CEO of Originate Inc. says he’s always been entrepreneur

Rob Meadows, partner and CEO of Originate Inc., which brings together software, product design and the ability to finance projects for those building software products or companies, said he’s always been an entrepreneur, even before he started his business in 2007.

The 37-year-old Meadows grew up in Las Vegas and graduated from Bonanza High School before receiving a bachelor’s degree from the University of Arizona in computer engineering and a master’s degree in computer science.

Meadows co-founded Lumitrend, a mobile software development firm, before joining IBM in the storage software division. He then went on to become a development manager at Slam Dunk Networks before venturing out on his own to start Meadows Consulting, a technology consulting firm. Aside from his software background, Meadows also founded a high-end fashion line, Thrive Apparel.

Why are you passionate about the software business?

Software, if not already, is soon to be a part of everything on the planet. There’s even software that runs everything in your house now, and the speed at which we can build software is incredible. There have also been some amazing contributors to the software community who can take idea and turn it into reality in weeks. There are very few fields that you can make something out of nothing. It’s about making your vision real, and I’ve always been drawn to that idea.

What are some of your hobbies and interests?

The biggest passion of mine is traveling, which is part of the reason that we have seven offices around the world. I love to meet people from different cultures and points of view, and learn how people think about problems in their society and how they’re solving them. I really enjoy learning about new places and things. I also play tennis, ski and work a lot.

Where is the best place you’ve traveled to and what is it about that place that would make you recommend it to others?

I just got back from Stockholm, which is the latest office we’ve opened, and it’s definitely one of my top three favorite cities in the world. They have an interesting culture and they’re very design aware. As a technologist you have a tendency to be more appreciative of good design — what’s beautiful and a good experience. I enjoy spending time with the people there to understand how they think and how they see minimal design as a beautiful thing.

Where is your favorite place to visit in Las Vegas?

My house is in Red Rock, so I’m skewed toward Red Rock. You have the view of the whole valley there and you can go hiking and get away and enjoy the beautiful scenery.

What was it like to start your own business?

I think from the beginning I was always programmed to start my own business. I’ve always been an entrepreneur; I started selling candy to kids in first grade. I grew up with a single mom who worked hard and did the best to take care of my sister and me. If we wanted something outside of the basic necessities, we had to buy it for ourselves. I’d walk pets, sell pencils — I was always trying to start a side business and it was fun to see how big I could make something. The first time I started any real business was in high school. I developed software to give people access to play games on their computer. This was pre-Internet and people would mail me money to do that for them. It turned out to be pretty fun.