Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexis Fox
Hi Alexis , we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
During the pandemic, I worked in local government as a marketing manager. My job was to let small businesses in the community know about resources, funding, and other essential information during that time. It became abundantly clear that Black and Queer-owned companies were being overlooked in the allocation of funding and support, which didn’t sit well with me. I was also experiencing burnout at work and was being targeted by my boss during a tumultuous time. I wanted to feel good about what I was doing and ensure that information pertinent to the survival of these businesses was reaching them – this is the origin of Go Gina. I began posting the resources to my Instagram and contacting minority-owned companies to highlight and feature them on my page. I was approached by a small business incubator program to do free virtual workshops on marketing and leveraging digital platforms to grow your business and pivot during the pandemic. It is important to me that business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs understand how to market themselves and their brands – especially with trends’ virality and fleeting nature. I want to see these businesses thrive long-term and set them up for success.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Life be lifing. I launched my business in July of 2020 and experienced excellent traction and support through partnering with Cities, elected officials, and private sector corporations invested in the vitality of minority-owned businesses. I was preparing to transition from my 9 – 5 into entrepreneurship full-time, and then my best friend died suddenly in April of 2021. Her name is Stephanie Anderson. It was the most devastating moment of my life. I spiraled and sank, which was my right. I could barely get out of bed, let alone run a business. My mental health was nonexistent, and I experienced suicidal ideations, which led to me seeking Professional help in the form of a therapist and psychiatrist. I was diagnosed with manic depression and anxiety. In the black community – talk about mental health is mum. Navigating and Understanding this diagnosis was an intense labor of self-reflection and trial and error. I questioned everything about myself – and what I was doing professionally. All the while still grieving the loss of my friend. I would start up again and then disappear for months at a time. It was until I took an initial step back to refocus, rest, and heal that I was able to move Go Gina forward last year.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
At the beginning of my professional career I was hired as a Marketing Coordinator for the City of Miramar and tasked with the promotion of city events on social media. I quickly realized there wasn’t a social media strategy for engagement or a resource hub containing additional information that may not be captured on social media. Due to my innovation, creativity, and understanding of the need for digital presence, I developed a Marketing Strategy Proposal that would roll out in Three Phases over the course of three years. Although I had very little knowledge of the procurement processes and budgets at the local government level, I leveraged my analytical and problem-solving skills to understand the previous Marketing budget allocations. I also collaborated with the more tenured members of my team, making sure they were involved in the planning and asking what they enjoyed about their positions. This fostered impactful collaboration and instilled their trust in me as a leader.
My plan was adopted and within the year I was promoted from Coordinator to Marketing Manager. As the Marketing Manager for the City of Miramar, I allocated a $250,000 marketing budget, including advertising, print collateral, special events and workshops, and Media Buys for TV, Radio, and Digital. This demonstrated my ability to design and implement strategy. I managed a team of four in-house and managed upwards of 10 vendor contracts to successfully promote the platforms across the City with improved social media engagement.
My pivot from Marketing into Program Management was nontraditional. It was birthed out of several factors. The most prominent was my desire to learn more about the digital landscape outside of marketing, and the need to do more to assist those in need during the pandemic. In every position, I have consistently leveraged my problem-solving skills to tackle real-world challenges. Throughout my professional career, I have gained extensive experience in using my technical and interpersonal skills to solve complex problems and absorb anything I can learn from those around me. I truly believe the best leaders never stop learning. During the Pandemic, I was contacted by FIU Small Business Incubator – StartUp FIU local, to collaborate with the team and provide online activities, recruitment, and outreach to local entrepreneurs. Collectively, the team developed, produced, and promoted over 100 hours of workshops from industry professionals and a resource library for the businesses that lived online. I organized this collaboration with various departments and community organizations to develop and implement resources and services for small businesses. This is where my desire to build programming was birthed. Seeing the impact of the programs and resources on the participants moved me.
I am most proud of my partnership with Diversetech a resource that brings new and developing technology solutions to build and support a more resilient small business community. There is particular emphasis on helping our entrepreneurial ecosystem – while ensuring that we prioritize diversity and creating opportunities for all. My ability to work with cross-functional platforms and develop cohesive project plans has enabled me to deliver innovative programs with desired outcomes successfully. This includes the development of quarterly Marketing Workshops that focus on the pain points that small businesses and entrepreneurs face while utilizing the data to funnel participants into our other programs. This program currently touches over 100 local small businesses in Miami-Dade and Broward counties with more than 40% being minority-owned and operated.
In my role with the South Florida SBDC, I can speak to entrepreneurs and develop programming to help Minority-owned businesses scale and develop the marketing and branding skills to go after capital, both investment capital and grants. We have a cohort starting in January at the Center for Black Innovation in Overtown and a spring cohort at Oasis at Miami Gardens – a black-owned co working space in March.
Bell Hooks once said: “If we are to reach our people. All people, if we are to remain connected…we must understand that the telling of one’s story provides a meaningful example, a way for folks to identify and connect.”
While the Digital space certainly opened opportunities – it also highlighted further socioeconomic divides. Minority-owned small businesses with limited access to connectivity or knowledge of who to contact for resources experienced a gap in financial support and overall exposure for their businesses. Free programming and incubators equipped small business owners with the tools to be competitive within their industries by developing unique marketing concepts, providing financial resources, and hosting workshops on business strategies. Go Gina Group aims to meet these entrepreneurs where they are, build relationships, and create community so that small businesses are not left behind.
What were you like growing up?
As a kid, I was very loud. I have always found power in using my voice. I was involved in dance, drama, and cheer in my younger years and always tried to get things for the team. In elementary school, I was engaged in spirit days – picking activities the other kids would enjoy. Throughout middle school and high school, I organized several committees and groups for students. I have always loved and been passionate about connecting people and fulfilling their needs. My high school was a small private school. We didn’t have a dance team. I am nowhere near a competitive dancer – I can do the single ladies’ routine and a cute 1-2 step, but it didn’t stop me from organizing a dance troupe at my school because the girls who looked like me wanted another option outside of cheerleading. We petitioned, found a teacher to sponsor and escort us, and even fundraised for uniforms. My interest in sports peaked in my freshman year of high school. I played volleyball through my sophomore year before transferring to FIU, where I finished my bachelor’s degree. I’ve always held leadership positions on committees and boards in my academic and professional life.
I was on the student committee for volunteers for the Sobe Wine and Food Fest and Student liaison of FIU’s brew fest – an event started by hospitality students! I was an active member of the Greater Ft. Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau, highlighting tourism in Broward County to bring visibility to minority-owned AND LGBTQIA + businesses that utilize tourism as a revenue stream. I am a service-based leader – I take so much joy and pride in seeing my people thrive and being the bridge to resources and opportunities for them. I am still loud to this day, I advocated for Women and Minorites by partnering with FIU’s DEI fellowship for grad students. I enjoy going to events, traveling, networking, and currently running. Shout out to my running group – Running Edge 305, and my amazing Hyrox Race community! I love the idea of accessible things and building community wherever I go.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gogina_group/
