(upbeat music) - We're now joined for the first time, won't be the last time, by Citi Medina, who is the CEO and founder of a great organization called Equal Space.

Citi, great to have you with us.

- Oh, so great to be here, Steve, so great.

- You got it.

We're gonna put up the website of Equal Space.

What is it and why does it matter, particularly to those who need a lot of help for the wrong reasons?

- You know, I think Equal Space, like many spaces and startups that are founded by people of color, serves a particular need in helping diverse founders find their legs, access, and resources.

So we are a share space and incubator, headquartered proudly here in Newark for the last nine years with now two campuses.

And what we do is so much more besides just providing a suite.

We actually provide programming support and community in an effort to help galvanize founders to really go forward and lead their startups to success.

And so that's really my pride point in what Equal Space does in the coworking industry.

- Other great not-for-profits over at 550 Broad Street in Newark.

Terrific things going on there.

Let me follow up on this.

How did you get so involved in advocacy and making a difference?

This, I'm gonna, let me read a quote and then you'll respond to it.

I am a queer person of color and I noticed that a lot of startups are a result of the pain points we have all felt.

I mean, it's powerful.

I want you to expand upon that please, Citi.

- So, you know, in my own initial startup, my first company, I faced a lot of the obstacles that I try to provide access to for founders now.

And that's so funny, given that it's like 14 years of being a full-time entrepreneur myself.

But the pain point of being at the intersection of being Afro-Latino and queer or being femme identifying or being immigrant, those obstacles start to have a commonality around access to funding, around not only the wealth gap, Steve, but also the knowledge gap, having access to networks that allow you to grow your businesses.

And I started to really not only understand it because I was trying to traverse the same terrain, but I was starting to see it in the community I was building here in Newark.

And so I found it to be my calling to create more resources for them because the only difference between us and other opportunities, is just being in the room.

We're talent rich.

We're just under-betted on.

- But let's stay on this.

So we're a nonprofit.

You're a nonprofit.

I'm out there raising money every day.

You're out there raising money every day.

I have access to certain people and certain doors are closed to all.

Not every door is open to everybody.

However, the doors that are open to me, being a lot older than you and being out there, right, building relationships, I can't assume that those same doors with those corporations and foundations are open to you.

How the heck do you, because you can't bang the door down, but how do you, how have you been getting into the doors of corporations and foundations with people who had them up, who often do not look like you or have your experience?

- You know, it's really been about building critical mass.

What I've found is as I build community and we build our numbers, we're at two campuses now.

So we command total with both campuses, 70,000 square feet.

We're very hard to miss now.

And so when you're seeing our programmatic impact, we held two of the largest activations in the city of Newark.

We are the re-founders of Newark Tech Week, and we are also the founders of Small Business Week here in the city of Newark.

And they double and triple every year.

So last year for Newark Tech Week, we had over 3,500 registrants over five days with 15 activations across the city, all free.

- Hold, hold on one second.

You keep talking about activations.

I'm old school, I don't know what activations mean.

Stop using language you know I don't understand.

Citi, what the heck is an activation?

- We call activations when it's outside.

You know, you could call it a program, right?

A program's inside of your.

- Okay.

- An activation's something we're standing up in our beautiful city of Newark that's outside our walls.

And that's something that I think garnered a lot of notice from the foundations.

We're really proud.

The Wells Fargo Foundation, Prudential Foundation are strong partners in our expansion.

And it's because we were doing these public events that were moving the needle forward, Steve, like how to perfect your pitch.

We would gather investors together in a room to tell you exactly what are the top five mistakes that they make.

This was outside of us just running our share space, just outside of our membership structure.

I think that's what really started to get everyone's attention, was that Equal Space has momentum, and we're making solutions.

And we're not just acknowledging obstacles, we're finding ways around them and we're finding ways to break through.

And I think that's how.

- In terms of relationship, sorry for interrupting.

In terms of relationships, the friends at Fidelco, Carrie Bursin, and others, by being in one of their buildings, in one of their properties, you get to work and meet with other not-for-profit leaders, other foundations, et cetera.

How much of what you do at Equal Space, Citi, is connected to what I like to call strategic relationship building, intentional relationship building?

It doesn't just happen, sometimes it happens organically, but that's not a plan.

Go ahead.

- You couldn't have said it better, Steve.

It has been all about being in the right place at the right time.

Partnering with Fidelco and also partnering with Audible have led us to be at the right space here in the Arts and Education District in Newark.

The proximity to our neighbors, like the Victoria Foundation, Big Brothers, Big Sisters, the Dodge Foundation.

- Is it Carlos there?

Is Carlos?

- Yeah, Carlos is right above us.

- And Big Brothers, they are?

- Yeah, all of them are neighbors.

- That's awesome.

I'm sorry to interrupt.

Go ahead, you start, there's a friend group, you know, and we kind of know each other, all know each other, but go ahead.

Keep, pick up your point.

- Listen, Steve, you're only only in the best of company.

I know, I know that.

That's why I was so excited about this opportunity.

But you really, you let it.

I had to build strategically over years, the kind of bandwidth for these foundations and these partners to believe in the mission of Equal Space.

And so, like our relationship with Wells Fargo, they gave us an initial grant that was a smaller amount, and then they built capacity with us.

Same thing with Prudential.

They empowered us to do several of our programs for free because we need the resources to produce the events, right?

And then they built up capacity.

The same thing with Audible.

So being in 550, like right in the heart of downtown, not only provides us as Equal Space with visibility, all of our members are now in the right place at the right time.

- Last question.

Advice for a young entrepreneurial, young entrepreneur, wants to get into business but says, I don't know the right people.

I'm not wired, I'm not connected.

Give 'em some advice.

- If I was to give advice to someone who was trying to start their entrepreneurial journey and they can't get into the right room, or they're not at the right place, right time, I would say, I know exactly how you feel.

I was there.

You have to put yourself out there.

The more uncomfortable that you are, the more in the right place you are, and if you do have obstacles and you don't got the network worth, come to Equal Space.

We will make sure to bring you into our programs.

We program more than half the year and we wanna make sure that you're seen.

- Citi, first of all, thank you for joining us.

It will not be the last time you join us.

You're doing important work, making a difference every day.

And in my hometown, the hometown of many, Brick City and beyond.

Keep doing what you're doing.

You're making a difference.

Well done.

- Thank you so much, Steve.

Thank you for providing us visibility and for seeing us and allowing us to be a part of your amazing show.

I'm really grateful because more people know about us, the more work and change we can make.

- We do the easy part.

You do the hard work.

Citi Medina is CEO and founder of Equal Space.

Thank you my friend.

We'll talk soon.

I'm Steve Adubato, that's Citi Medina.

We'll see you next time.

- [Narrator] One-On-One with Steve Adubato is a production of the Caucus Educational Corporation.

Celebrating 30 years in public broadcasting.

Funding has been provided by NJM Insurance Group.

The Fidelco Group.

The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey.

The New Jersey Economic Development Authority.

New Jersey Sharing Network.

Johnson & Johnson.

The Turrell Fund, a foundation serving children.

Wells Fargo.

And by PSEG Foundation.

Promotional support provided by Northjersey.com and Local IQ.

And by Meadowlands Chamber.

NJM Insurance Group has been serving New Jersey businesses for over a century.

As part of the Garden State, we help companies keep their vehicles on the road, employees on the job and projects on track, working to protect employees from illness and injury, to keep goods and services moving across the state.

We're proud to be part of New Jersey.

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