Nohemi Soza-Acevedo is a 2020 FSU Tech Fellow interning at Orlando’s StarterStudio.
As my 5th week interning at StarterStudio came to an end, I couldn’t help but highlight one of the interviews I conducted with one of the current seed accelerators at StarterStudio. As mentioned in some of my previous blog posts, I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with one of my Tech Fellows colleagues, Alexander Blanchette for this particular project. To be specific, we conducted a total of 4 interviews with our very own founders: Aaron Burnett, Ashley Hart, Bryan Young, and Jordan Dauble. The purpose and goal for these interviews were simply to allow the founders to have an opportunity to share their entrepreneurial journey and, of course, tell us what their company/service is all about. Whereas for me, this interview was an opportunity to realize what are the right questions to ask, my ability to take notes while interviewing others, and most importantly to gain experience to improve.
One of the founders that stuck out to me the most had to be Ashley Hart. During our interview, she emphasized how she had never started her own company before but couldn’t help her dream to become her own boss one day. Ashley’s goal is also to create a company that helped the community in ways no other company has done before. She was ecstatic to introduce her company, She Plays. This particular company is a Fantasy Sports hub focused on all of your favorite U.S women’s sports leagues! This platform serves as a tool for not only those who are interested in fantasy sports but for those who are interested in changing the landscape of sports for women in the United States. While conducting this interview, I personally found it astonishing how Ashley’s is committed to use her platform for more media attention and to highlight US women’s professional sports leagues.
In other words, as Ashley discussed her motivations to have a successful company, it was easy to recognize that one of her main goals is “to make people understand that women are worth investment.” Nevertheless, that’s not all She Plays has to offer! In fact, in addition to her fantasy sports she has included interesting podcasts, blogs, and offer unique games to stay engaged with her audience. The opportunity to interview Ashley and so many other entrepreneurs in current operating Orlando tech startups was such an inspiring experience.
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