about available grant money for businesses to open or upscale a location in North Miami.
“I was (thinking), how do I connect all of our business owners or businesses throughout Miami-Dade with this $100 million grant that the Miami Foundation was giving out?” Timothe recalled.
Timothe said CRA members at the time suggested holding a conference every year to educate businesses. Between her campaign promise, the grant money and the CRA’s plan, it all came together. “I had to do this,” the vice mayor said.
Grammy-winning guest speaker
Keynote speaker Kandi Burruss will share what she has learned about building businesses, taking risks and growing a brand across industries./
(Kandi Burruss via Facebook)
This year’s keynote speaker is Grammy Award winner Kandi Burruss.
You probably know her from her years on “The Real Housewives of Atlanta,” or through the songs she’s written for Destiny’s Child, Pink, Ariana Grande or Ed Sheeran.
She has also created several businesses outside of the entertainment industry, stepping her foot in fashion, beauty products and other ventures.
In an email interview, Burruss discussed the importance of branching out.
“The entertainment business is so fickle. One minute you’re popping in whatever lane you’re in, and the next you’re not,” she said.
Burruss said she first learned how to manage other artists, then how to be a songwriter.
“But I got to a point where I thought, ‘Okay, I want something outside of music,’” Burruss said. “That’s when I decided to open the clothing store … From there, I just kept going. It was intentional to have a business that had nothing to do with music, something else that could make money.”
Burruss has some advice about starting a business and protecting your brand:
“Do your research. A lot of people don’t do any research on the idea they want to pursue. Obviously, you want to figure out your name, and you definitely want to trademark it. Get your website and all your social handles for the brand before you say it out loud, because once you say it out loud, it’s too late. Somebody else will start using it, or they’ll take the domain and charge you for it.”
She said a common mistake that new business owners make is going over budget.
“Make a budget and stick to it, because you don’t know what that bottom line is going to be,” Burruss said. “You could be doing everything right and still not make any money, and at that point it’s not a business, it’s a hobby.”
Burruss will be sharing more advice like this at the summit, which takes place Oct. 5-6 at Hilton Miami Aventura, 2885 NE 191st St. Tickets are on sale now through Eventbrite.
An opening reception will take place Sunday, Oct. 4, at NoMi Village. Separate tickets for that event are also on sale through Eventbrite.