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Venezuelan natives Orlando and Mayela Rosales started the Southwest Florida Spanish media company Media Vista Group in 2002 in a garage with barebones equipment. A decade and a half later, they are celebrating the opening of their state-of-the-art headquarters, a newly constructed building facing busy U.S. 41 in Bonita Springs.
Reasons to relocate went beyond the additional square footage. They want the business to become recognizable to everyone in Southwest Florida, not just current viewers and clients. “It is for everybody,” says Mayela Rosales.
The central location bridges both Lee and Collier counties, where Media Vista broadcasts and distributes its publication D'Latinos. “It's not only exposure, but also, we would like to continue serving the community,” says Mayela Rosales, who participates in a prominent area wellness movement called The Blue Zones Project.
The company has grown steadily since 2002. It's acquired its own broadcast channel, added a magazine and rescued affiliates from going under. One key to their success, the couple says, is their willingness to produce original content through their media outlets, projects that can be costly.
On the goal of seeking more visibility with a new building, that oddly began to pay off during the construction phase, when visitors just stopped by and walked into the half-built studio. That still happens today in the completed studio, says Orlando Rosales. And that never happened at their industrial park location in Naples. “Sometimes people just come, walk in — we don't know who they are — and they are in the kitchen,” Orlando Rosales says. The couple has since enhanced security.
The state-of-the-art studio, which opened in September, was a $2 million project. “It's not just the walls of the new building, we have also invested in more technical equipment to operate better,” says Orlando Rosales.
“Our philosophy is, even though we are going to produce a TV spot for a small grocery store, it will need to have quality, it will need to look good,” Mayela Rosales adds. “We don't differentiate.”
The new space is also a boost for employees. With the additional space and energetic background music, people are happier and everything “flows better,” says Orland Rosales. “Before, we were packed.”
Several conference spaces provide opportunities to meet spontaneously. “Our productivity has increased, and we can be also more creative, doing other things that would bring more revenue to the company,” says Mayela Rosales. The creative atmosphere has already produced new ideas for original local programming.
Orlando Rosales says 2016 revenue was steady, though it's been a slower year compared to the recent past. “But we were also working on this project and other distractions. Next year, we'll see the benefit of this project in terms of revenue,” he says. “I'm actually happy we didn't have a decline.”
The main distraction, besides construction, was the move itself. The technical operation and reinstalling their system with the master controls was a complex undertaking. A large crew worked throughout the night on the installation. Upon completion, Orlando was relieved that “it went smooth,” but confesses, “I actually had a drink at, like, 4 in the morning.”
“Our strategy now is to bring the client to us,” adds Orlando Rosales, “so they can see our effort.”
Mayela Rosales says the new building speaks to the couple's work ethic and their entrepreneurial journey. “It's very engaging for the client,” she says. “What they see is that we are very perseverant and we are here, growing, and we are the same people, just having fun, but doing better things with better resources.”
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