Kyle Taylor, the 31-year-old founder &
CEO of The Penny Hoarder represents
the rising tide of young, creative
entrepreneurs who call St. Petersburg home.
Last year Inc. 5000 named The Penny
Hoarder the #1 fastest-growing
private media company in the U.S.
for the second consecutive year—and
#25 on the list of fastest-growing
private companies in the U.S. It’s a
rapid rise to success for a company
that started as a blog that was part
diary, part accountability, says Taylor.
Seven years ago, Taylor started
posting online about his personal
experience trying to overcome
$50,000 in college loan and credit
card debt. “I had hit rock bottom
and was quite ashamed,” says
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I kept getting myself back into that
situation. So I started writing about
how much debt I had paid off that
week and what interesting things I
was doing to make extra money.”
Within a short time, readers
were responding and offering
encouragement. As he developed a
following, Taylor started thinking
about how he could turn what was
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step, he says, was to move from the
tiny town in Maine where he had
been living. “It’s beautiful, but not
a great place to recruit employees
when there’s seven feet of snow in
the winter.”
He moved south to sunny St.
Petersburg. The blog evolved into
The Penny Hoarder, a website
offering advice on how to earn and
save money. Every month, some
16 million readers click on the site
to read posts like “32 Legitimate
Ways to Make Money at Home,”
and “How to Simplify Your Life
and Manage Your Money Like a
Minimalist.” We’re teaching people
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says Taylor.
St. Petersburg turned out to be a great
place to run a business, says Taylor.
“It’s got all of the amenities of a big
city and a major airport is close by.
On the personal side, I love the small
town feeling knowing that every time
I go out to eat I’ll run into friends and
colleagues. I can be at a nice museum
by the waterfront and three minutes
later be at a cool brewery in the
Warehouse Arts District.”
The business culture is just as
unique, says Taylor. “St. Pete is an
extremely creative town and the
applicant pool is amazing. Within
the tech startup community, there
is tremendous support – even when
we’re competing for the same talent.
We’re all buddies. There’s a genuine
willingness to see each other
succeed. I’m not sure that could
happen anywhere else.”
Last year, Taylor moved the
company’s headquarters to new
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building that also houses the Tampa
Bay Times newspaper. He currently
has 82 employees and expects to
increase the number to 250 by 2020.
What’s next? Looking forward,
Taylor sees both challenges and
opportunities. “We plan to offer
a whole lot more money-saving
advise and we’re looking for new
opportunities and new platforms to
continue reaching out and interacting
with readers,” he says.
Other cities have expressed interest
in The Penny Hoarder, but Taylor
says St. Pete is his home. “It’s
also easy to recruit here. We bring
candidates here one time and they
fall in love with the city.”
The Penny Hoarder
executive team
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