Entrepreneur and CEO at Florida Business Consulting, Eric Martin was recently recognised for the firm’s achievements by being nominated for a ‘Business Owner of the Year’ award at a prestigious Sales and Marketing Gala last month. We recently sat down with Eric to discuss his career journey and goals for the future.
How long have you been in business?
I have been running my own business since September 2011. It’s hard to believe it’s almost 5 years already!
What did you do before you launched Florida Business Consulting?
Before launching Florida Business Consulting, I worked in two different job roles. The first was in accounting, where I worked in an entry-level role at a CPA firm and the second was selling Health Insurance. I also completed two Masters; one in Accounting and an MBA in International Business. I have always had a real student mentality and hunger for knowledge, and I believe these are the core characteristics that helped me develop into the successful entrepreneur I am today.
What has been your biggest lesson?
Always stay humble. I entered the direct sales and marketing industry with a huge ego and I quickly realised that whatever you’ve done in the past doesn’t matter; it’s all about what you’re doing now. Being a business owner is a great mental test. I am consistently having to reinvent myself and keep Florida Business Consulting innovative. I decided to become the best student and this is when things started happening and my career began to take off.
The past 12 months have been huge for you, what has influenced this growth spurt?
When I launched my business 12 months ago, I started with the company with just a small group of people made a commitment to build the best team there ever was. My colleagues Sasha and Jovana, who have been with me from the beginning, partnered in the administration/HR side of the business and we started to grow at a rapid pace. My reason for wanting to be successful has changed from when I first pursued entrepreneurship. A huge motivator was the birth of my first daughter, which created a much bigger goal since it wasn’t about me anymore. My sense of urgency is greater and my work ethic is stronger now that I’ve become a father.
You’ve recently been nominated for an industry award (Business Owner of the Year), what does that mean to you?
I’m honoured and excited! The sales and marketing industry as a whole has seen such rapid growth and being nominated as one of the best business owners is a good pat on the back. It’s amazing recognition for the work the team has put in and the results we’ve generated.
If you could go back in time, what advice would you give yourself when you were first starting out?
Be a better student. There are so many examples of success in the sales and marketing industry nowadays that it makes it easy to go get the information. Once you have the information, all you have to do after that is to apply it. Having a greater sense of urgency would have also made my journey to becoming a business owner much faster.
What are your future business plans?
Short-term: I want my organisation to double in size within the next 12 months and create opportunities for other business professionals.
Mid-term: I’m focusing on consulting the offices I oversee and would like to improve their results to a point where they’ve grown so big that I can just work from a cell phone and a laptop and not have to put on a suit every day and go into an office.
