Long before Goodshuffle, Andrew Garcia was producing raves in Austin

Every entrepreneur has to start somewhere. In Lemonade Stand, we’ll profile a local entrepreneur’s first venture or first job. Tell us about yours.

Goodshuffle cofounder Andrew Garcia struck me as quiet and thoughtful on the first meeting. But that was before I knew that back in the day he was kinda big in the Austin rave scene.

Garcia was studying at the University of Texas when he had his first brush with entrepreneurship. “My brother (Gabriel Garcia) started, and then I took over, a company called G3 Entertainment,” Garcia told Technical.ly in an email. “We managed DJs, produced raves and club events, managed a weekly club event and had around $50k of sound/lighting rental gear.”

And that wasn’t even the extent of the music-related work Garcia did around town.

“Myself and my roommate, Kyle Chalmers, also booked gigs around Austin to make some extra money from greek organizations and corporate events; I even arranged a deal with my apartment complex for free rent in exchange for running a monthly live music event at their pool/event space.” Not bad for a college gig.

And what enduring lessons did Garcia glean from the experience?

“At G3 Entertainment we produced our own events but also ran sound for social & corporate clients,” he wrote. “That meant I got to experience event production from the planners side as well as from the sound engineer’s side. Simple things like bringing zip ties or an extension cord you don’t think you’ll need can make a huge difference. I suppose it was a lesson on adaptability, resourcefulness and recognizing how a small bit of foresight can save a massive headache later that night.”

The venture also taught the young Garcia about the true business value of a good reputation. “There is a bright line between good and bad sound guys and word of who they are in any city gets around fast,” Garcia reflected. “The main thing I learned about running/renting sound in Austin was this: Deliver what you said you’d deliver and when you said you were going to deliver it. Do that, and your reputation and will build the business for you.”

And even though Garcia’s attention is mostly consumed by Goodshuffle these days, he does still DJ from time to time. Ask him about it.