Why the Future Is in Florida The Sunshine State is investing resources in several industries, including finance. Here's a look at a vibrant FinTech company that's thriving in Florida.

When you consider locations to start or relocate the business of your dreams, you likely think of things like hiring, infrastructure, legal issues, and lifestyle, to name a few. Afterall, you want to base your business somewhere that you can recruit a talented workforce, have necessary resources and services like transportation at your disposal, pay lower taxes, and enjoy your personal life as much as your work life.

Finding that perfect location with all of these important features already in place—now and for the foreseeable future—is far from easy. However, there is one place that has placed a priority on cultivating a business-friendly climate and laid the groundwork for being a startup hub for years to come.

That place is Florida. With no personal income tax and the third largest population in the U.S. (20+ million), Florida has a state GDP of $830 billion with more than $150 billion in annual merchandise trade. It has a wealth of highly regarded colleges and universities, is among the top five best places for business taxes, and has an established and growing stable of thriving companies of all types and sizes.

One industry that thrives in Florida is finance. Here's a look at a FinTech company that has made Florida home—not just for now but for the long haul.

Crunching numbers and pushing the envelope.

Florida is investing money and resources in a number of industries, FinTech among them. No one knows this or appreciates it more than Lil Roberts, founder of Xendoo, a Fort Lauderdale-based online bookkeeping and accounting service for small-business owners. Last year, Xendoo won a major regional pitch competition and took top honors at a startup showcase in 2018.

A serial entrepreneur, Roberts says she founded Xendoo in 2017 after realizing a need for a solution. Prior to Xendoo, she owned a manufacturing business and accounting "was always a tremendous pain point," she says. "It befuddled me as to why the accounting industry wasn't applying technology to keep up with the speed of the business world."

So, that's exactly what Roberts set out to do. She hired a team and built a cloud-based, proprietary platform driven by data, workflow, measurement, and increasing productivity. While a bookkeeper at a traditional CPA firm could handle 20 or 25 customers, Xendoo can manage 100 or 125, Roberts says.

Born in Miami, Roberts says there is no better place to do business than in Florida—South Florida in particular. In addition to the tax incentives and proximity to top-notch universities for hiring talented graduates, she says the area attracts wealthy residents who contribute to starting and investing in innovative startups that push boundaries.

On top of that, the rich culture in South Florida is more than just a lifestyle draw, according to Roberts. "It's a melting pot of culture which contributes to diverse thinking from various backgrounds," she says. "Startups don't thrive on the ways things have always been done. You need diverse thinking to chart a path for the future."

Find out more about how you can find a future for your business in Florida. Visit EnterpriseFlorida.com.