Qureshi, 30, CEO of Delta Design. The 2010 alumnus Read about FIU’s Small Business Development Center, which works with established companies. magazine.fiu.edu
followed up his undergraduate FIU degree in architecture with a master’s degree
from MIT. A few years ago he quit a job in his chosen field to join his brother, who is a current FIU marketing student, and another FIU alumnus to start the company. Currently they are focused on commercializing a 3D-printed prosthetic leg that could offer a low-cost option to amputees around the world. Focusing on individual facets of the business through a rigorous, disciplined approach kept them on track, Qureshi says.
Think you’ve got what it takes to be an entrepreneur? Then StartUP FIU might be your way forward. The incubator has plans to expand in 2017, with no fewer than four fully operational programs expected to be up and running within the year. Students, alumni, faculty and local residents with no university affiliation are all invited to apply. Participants pay nothing for the experience nor does FIU take company equity or otherwise expect financial gain. (Company founders do agree to report on their progress for at least three years.)
While the team possesses the needed
The secret to getting in?
design and engineering skills, their collective
“No secret,” says Robert Hacker, StartUP’s co-founder and director. In addition to communicating a business concept with the potential to scale up, successful applicants must show a high degree of perseverance and be “coachable.” That’s it.
business skills were lacking. “Before [StartUP], our methodology was more like shots in the dark. We didn’t
Ready to get started?
really have a plan,” he says. “I feel like now
Decide which program fits your needs and apply at startup.fiu.edu.
we’re kind of restructuring ourselves and understanding that we have to think about this. If you want to get to a certain level, you have to do the proper steps.” The team also benefited from existing university networks. Hacker connected Delta with Professor Wei-Chiang Lin of FIU’s biomedical engineering department and steered the group to a local microfinance
Empower: FIU’s flagship accelerator (see main article) is funded with a $1.25 million grant from the State of Florida and based out of a newly renovated 10,000-square-foot collaborative space at the Modesto A. Maidique Campus. It welcomed an initial cohort representing 19 companies in fall of 2016 and a second started in January of 2017. West End: Funded with state monies, this technology-focused accelerator is based in a commercial building near Tamiami Airport in suburban Kendall. A study by the Metropolitan Center, FIU’s economic development think tank, indicates a strong potential to capitalize on the growing population center’s clustering of professionals with technology skills.
company that could work with needy clients to help them purchase the prosthetics. Andrea Saladrigas, 21, currently an FIU marketing student, entered the program with her father. Both already had successful businesses, he as a Southwest Florida-based beekeeper who rents out hives to farmers around the country, she as the purveyor of her own brand of local honey. They brought to the incubator a socially driven enterprise that aims to empower low-income women and
Food FIU: Citi Foundation has provided a $500,000 grant to launch an incubator at the Biscayne Bay Campus. In partnership with the Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Food FIU will offer food entrepreneurs access to stateof-the-art commercial kitchen facilities as well as technical expertise from faculty and students to innovate, test concepts and scale their businesses. It is intended to serve low- and moderate-income individuals. Art + Design: The Ratcliffe Foundation has provided more than $800,000 to fund an arts incubator in partnership with the College of Communication, Architecture + The Arts. With the goal of turning artists into successful entrepreneurs, the program will offer monthly lectures, legal and accounting support, market research assistance and seed capital. Admission is currently limited to enrolled FIU students.
others as backyard beekeepers whom the pair would outfit with hives at no charge and WINTER 2016-2017
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