Innovation City

“You should be thinking about, ‘What is the least amount of resources i can spend to get to the point where someone will pay me for what I’ve built?’” — Ben Mizes Today’s guest is Ben Mizes, CEO and Co-Founder of Clever Real Estate, a full-service real estate agent that homeowners can use to list their homes for a flat fee. He is also the principal investor and Co-Founder of Arch Buyers, a real estate investment partnership. His experience in business development for institutional homebuyers, working at startups, and raising venture capital raising investments—combined with the incredible real estate opportunity he saw in St. Louis, MO—led to the development of Clever Real Estate with his Co-Founder, Jeremy Decker.

“Courage begins with one step. It really does.” — Milka Milliance Today’s guest is Milka Milliance. Milka has worked with leaderships teams of global companies as a consultant and coach, helping them design and implement strategic initiatives across global organizations. She designs and facilitates learning interventions for busy professionals to help them solve the leadership puzzle. Under Milka’s guidance, leadership teams explore the ideas of power, courage, confidence and collaboration. Milka is the founder and CEO of We R Artemis Leadership Consulting. She has also written a book, Your Journey to Self-Redefinition: a Woman’s Guide to Transitions, available on Amazon, Barnes&Noble, iTunes, and Books&Books in Coral Gables, FL. Created and produced by SLAM! Agency in conjunction with Venture Cafe St. Louis and Venture Cafe Miami, Innovation City gives you an inside look at how rapidly business and culture are changing thanks to increasing diversity and inclusion, heightened creativity, and a stro

“I knew that if I wanted to be stronger, I needed to change that mentality in myself.” — Darian Wigfall This episode's guest is Darian Wigfall—author, activist, arts organizer, DJ, and entrepreneur. Darian is the Co-Director of the St. Louis based FarFetched Collective, an art imprint that produces progressive music and art in St. Louis and beyond, where he runs Artist Development and Management. Darian has published a young adult novel, A Dying Breed, Vol. 1, and is well-known in St. Louis for his direct action during the protests in Ferguson, MO, with a sign he carried during the protests now being exhibited at the Smithsonian National Museum for African American History and Culture.

“In the social change space...we have to first listen… In most cases, the people who are most affected by issues… have a wealth of knowledge about how to fix it.” — De Nichols This episode’s guest is De Nichols, a St. Louis-based social practice designer, entrepreneur and lecturer. De mobilizes changemakers nationwide to develop creative approaches to the social, civic, and racial justice issues that matter most to them and their communities. She is a creator who uses art to voice dissent and highlight systemic societal issues. She also uses art to bring communities together and build them up.

003: Ashkan Karbasfrooshan - Founder at WatchMojo “I said to myself, ‘Now is the time.’ There’s no ideal time to take that kind of risk.” — Ashkan Karbasfrooshan In this episode of Innovation City, Tyler and Michael talk to “content godfather” Ashkan Karbasfrooshan, CEO at WatchMojo, the 10th-largest YouTube channel (youtube.com/watchmojo) in the world when measured by all-time views (10 Billion) and subscribers (16 Million).

002: Brian Brackeen - Founder at Kairos Inc “When you can give somebody hope… it doesn’t matter what their current situation is.” — Brian Brackeen In this episode of Innovation City we’re talking with Brian Brackeen, CEO and founder of Kairos, which was selected by The Wall Street Journal as one of 2013’s Top 25 Startups in the U.S. Brian leads Kairos’ senior management team, developing growth strategies that have established Kairos as a major innovator in face and emotion-recognition AI.

Episode 001: Michelle Abbs, Director WINLab Miami “My answer is really simple—just don’t be afraid.” — Michelle Abbs Today on Innovation City we’re talking with Michelle Abbs about women entrepreneurs—breaking through the status quo, making a difference, and shaping the future. This is our first podcast from Venture Cafe Miami, and we really enjoyed sitting down with Michelle Abbs, Director of WIN Lab® Miami.

Welcome to Innovation City! Created and produced by SLAM! Agency in conjunction with Venture Cafe St. Louis and Venture Cafe Miami, Innovation City gives you an inside look at how rapidly business and culture are changing. Episode 000 explains what Innovation City is all about, where we’re going, and why you should listen. Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review!