Author: nvgrow

CSN Blackstone LaunchPad Entrepreneurship Center Launches Monthly Education Series

Posted on by nvgrow

Starting in March of 2023 community education takes centerstage at the College of Southern Nevada Blackstone Launchpad Entrepreneurship Center. This center is where a number of free educational workshops are now being offered for anyone in the community.

The first class was taught by Patranya Bhoolsuwan, a 3-time Emmy Award winning journalist and founder of media consulting agency, Patranya Media LLC. Her class “Media Training 101” is a 2-hour workshop that covers the following a variety of topics from understanding the media industry to public speaking coaching and storytelling tips for businesses and nonprofits. Registration to this class was full and attendees represent a wide variety of professionals including small business owners, registered nurse, nonprofit leaders, realtors and communications officers from The Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada (RTC)

“Working as a journalist for many years, I know the importance of effective communication skills,” said Bhoolsuwan. “Now that I run my own media consulting agency, I help my clients tell their stories in a clear and compelling way. I am thankful that the CSN Blackstone LaunchPad Entrepreneurship Center is making this learning opportunity available for the community”.

Here are some of the testimonials from the students who attended the first media training class:

“Thank you so much for teaching us the basics of media interviews. I truly need help in speaking in front of a group, organization and of course media interviews. With my new position, I will need to prepare a speech and that is also hard for me to put together, but in time like you said preparation, research and the more you get up and speak, it gets easier”.

  • Sally Balecha, NaFFAA Desert Mountain Region President

“Content of the class was perfect. I learned more than I expected. It was very informative and worth coming to”.

  • Boyzie Milner, Owner Buldogis Gourmet Hot Dogs

“The length of the class was perfect. It was great to meet classmates from different business fields. Thanks again”.

  • Mi Sun Han, Owner Buldogis Gourmet Hot Dogs

“I love how we covered many different topics in a short amount of time. As a realtor, I needed to practice speaking in public and using the media to promote my listings. I learned a lot in this class, especially in better understanding how the media works”.

  • Celina Go, Realtor

This educational initiative is also powered by the College of Southern Nevada (CSN) and Blackstone LaunchPad. CSN’s Blackstone LaunchPad group fosters a culture of innovative entrepreneurship within the Las Vegas Community by developing events and programs that help a diverse student population acquire the expertise necessary to create and sustain a successful business.

Floral Architect, Mylo Lopez, Launches Refugee Resettlement Non-Profit, Land to Land

Posted on by nvgrow

 

When renown floral architect Mylo Lopez received a call from a friend in Russia asking for help as they were preparing to flee the country due to the war, she knew that there were more families like them in need. They were ordered to join a war against Ukraine and if denied to do so, would be exiled or tortured, so they decided to flee as they couldn’t imagine killing friends they had in Ukraine. For Mylo, the situation hit home as she lived and taught in Russia and Ukraine for 3 years and saw it as an opportunity to take action. She called on more hospitality industry leaders and partners to join the cause and the nonprofit Tierra a Tierra, better known as Land to Land, was born. In February of 2023, Land to Land was officially launched with a beautiful event full of refugee stories, community members and outstanding floral design by Mylofleur. With help from NV Grow, Land to Land is growing and reaching more families in order to increase the impact.

The organization Land to Land focuses on helping refugees from war torn countries, including Russians, Ukrainians, Syrians and more, have a safe transition to a new home by providing crucial information, guidance, and services like food, shelter and travel assistance. With more than 8 million Ukrainians and Russians escaping their countries due to the war, according to UNHCR, the non-profit works on assisting as many refugees as possible and showing the impact Vegas can have on the global crisis. Land to Land will also be partnering with MyloFleur, a floral design company owned by Mylo, to provide refugees the opportunity to work in the hospitality industry.

The story behind the founder & her booming floral architect business, Mylofleur

Mylo Lopez, Owner of Mylofleur & Founder of Land to Land speaking with Eric Garner, Interim Director of NV Grow

The woman behind Land to Land and Mylofleur is a true example of hard work and dedication. Mylo Lopez, owner of Mylofleur and founder of the non-profit Land to Land, would help her mom clean after floral designers at MGM Mirage events to pay for architecture school. With big dreams and a keen eye, she networked with industry leaders as they would organize the events and through perseverance and opportunity, she soon became their florist.

She then created Mylofelur, a biophilic floral production design company based in Las Vegas that operates around the world, specializing in fresh floral and plant art installations, creating divergence and transforming spaces in special and private events including music entertainment venues, high end weddings, bohemian elopement designs, fashion & corporate events and more.

Now with 20 years of experience with clients like the Grammys, Imagine Dragons, Usher, Anita Baker, Missy Eliott, Bitcoin, Facebook, Twitter and more, Mylofleur elevates your idea and brings it to life, creating a unique space that shows that anything is possible. Now receiving marketing assistance from NV Grow and funding through NVenture Fund, Mylofleur and Land to Land are booming and are only going up from here. You can find the news story aired, below.

***All pictures are credit to McKenzie Taylor from Cactus Collective

Milpa Becomes First and Only Restaurant in Vegas Off the Strip to Grind Corn and Make Masa from Scratch with Handmade Tortillas

Posted on by nvgrow

Do you remember the first time you ate a stone ground heirloom blue corn tortilla? It’s like any other and unforgettable right? That very moment of tasting the unique flavor, is what sparked the concept of Milpa for owner and international chef DJ Flores.

After working in some of the best restaurants in the world, DJ contracted COVID and subsequently got fired as chef from a restaurant on the strip. With community in mind, DJ decided to courageously start his own restaurant during the pandemic and bring back that authentic Mexican taste he never forgot about, while also providing a healthy twist. He opened Milpa, a healthy Mexican restaurant in Las Vegas providing high quality ingredients, handmade stone ground heirloom tortillas, and most of all, a taste of homemade Mexican culture.

A community based restaurant that provides locally sourced items & ingredients and provides a space for community events, Milpa lives up to its name: the milpa, which is a crop growing system used in Mexico & Central America where corn is planted alongside squash and beans to help eachother grow. Like the milpa, when one grows, we all grow. Here, he decided to be the first off the strip to make the masa (dough) for his handmade stone-ground heirloom tortillas instead of buying processed masa, like most.

The process used to grind the corn to make the masa in-house is the same one used by the Mesoamerican civilization 600 years ago, one called nixtamalization. Every morning the masa is made fresh to make homemade tortillas, tetelas, tamales and more. With corn brought from small farmers in Mexico thanks to their partner Masienda, while using the molino, Milpa brings a piece of Mexico that the local Vegas community hadn’t seen before.

Also offering vegetarian and vegan dishes, their bowls showcase the grains that also characterize Mexican gastronomy and demonstrate that corn isn’t the only ingredient that steals the show here. With all fresh organic or heirloom vegetables you can truly savor and dressings made from scratch that always include a mexican ingredient, Milpa really is a culture you can taste. A Nevada Grow client, Milpa is now looking to open more locations soon. 

By: Idania Ramirez, NV Grow

American Rescue Plan

Posted on by nvgrow

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo recently announced that the Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration (EDA) will invest $3 billion to help communities across the country Build Back Better.

Interested in learning more about these opportunities? EDA is hosting a series of informational webinars throughout the month of August to discuss how to apply for the newly announced EDA funding opportunities through the American Rescue Plan.

Research & Networks Webinar
Friday, August 6 @ 2pm EST

Economic Adjustment Assistance Webinar
Monday, August 9 @ 2pm EST

Indigenous Communities Webinar
Tuesday, August 10 @ 2pm EST

Good Jobs Challenge Webinar
Thursday, August 12 @ 2pm EST

Visit https://go.usa.gov/xFREj for additional registration details.