Today we’d like to introduce you to Miesha Robinson.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Miesha. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I was born and raised in Long Beach, CA. The middle child to a single parent home. My mother raised myself and two other siblings to the best of her ability after a tough divorce. It was hard at times, but we made the best out of what we had. Throughout my youth, I witnessed so much growing up in my neighborhood, gang violence, drug abuse, and poverty but my Mother always inspired me to dream beyond my circumstance and speak success into my life. I was unique, adventurous, imaginative, creative, and eager to learn. I excelled in academics and in the arts earning a 4.0 GPA and studying music theory, concert piano and vocals throughout high school but there was always a piece of me that knew entrepreneurship was at the core of who I am.
As a full time student at California State University Dominguez Hills, I began working full time in retail, I hated it; I knew that wasn’t the life for me. So, I ventured out into sales. I hated that too, but I was good at it.However, like any other entrepreneur I wasn’t being fulfilled and I was unhappy so, I prayed on it and began teaching myself how to create blogs and websites with my God-given gift of creativity and little help from YouTube. After graduating with my bachelors degree in marketing 2014, I started to write down all my goals, ideas and timelines in detail. One early morning at 3 am, I woke up with a flood of ideas for a website which incorporated my love for live music and entertainment. I knew God was talking to me! This was the first seed to a growing ticketing platform. I stumbled into tech and didn’t realize I was flowing in my purpose.
I began to deep dive into the world of tech and events, aligning myself with organizations like Black Women in Technology which I currently serve as an advisory board member and I helped organize events throughout the city of Los Angeles for small businesses, personal engagements, and product launches. I also created websites for emerging businesses and personal brands.
In October 2017, I was determined to have economic freedom and grow my idea into a full-fledge tech startup, Ucrowd. I dived head-first into the world of entrepreneurship with this new innovative ticketing platform which formed the basis of a revolution in the ticketing and event planning industry.
Has it been a smooth road?
No! the road has been very rough, tough, and sometimes leading to a dead end. There has been plenty of setbacks throughout my journey but that did not stop me from pulling myself up and pushing forward. In August of 2017, I was laid off from my sales job at Kellogg’s, I guess that was God’s way of getting my attention and forcing me to bring my vision into fruition. So, I began to work as a freelancer, creating websites, blogs, and writing articles for others. I also was blessed to become an executive manager for the Hertz Corporation and worked on Ucrowd fulltime as well. Can you say, booked and busy!
God made a way out of no way! I began to flourish financially, and I was able to fully fund my business out of my own finances. Inspired by my own self-determination and other female entrepreneurs I connected with along the way, I began ironing out the details of my business through marketing, identifying my niche, creating the software and connecting with people and organizations that needed my services. Ucrowd is about community and connecting people across the globe through events.
One of my key goals is to develop innovative technology and design programs for inner-city youth in poverty-stricken areas across the U.S. The aim of these programs is to harness the youth’s entrepreneurial spirit by exposing them to a welcoming environment where they can explore a diverse range of tech-related careers, businesses, and opportunities to break generational curses and build generational wealth.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Ucrowd story. Tell us more about the business.
Ucrowd is an events platform for event curators and attendees to create, discover, and sell tickets online. Our Mission is to create a global community by bringing people together through memorable events and social moments. There are plenty of event platforms in the market but what sets us apart from others is our ability to shape the intersection of social media, global ticketing and sophisticated event planning technology by creating a safe and seamless environment for creators and attendees to connect and network before, during and after the event. Anyone can create an event on the Ucrowd platform, our services are always free for free events.
At Ucrowd, we are currently partnering with artists, businesses, organizations and cities to bring Ucrowd to the forefront in an industry where people don’t look like us. We are creating a new wave of events that gives people of color an opportunity to connect, make money and build businesses. Ucrowd is a community so there are no contracts, no pricing tiers, and no hassles. Ucrowd gives the users the power to create personalized experiences in three simple steps; create, sell, and share. Our features and benefits are like no other, it’s a disruptive platform that will change the market significantly.
As a Founder and CEO of a tech startup, I am very proud to be a Black Woman in a very male-dominated industry. There is very little representation for women and especially women of color in the tech space but I am committed to changing the narrative and creating more diversity in the industry. There is no ceiling or box to put us in. We are game-changers and trendsetters! Ucrowd is black-owned, black operated and for the culture. As a tech leader, I am paving the way for other black women in tech and business overall. I hope I can inspire another black little girl from the hood to think outside the box. Don’t settle, work hard, be creative, love your uniqueness and give back. It’s about creating places and spaces where we can thrive together.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
I believe to be an entrepreneur you must have faith, action and determination. In my journey, I have shared my ideas and thoughts with others but I haven’t always had support or positive reinforcement. Sometimes I was told it wasn’t going to work and my ideas were too broad but I knew what God placed on my heart and what I was determined to do. So, I leaned on my faith when I was in doubt and continued to put in the work even when I didn’t see immediate results but I knew I was one step away from changing the course of my family history and creating an abundant future.
The bible simply says faith without works is dead. You can have all the faith in the world but without putting in work to bring it into fruition, how could you possibly move a mountain? Success is different for everyone but breaking generation cures through entrepreneurship is the key to creating the life God has for me and impacting others’ lives with a sprinkle of Black Girl Magic!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.ucrowd.co
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ucrowdllc/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UcrowdLLC/
- Other: https://www.instagram.com/iammiesha
Image Credit:
Ricky Margain
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