Jay Rayford
What educational, entrepreneurial or business development programs, if any, have you taken advantage of?
I have participated in
SBA workshops,
TechTown and
D:Hive's BUILD program.
Who was your first customer and where did you find them?
We generated our viewership from hosting/attending various events across the city as well as promoting positivity via social media that tends to get shared.
Where have you turned to find capital to grow your company and which institutions have provided it?
Currently, capital has been from friends and family. We have not gained funding outside of these resources yet. Our goal is to prove the concept with our own skin in the game first.
Name an idea, policy or mindset from elsewhere that you would like to see this region adopt?
In Detroit, our negative gets much more attention than our positives. We hope our work helps to change that mindset and creates a renewed sense of hope.
What could local leaders do to help attract and retain more entrepreneurial young people to Metro Detroit?
I think local leaders are doing a good job. I think its time for the young entrepreneurial people to broadcast their voice and show just how great Detroit is. Word of mouth is a great tool, pair that with visual testimony and we will attract and retain more young talent. I think the
Urban Innovation Exchange is doing a great job at telling those stories.
It's often said that Metro Detroit and Michigan need to reinvent their economies to be competitive. Are we making those changes, and if so are we making enough of them or doing it fast enough?
I think with the boom of the tech industry, clean energy and even with the movie industry we've done well to reinvent our economy. In the past decade, I don't believe we've done more to diversify our economy! Yes, we have more work to do, but I'm happy to see the dependency on the automotive industry let up and make way for new possibilities.