This is the third installment of a blog series we’re calling “Sarasota Sizzle.” What’s “sizzle,” you ask? The Blink;Tech team’s definition of “sizzle” is what happens at the local intersection of creativity, technology, and entrepreneurship. The more we look around us in Sarasota, the more we discover people, businesses, projects, and initiatives that “sizzle.” And when something sizzles, it
s too good not to share.
In this feature, we stay close to home and give you a peek inside the HuB, home to Blink;Tech’s headquarters in Sarasota.
“I have always been attracted to innovation,” says Rich Swier. “I always considered myself a geek for technology as well, so it’s natural for me to want to invent.” His most well-known invention is most likely the HuB, an entrepreneurial incubator and co-working space that really makes Sarasota sizzle.
Touring the HuB, you sense a drive for technological advancement in some of the simple things — like the refillable water bottle fountain and the Dyson air blade hand dryers — but it’s largely the co-working space itself that’s the innovative soul of the HuB.
Six years ago in the Rosemary District, a handful of creative and tech entrepreneurs started sharing space and collaborating on projects. Since then, the HuB’s operations have expanded to a four-story building on Fruitville Road, putting it right in the center of downtown Sarasota. In a largely open floor plan, small businesses can rent offices and independent entrepreneurs can share workspace, fostering one of the modern business concepts in which the HuB has always excelled: creative collaboration.
“It was designed as a place for creatives to come and grow by integrating themselves into the ecosystem we’ve created,” says HuB CEO Assunta Swier. “We take pride on the fact that we are completely independent. We are not funded by anyone, therefore not obligated to anything. It allows us to truly carve out custom paths for each entrepreneur that comes through the HuB.”
With startups ranging from real estate and car sales innovations to digital health platforms and multi-media production, the HuB has not only helped a variety of entrepreneurs launch their businesses, it has also created a bigger nest. Today, fifty dedicated office spaces buzz with a huge variety of activity and a great sense of community.
“There is a really good energy when I walk in the building, and I’ve enjoyed meeting everyone who comes and goes,” says Adela White, who operates her public relations practice, Isla PR, from the HuB. “Even my visitors have commented on the positive vibes here.”
In the center of the HuB (and right across the hall from Blink;Tech), JumpDog Audio Productions is now celebrating their third year at the HuB as a professional audio post-production studio. Wayne DeLair says he’s now able to “bring clients in from California, New York, Boston, Chicago and the U.K. We’ve successfully completed local, national and international projects for Quicken-Loan, Sierra Mist, Republic Airlines, the U.K. television series Cars That Rock, New Balance, Mary Kay Corp, numerous music, film and video projects — the list goes on and on. All made possible through the HuB’s spirited brew.”
“What is great about the HuB,” Rich Swier adds, “is that it provides a path for anyone who wants to find an outlet for their creativity or entrepreneurial spirit. I think every community deserves a place for people to start their idea, and I hope we provide that here in Sarasota.”
At Blink;Tech, we synthesize cutting-edge web development with creative Internet marketing strategies to help businesses of all sizes and industries succeed on the web. Talk to us today about how we can make your business, project, or idea sizzle.
