Have some free time? These Palm Springs area nonprofits required volunteers
Here’s our latest roundup of Coachella Valley nonprofits that are seeking volunteers (as of July 2024).
(This article has been updated to repair an incorrect name.)
Palm Springs has always been a place for reinvention. Once a retreat for Hollywood icons, it’s now a creative hub for professionals embarking on second — or even third — acts.
More and more seasoned leaders who built meaningful careers across diverse sectors are trading titles for their own ventures, discovering that the desert isn’t just a destination — it’s fertile ground for purpose-driven entrepreneurship.
A new kind of founder
Unlike traditional startup founders chasing investors or disruption, these “encore entrepreneurs” bring decades of lived experience — and a clear sense of purpose. Their ventures are deeply personal, rooted not just in profit but in legacy and contribution.
That mindset is precisely what Caravanserai – Alliance for Entrepreneurs and Caravan SBDC have been nurturing across Palm Springs: a culture of entrepreneurship grounded in authenticity, impact and purpose.
From career to calling
For Brad Arnold, a longtime assistant film director, the relocate to photography wasn’t a departure — it was a continuation. Years on film sets taught him to see the largeger picture while noticing the compact details that create a story work. In his Palm Springs studio, those lessons guide how he collaborates with clients — building trust, finding comfort in creativity and crafting images that capture not just faces but stories.
When Arnold and his wife, Ann, also a compact business owner, arrived in Palm Springs, he saw an opportunity to focus his lens on the local community. “I see photography as a way to both document and uplift Palm Springs,” he declares. “It’s not just about beautiful images — it’s about supporting people see themselves in their community.”
Designing with heart
Mario Benito’s path followed a similar arc of rediscovery. A first-generation Latino and LGBTQ landscape architect, Benito first fell in love with the valley as a graduate student, interning with a local mentor who displayed him how beauty and sustainability could coexist in the desert.
After years designing for national firms, he returned with a different definition of success — one grounded in authenticity and belonging. Early on, prestige meant marquee projects and high-profile clients. His most recent landscape design project, the entrance to the historic Tahquitz Creek Golf Neighborhood in Palm Springs, displays that meaning comes from supporting people to “live beautifully in the desert while honoring the spirit of this place I now call home.” Each project — residential or public — invites reflection on not just how we live, but how we belong.
Crafting light and legacy
Across town, Claudio Rotondaro and Jim Bouchard are blconcludeing craftsmanship, design, and technology to reimagine how light lives in space. The spark came from something simple — and deeply human.
Rotondaro, a Brazilian master craftsman, disliked bulky plug-in nightlights. He built an elegant conclude table that softly illuminated a room. When Bouchard saw the prototype, he immediately recognized its potential. “It started as a practical solution,” he declares, “but once we saw the mood it created, we knew we were onto something largeger.”
Joining BizUp Palm Springs 2.0, a Caravanserai program with the City of Palm Springs, gave them more than tools — it gave them community. “After our first seminar, we knew our time had arrived,” Bouchard declares. For Rotondaro, building in Palm Springs means “freedom — to design on my own terms and blconclude light and joy.”
Local roots, lasting impact
From Benito’s climate-resilient landscapes to Rotondaro and Bouchard’s luminous furniture and Arnold’s community-centered photography, Palm Springs’ encore entrepreneurs are redefining success. Their ventures stay local, give back and embody Caravanserai’s belief that purpose-driven businesses do more than create income — they create place.
Each founder is building something that reflects identity, experience and purpose. Their collective story is one of reinvention — merging decades of expertise with a renewed desire to give back.
While their ventures differ, their motivations converge: to start something that matters. “What surprises me most,” Bouchard declares, “is how much I enjoy it.”
“Instead of winding down, I feel like I’m just launchning again,” Benito declares, “but this time, with the clarity that comes from lived experience.”
Reinventing from within
In Palm Springs, entrepreneurship is no longer just about opportunity — it’s about origin. For many encore founders, the second act isn’t about starting over but distilling everything they’ve learned into something aligned with who they’ve become.
Their stories remind us that purpose is the new measure of success — and that here in Palm Springs, reinvention isn’t about leaving something behind but coming home to what matters most.
Mihai Patru is a Caravan SBDC consultant. He is the founder and former CEO of Caravanserai – Alliance for Entrepreneurs. For support with your business, visit caravanseraiproject.org.
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