Cubans Get a Tantalizing Taste of the Internet
HAVANA— Nancy Cabrera has hardly talked with her daughter in the last two years, inhibited by Cuba’s restrictive Internet access. But now, Ms. Cabrera and her daughter, who lives in China, have started to video-chat on their smartphones in a new public Wi-Fi spot as the communist regime here cautiously begins to improve connectivity. “We […]
Small Business Makeover: Machinery parts exporter gears up for changes
In the 1970s, Veronica Le-Bert’s father and brothers started a business exporting parts for the massive mining machinery that excavates copper, gold, lithium and other minerals in South America and the Caribbean. For 13 years, Le-Bert International chugged along as a family-run company, becoming a well known name in the industry. Then George Le-Bert decided […]
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport adds Food Network Kitchen
Motivated by South Florida’s reputation as being a “culinary crossroads, ” the Food Network basically opened its first casual restaurant and gourmet market inside the nation Thursday at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Airport terminal. Foodies and fans of the most popular lifestyle network, magazine and website is now able to get their fix at the meals Network […]
Haitian TV network launching in South Florida
A new Haitian TV network is debuting in South Florida, broadcasting mainly in Creole to fast-growing Haitian communities from Delray Beach to Florida City. Haitian Digital Television is the brainchild of film producer and TV veteran Claude Mancuso, who ran a local 24-hour Haitian cable TV channel that closed in 2006. His new venture will […]
Lauderdale Lakes Broadband Internet and VoIP
Sling Broadband offers business Internet and VoIP telephone service. Miami-based Internet Service Provider Sling Broadband built its network from the ground up specifically to serve the business market. Since its beginnings in 2006, Sling has expanded its service areas to include more than 30 major cities across the United States, making it one of the […]
Miami’s international banking clients move money to protect financial privacy
Under new IRS disclosure regulations, details about U.S. bank accounts held by foreign nonresident depositors could be shared with their home governments. As a result, bankers say hundreds of millions of dollars have left Florida since April. Miami’s position as a hemispheric banking capital could be weakened as some foreign depositors close their accounts in […]
Pitbull takes ownership in The New Miami Subs Grill
Latin hip-hop star Pitbull has always had an affinity for the chicken wings and the gyro platter at Miami Subs. As the child of first generation Cuban immigrants growing up in Miami during the 1980s, Armando Christian Perez considered a trip to Miami Subs a big treat. Years later, the Miami Subs on Washington Avenue […]
Entrepreneur aims to restore Windjammer, Chalk’s and other Florida travel relics
Charles Kropke is on a quest to bring back paradise lost. Longing for the era of swashbuckling ships and island-hopping seaplanes, the 48-year-old entrepreneur has set his sights on bringing new life to the former Miami Beach-based Windjammer Barefoot Cruises, the iconic Chalk’s Ocean Airways and the historic, shuttered Belleview Biltmore Hotel on the Gulf […]
Genting downscales in Miami as it seeks to expand its global brand
Malaysian casino giant Genting says it will move forward with more modest plans for its downtown Miami site. Globally, the company is seeking to expand. Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado hasn’t seen them. Neither has Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez. Nearly six months after the Genting Group failed to get legislative approval for a massive destination casino […]
South Florida salvage firms respond to emergencies at sea
For an example of how to base a business on disaster, look no further than Resolve Marine Group’s Joshua James Response Center in Fort Lauderdale. The 33,000-square-foot warehouse, named for a historic life saver, bursts with fire pumps, hydraulic power units, roller bags, dive helmets, pullers, boats, anchors and countless other pieces of equipment that […]
Miami’s Tire Group International on a roll globally
As soon as Antonio Gonzalez was big enough, he began rolling tires around his father’s service station and tire business in Miami, pumping gas and repairing tires to help out. Today, the CEO of Tire Group International, a Miami company he founded with a friend in 1992, is moving more than 1.3 million tires a […]
Made in South Florida: Home-grown firms thrive
South Florida’s known as a retirement haven and vacation destination to most, but it’s also a place where some entrepreneurs find inspiration for business startups. Several tri-county business owners are proud to call South Florida their headquarters. Many have roots in sunny South Florida that have weathered some rough years and are now continuing to […]
Solar Institute in Lauderdale to train jobless veterans
The U.S. Solar Institute, a Fort Lauderdale school, has been chosen by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to train former military service members without jobs in how to install solar-panel systems. An initial 15 to 20 veterans a month from across the country are expected at the school starting in August for classes that […]
Changing of the Miami guard at American Airlines
Longtime American Airlines executive Peter Dolara retires Friday in Miami, handing the reins to the region’s new vice president, Art Torno. Art Torno still remembers the meeting that changed his career — and ultimately his life. On a Saturday in 1986 at New York City’s Chrysler building, Peter Dolara — an American Airlines executive who […]
Puerto Rico’s Medalla beer now distributed in Florida
Puerto Rico’s Medalla beer is being distributed in Florida for the first time, aiming to tap the soaring number of Puerto Ricans who have relocated to the beer-loving Sunshine State. On Father’s Dayat La Cocina Puertorriquena restaurant in Pembroke Pines, Puerto Rican families ordered scores of the light beer to accompany such traditional dishes as […]
Dutch bank hit with record fine for passing money through U.S. financial entities on behalf of Cuban and Iranian clients
In the largest fine ever assessed against a financial institution for violating U.S. sanctions on Cuba and Iran, Netherlands-based ING Bank will pay $619 million to the U.S. government, the Justice Department announced Tuesday. ING agreed to pay the fine for secretly moving more than $2 billion through U.S. financial institutions in 20,000 transactions from […]
JetBlue in growth mode in South Florida
JetBlue Airways is adding flights to the Caribbean and Latin America from South Florida, hoping to cash in on South Floridians’ roots in those areas. The New York-based airline operates hundreds of flights across the United States and is now a leading carrier at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International and Palm Beach International airports. Experts say JetBlue […]
Fort Lauderdale air ambulance firms to operate jointly
Two longtime castle Lauderdale-primarily based competitors in the air ambulance business have merged to save lots of on costs and assist consumers. Aero Jet International and Air Ambulance Professionals combined operations this month, but will keep their names and existing hangars at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, Dawn Cerbone, executive director of the merged company, said […]
How South Florida’s top 1 percent live
The top 1 percent have a household income north of $400,000 a year — $401,600 in Broward County, $456,206 in Palm Beach County and $413,372 in Miami-Dade, according to a national survey of household incomes by Washington-based Sentier Research. In the membership are some big names like LeBron James, who makes $44 million a year; […]