Today we’d like to introduce you to Samantha Murphy.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Samantha. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I am originally from the Island of Trinidad, but after moving to Miami when I was 11 years old, the 305 became what I call home. I have always been an entrepreneur and I started my first business at 14 years old; it was called Samantha’s Clothing and Jewelry. I would get my mom to take me to the Miami Merchandise Mart where I purchased clothing. Then, I got my friends to model the clothes for me and I put together an album that people could shop from. I had business cards made and bought a clothing rack that I would wheel around to people’s homes. After that, I became involved in a few other businesses before settling in as vice president at my family’s export company. I eventually left there in 2011 to stay home and focus on raising my family.
During that time, I chaired committees at my local club and was president of our women’s tennis association. I also became even more involved in volunteering at my children’s schools and helped run events such as fundraising galas and school carnivals. I sat on the board of my son’s pre-school, was vice president of the Junior League of Miami Foundation board, and I am currently on the Beaux Arts Miami board. I mention these things so when I tell you that I was a stay-at-home mom for eight years before coming back into the workforce, you understand that I was still heavily involved in my community and I was keeping my skills sharp. So, when the opportunity came along to get back into business, I was ready.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The decision to start 305 Hive was a quick one. I found out about a local business that was for sale in September and had basically one month to rebrand and learn the business. So, with that incredibly short timeline came a few challenges. I worked seven days a week and sometimes 16-hour days to get everything up and running in time. The biggest challenges for me were technical ones. Setting up an entire company in 30 days is a feat in and of itself, but when you have to wait on others to fix technical glitches or to set things up it can become quite challenging. These days, many of these companies have tech support departments that you cannot contact by phone so you have to wait for days for them to answer an email and when they do answer you, the back and forth can take days as well. Not everything moves at the speed you need it to, and the waiting can be frustrating.
Especially when some of the tech support is in another country, such as Russia, you lose a day just with the difference in time zones. So, I ended up learning a few things myself out of necessity, such as a little bit of HTML coding. But what stands out to me rather than the struggles were the friends and family that have gone out of their way to help and support me.
305 Hive – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I am the proud owner of 305 Hive, an advertising and marketing company. We publish a weekly newsletter, a community bulletin, to over 15,000 local subscribers. As cliché as it may sound, I am a people person and a people connector. Hence, forming 305 Hive was a natural fit for me. It is a wonderful feeling being able to keep our local community linked to each other.
Our subscribers come to us for advice on where to find any and all of life’s essentials to maintain their lifestyles. From the dining hot spots to learning of event happenings around town, 305 Hive has the buzz! As an added bonus, we are known to help our readers find services, such as a handyman, a dog walker, or nannies and domestic helpers. We connect our readers to the best resources that we have, each other.
Given that we are a lifestyle resource, we have features such as a Holiday Guide and a Health and Wellness Edition, and we are especially known as a great resource for Schools and Camps.
A unique tidbit about our newsletter is that we pride ourselves in publishing stories by locals, not professional writers — people with a great story to share from their hearts. Given how often our news is plagued with tragic events, 305 Hive is your spot for touching reads. Moreover, we are firm believers in supporting local businesses and charities. Many of our clients are Not-for-Profits and we help them to share information about their charity events. In addition, we have thoughtful angels who collect items for those less fortunate, and it fills our hearts when we can join a person in need with someone who has something that they are willing to donate, whether that is their time, their talent, or their treasure.
Anyone can sign up for our free newsletter at www.305hive.com. We encourage you to join our hive for all the buzz about town.
What role has luck (good luck or bad luck) played in your life and business?
I believe that we make our own luck, and our luck comes from our attitude towards life and the way we see things. There is almost always a silver lining and you can always find something to feel lucky about, even in a tough situation. I was recently in a horrific car accident and my first thought was how lucky I was to be alive. I was filled with gratitude. I suppose I could have also left that accident feeling how unlucky I was to be driving on that street, on that day, and at that time. But instead, I chose to focus on the positive and I feel that way about most things in life. So, when you ask about luck, I say that there is always some good luck out there, you just have to train your brain to find it.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.305hive.com
- Email: info@305hive.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/305hive
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/305hive
Image Credit:
Natifoto
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