Florida

SkyTL, Powered by Improving Aviation

Location: Tampa, Florida
Website: https://www.improvingaviation.com/
11 employees

SkyTL, Powered by Improving Aviation works with agencies in all 50 states and around the world to predict, prevent, and respond to wildfires. Founder Rocio Frej Vitalle started the Tampa, Florida company in 2020 as a way to bring her knowledge of aerospace engineering to bear on the problem. “The more you think and read about fire, the more you want to contribute to it because this is something where people are dying and losing their houses,” she says. The fit was natural: “The dynamics of fire are similar to the aerodynamics that I had in my background,” she says. Today her 11-person team uses physical tools like drones, cameras, and sensors, but the core of their work is data–mountains of it, which has to be analyzed at top speed. “We convert raw data that is out in the world into information that can be used by the people that are in the field fighting the fires,” Rocio says.

To meet that enormous data challenge, SkyTL, Powered by Improving Aviation uses Google AI like Kubernetes Engine, Cloud, and Vertex AI for their infrastructure. Rocio’s team creates highly accurate models that predict things like how embers and flames might drift and spread in erratic high winds. They can use Gemini to generate theoretical weather maps based on a sole factor, like the wind speed in a particular city. Says Rocio, “This infrastructure is helping us improve our models at a scale and speed that we didn't have the capability to do before.” In 2024, Google for Startups provided mentorship from AI experts during a process that “can be very lonely for a founder,” Rocio says. “Their expertise helped us be able to deploy fast and effectively.” Now the company is preparing to expand their work by using AI to predict and prevent devastation from hurricanes and coastal flooding. “With support from Google,” Rocio says, “we now have the scalability.”

Wisecut

Location: Miami, Florida
Website: https://www.wisecut.ai/
57% of users find Wisecut through organic Search

Wisecut Co-founder and CEO Ivo Machado left his native Brazil eight years ago to live out his American dream as a serial entrepreneur, even as he continued to work in video editing to pay the bills. It was the tedium of that job that led him to explore Artificial Intelligence (AI), Ivo recounts. “I thought, ‘What if there was an algorithm that could make these editing decisions for you in minutes instead of hours?’” AI was still in its infancy, but Ivo’s brother and the company’s Co-founder, Vicente, was a software developer who helped him see AI’s potential. Together, they launched Wisecut in 2019. Now half a million creators use Wisecut to save countless hours by automatically cutting and editing, adding subtitles, and more.

Wisecut launched YouTube channels in English and Portuguese to reach their community of creators and quickly built an organic customer base there and through Google Search. “It kind of exploded with the AI hype,” Ivo says. “People suddenly found out that they can use AI to boost their productivity, and because we were one of the first ones to use AI for video editing, they were finding Wisecut through Search.” Wisecut got another boost in 2022 when Ivo was chosen to participate in the Google for Startups Founders Funds. “At the time, investors weren’t really looking at AI,” Ivo recalls. “That was when Google for Startups bet on us.” Mentorship, a $100,000 cash award, and Google’s “stamp of approval” helped position Wisecut for future investment, and they picked up significant funding from a major investor a year later. Wisecut grew their user base by 4,000 percent in 2023 and tripled their employees to keep up. Now they’re looking toward generative AI to make Wisecut even more powerful. “It’s going to move the needle for us again,” says Ivo. “Like the exponential growth we saw last year, we expect to see the same intensity.”

Miami Seaplane Tours

Location: Miami, Florida
Website: https://miamiseaplane.com/
Bookings increasing 61% YoY

Tony Anderson fell in love with flying as a boy when his family moved to Miami from Havana, Cuba. He trained as a pilot and was offered a job by a commercial airline, but turned it down after seeing the low salary and the time away from his family it required. Tony took a chance instead and opened Miami Seaplane Tours in 1995. Today, the company operates a fleet of three planes and shuttles 200 customers a month across the skies over Biscayne Bay. “We get to take people to some of the most idyllic and pristine destinations in the U.S.,” Tony says. Over 25 years, he has built Miami Seaplane Tours into his American Dream, as well as a family affair. Tony counts two of his children among the company’s six employees, including his son who serves as the chief pilot. And every time Miami Seaplane Tours takes to the sky, they’re using Google tools to help them manage and grow their business.

Tony uses Google Ads to put Miami Seaplane Tours in front of tourists visiting Miami, locals looking to celebrate a special occasion, travelers booking rides to the Caribbean, and anyone searching for exciting things to do in the Magic City. “It allows me to make good decisions so I can control how much I spend and how that fits into my marketing mix,” Tony says. And in an increasingly crowded market, Miami Seaplane Tours trusts their Google Business Profile and the hundreds of verified, trustworthy reviews from happy customers to help them soar above the competition and win more business without breaking the bank. With bookings growing 61 percent year-over-year, Miami Seaplane Tours plans to invest in new, larger, more efficient aircraft to carry more passengers to even farther-flung destinations across the Caribbean. From takeoff to touchdown, they know Google tools will be helping them navigate their growth every step of the way.

Thermaband

Location: Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Website: https://thermaband.com/
Raised $1.5M for pre-seed round

“At 51, I had my first hot flash,” says Debbie Dickinson the creator of the Thermaband Zone menopause bracelet. “I was not anticipating, nor did I understand, menopause.” Frustrated with the low-tech cooling techniques she found, Debbie teamed up with her daughter Markea–a supply-chain expert who was finishing her MBA at Yale–to build a more modern solution. The result was Thermaband Zone, a “smart, personal thermostat” worn on the wrist like a watch. When it detects a hot flash, Thermaband produces a cooling sensation to the wrist similar to the feel of an ice pack. Markea says she and her mother make great partners: “She’s the visionary and more the creative side. I’m focused on the execution and on how to bring an idea to life.” Using a blend of support from friends and family plus venture capital, the Dickinsons have raised $1.5 million toward their launch in late 2022.

In 2021, Thermaband was a recipient of a $100,000 award from the Google for Startups Black Founders Fund. “That added quite a bit of credibility to our brand,” says Markea. “It helped with recruiting top talent.” With the award came valuable mentoring by the Google for Startups team. The Dickinsons use Google Ads to steer people toward their blog and website, and Markea believes that the combination of the Ads and the data generated by Google Analytics were a driving force behind their successful pre-order campaign–the first batch of Thermaband Zones offered for presale sold out in hours. The Dickinsons are getting ready for their full retail launch, and are already planning for the future, says Markea: “Integrating with Google Nest to control the air conditioning unit automatically when a hot flash is detected will be a game changer for our app.” Debbie adds, “We are excited about getting our product in the hands of women and their families across the country.”

Touchland

Location: Miami, Florida
Website: https://touchland.com/
12 employees

Andrea Lisbona grew up surrounded by entrepreneurs and knew that one day she’d disrupt an industry. It was when she came to the U.S. in 2008 that she found her niche: the commoditized and antiquated industry of hand sanitizer. Unlike in her native Europe, hand sanitizer was regularly used outside of healthcare facilities, but it was an unpleasant experience. “People complained that it smelled strongly of alcohol, dried their hands out, or felt sticky,” Andrea says. She realized hand sanitizer was already part of many people’s daily hygiene routines and would only become more prominent as life got busier. After talking to businesses, individuals, and healthcare workers (who told her they kept sanitizer in one pocket and moisturizer in another), she launched Touchland, a skincare-forward hand sanitizer mist in late 2018. They leaned on Google Analytics, looking at conversion rates to understand how to improve site performance. And they built their social media, content, and paid strategies around parallel search terms using the Google Search Console.

In early 2020, Touchland’s Head of Growth, Ned MacPherson, started noticing new parallel search terms like “PPE” and “COVID sanitizer” trending in response to the emerging pandemic. “After 10 years creating better-for-you sanitizers, I never could have predicted the scale we’ve experienced due to COVID-19,” Andrea says. In fact, Touchland saw over 1,200-percent growth in 2020 and sold out several times. So they moved to a pre-order model to better manage demand, using Google Analytics and Google Ads to stay in step with customer demand, and began donating 5 percent of all production to healthcare workers. As Ned notes, this is just the beginning for Touchland—and their hand sanitizer. “Looking forward, we’re excited to lead with our brand in [ad] creatives and display search campaigns, use technology to sustain our growth and production, and connect more with our customers,” he says.

DIY Creators

Location: Port St. Lucie, Florida
Website: https://www.youtube.com/DIYCreators
+2.7M YouTube subscribers

Glen Scott needed to change his truck’s fuel filter and couldn’t find good instructions online. So he decided to figure it out himself and make a how-to video, posting it to YouTube in May 2015. “Building and fixing things was a passion of mine,” Glen recalls. “It’s not like I had a lot of experience, but I figured I'd just share my mistakes and successes along the way.” By day, Glen had been installing home security systems, including  for celebrities  at Florida’s luxury estates. Seeing their high-end home decor and furnishings inspired his own passion for woodworking. With one YouTube video under his belt, Glen began creating and posting more do-it-yourself (DIY) home improvement videos. In September 2015, Glen officially launched his DIY Creators channel on YouTube, recording tips and tricks for woodworking projects from his garage workshop. Word of Glen’s YouTube channel spread organically. Eventually, Home Depot and Lowe’s came knocking with sponsorships, and other big-box brands advertisers got on board, too. In 2018, Glen quit his full-time job to focus on building out DIY Creators.

When COVID-19 forced people to hunker down at home, demand for his home improvement videos skyrocketed. By January 2021, his YouTube channel had 2.7 million worldwide subscribers. Viewers appreciate Glen’s innovative designs, DIY ingenuity, and “You can do it, too!” approach. Google Analytics helps Glen understand what’s trending with his audience. For example, his “Homemade Gym” videos gained traction during the pandemic, when home workout equipment was scarce. DIY Creators continues to grow, with up to 50,000 new subscribers per month. Glen has launched a companion website and a Spanish-language YouTube channel, and he plans to hire a professional videographer. To other would-be YouTube creators, Glen offers his blueprint for success: “Just jump in and go. Don’t get caught up in making things perfect. Just show your success with your flaws and let it happen naturally.”

GORUCK

Location: Jacksonville Beach, Florida
Website: www.goruck.com
30 employees

Jason McCarthy is a decorated combat veteran who served overseas in the Special Forces from 2006 to 2008. While visiting his wife, a Foreign Service Officer working in the war-torn city of Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, Jason assembled a “go-bag” for her to keep in her truck. “In the Special Forces, when you go out on a mission, you put extra supplies and gear in the trunk of your Humvee in case your vehicle gets disabled and you have to fight,” he said. “So I made her a bag filled with medical supplies, radios, and other things that were adapted to her lifestyle on the Ivory Coast.” When his wife’s colleagues began requesting bags of their own, Jason thought he might have a business opportunity on his hands. With no previous business or product training, Jason turned to YouTube to learn more about how to design backpacks from online tutorials. From there, he created the GR1, a bag designed for use anywhere — in Baghdad or New York City. Jason officially launched GORUCK in 2010, but he wasn’t sure how he was going to sell his products online. Once Jason realized the high costs of producing his first rucks, he knew that going digital was the difference between “life and death,” and he turned to the internet.

Once online, GORUCK partnered with a marketing agency to use YouTube and Google Ads to speak directly with consumers and share its brand message. “Google Ads generates 11% of our web traffic and roughly 15% of our sales revenue,” said Jason, who cites an $11 return for every dollar spent on the platform. Today, Jason’s team uses Google Analytics to keep an eye on their campaigns and Google Optimize 360 to run A/B tests and make adjustments on the fly. They also use Google Trends and Google Correlate to help them find search patterns in real time. GORUCK also relies on Google organizationally, using G Suite to communicate and stay organized. “We just find it better for collaboration,” Jason said.

Google Ads has helped GORUCK serve more than 55,000 customers to date and will continue to be a pillar of its marketing efforts moving forward. “I think it’s telling that our customers are making more than one transaction per customer,” said Jason. The company has grown both in size — it now has 30 employees — and in impact. It hosts hundreds of events each year to help people get out and engage with the world. That includes its hallmark team endurance event, the GORUCK Challenge. “Technology is great, but we view it as a means to get people more active and involved in their communities,” concluded Jason.

Rope Lace Supply

Location: Orlando, Florida
Website: www.ropelacesupply.com
Rope Lace Supply sells to over 120 countries around the world

As university freshmen, Eric Delgado and Victoria Weiss were making extra cash buying and selling collectible sneakers. But finding limited-edition kicks before other resellers was difficult, so the self-proclaimed "sneakerheads" shifted gears. "Sneaker accessories are very popular, and we realized that no one was doing just shoelaces," Eric recalls. The couple found a supplier to fulfill a small order of colored shoelaces. "To our surprise, we sold out of 600 pairs in two weeks," he says. In 2014, while still undergraduates, Eric and Victoria launched Rope Lace Supply. They ran their fledgling online business out of their dorm rooms and racked up $250,000 in sales their first year. After graduation, the pair turned their passion into full-time careers. Now they offer 150 different styles of shoelaces and sell to over 120 countries around the world.

Rope Lace Supply caters to a niche audience of sneaker aficionados looking to customize their shoes. To reach fellow sneakerheads in the U.S. and around the world, Eric and Victoria use AdWords, Google’s advertising program. “It helps us find just the right customer—people who want to buy shoelaces in different colors, styles, and materials,” says Eric. Google Analytics equips the entrepreneurs with the insights to grow their business. “With Analytics, we can better understand our customer base,” Eric explains, “which in turn helps us identify new opportunities and informs the kinds of shoelaces we design.” The duo also uses G Suite tools, such as Gmail, Docs, and Drive, to run an efficient and nimble operation.

With sales growing at a double-digit rate every year, Eric and Victoria have their eyes set on new horizons. “We want to expand into wholesale markets and start licensing products for sports teams, colleges, and universities,” Eric shares. “We’re always looking for new and cool ways for people to customize their gear.” To other entrepreneurs who hope to follow in their footsteps, Eric stresses the importance of taking action. “You don’t need a life-changing invention to start a successful business. With what’s out there on the Internet, if you have something that you’re passionate about—even shoelaces—you really can grow a business. You just have to start.”

Everything For Your Party

Location: Southwest Ranches, Florida
Website: www.everythingforyourparty.com
10 people

As a single parent, Gladys Hurtado worked several jobs throughout her son’s childhood to ensure that they always had a secure income. One of those jobs was as a manager at a banquet hall. When her son graduated from college, she took a risk and turned her 14 years of event-coordination experience into Everything For Your Party, which she owns and operates herself. At the end of 2014, she threw her first party and reinvested the earnings to “plant the seed for 2015,” she says. Her business has since grown from that single event to nearly 70 recurring clients.

Being able to scale quickly was the result of Gladys’ business savvy and clever implementation of AdWords, Google’s advertising program. With a sizeable inventory of event supplies like chairs, tables, and glassware, she realized that she could rent out equipment and extend her services beyond the usual full-blown event production. She started promoting “party rental” on AdWords and unlocked tremendous growth. “AdWords not only helped me find more customers for the event-production side of my business, it created a whole new revenue stream through party rentals,” she explains. “My profits pretty much doubled.” Gladys continues to see huge returns on AdWords. “For every dollar I put in, I get about four dollars back,” she says, which is why she dedicates nearly all of her marketing budget to the digital platform. While the full-scale events still tend to have a higher price tag than the rentals, she realized, “I don’t get as tired renting 500 chairs as I do throwing a 250-person party.” Discovering this opportunity has enabled Gladys to transform Everything For Your Party into a more scaleable business.

Whether providing the chairs or an end-to-end experience, Gladys is most gratified by her satisfied customers, many of whom refer her to their friends and family. Gladys is a native Spanish speaker, and part of her expansion has meant more business in English. While this has been a challenge, she refuses to shy away from the opportunities with English-speaking customers. “I’m getting a lot better with each conversation,” she says. In the meantime, she uses Google Translate to ensure that she and her English-speaking clients are on the same page. “I’ve been able to provide great customer service regardless of the language.”

RealTruck (AutoCustoms)

Location: Ocala, Florida
Website: www.autocustoms.com
142 employees

When Stuart Compton, the founder and president of AutoCustoms, decided to turn his lifelong passion for automobiles into a career, he knew two things: He wanted to start his own business, and he wanted to keep it in his hometown. “My wife grew up in Ocala, and I've been here almost half my life. It's a great, great place to raise a family,” he says. The third thing he knew was that he would need to use the Internet to be innovative as an automotive aftermarket retailer. Since opening AutoCustoms in 2005, delivering everything from running boards to truck bed covers, Stuart has leveraged the power of the digital economy to grow his business into a career for not just himself, but for his employees.

Stuart years ago researched how AdWords, Google's advertising program, could turn a small start-up's advertising budget into big results. Nothing has changed since. “We really look for a big return for any Google program that we’re using,” he says. He attributes 70% of their 2015 sales to AdWords. AutoCustoms expects to hit triple-digit growth in coming years thanks in part to Google tools. In addition to AdWords, AutoCustoms also creates YouTube videos to inform customers and build brand awareness. Google Apps for Work’s suite of workflow tools like Gmail, Google Docs, and Google Sheets helps to keep the company running and everyone connected, which is particularly important because they plan to add an additional 40-50 employees by the end of 2016.

Stuart measures his true success not by sales, but by the prosperity he helps bring to his Florida town. “We are able to create jobs, good jobs—fun and fulfilling jobs. It is gratifying and rewarding,” he says. “’Exciting' is an understatement for what the community's response has been to keeping the talent pool in Ocala.” Google is helping AutoCustoms continue to be a shining example of what’s possible, from anywhere. “The world is a big place, but with Google and these tools, you can reach them.”