SoFlo Vegans was founded by Sean Russell, a 36-year-old media producer, and marketing specialist with over 22 years of building online communities.

His initial reason for going vegan wasn’t for the animals, health or for the environment. He basically wanted to challenge himself to see if he could adopt the lifestyle. This challenge actually began in 2008 when he went vegan for the first time. After three successful months, Sean went on a trip to Los Angeles for a conference and struggled to stay on his plant-based diet. While Los Angles is known as a global hotspot for veganism already, it was a foreign land and apps like Happy Cow were relatively unknown at the time. Quite frankly, apps were a fairly new concept, with the iPhone only coming out a few months prior to his trip. Also, add in the fact that he wasn’t a big fan of salads. Go figure. Sadly during the trip, Sean succumbed to the temptation of cheese pizza, eggs, and other non-vegan food.

Fast forward to 2013, Sean began researching and building resources to create recipes and stay committed to being vegan. In 2014, he joined a Meetup called South Florida Vegans and started attending different events. Meeting people along the way helped to keep him on the straight and narrow and planted the seed for him to create a community for vegans. The intention to build a website and produce digital content to showcase the people, places, and events that make South Florida a great place to be vegan. While his intention was set, he still needed the right vehicle.

In 2015, the organizer of the South Florida Vegans Group stepped down and an opportunity presented itself for Sean to claim the group. He jumped on it immediately and rebranded the group, SoFlo Vegans. It would be a full 2 years before he would launch the website and start hosting events under the new name.

Along the way, he started building relationships with activists, business owners, event planners, and community organizers. With over 70 events underneath his belt and a firm grasp of both the landscape and climate of the vegan community in South Florida, Sean is constantly shifting the direction of the SoFlo Vegans organization to meet the needs of the community.

He also shifted his reasons for being vegan. After getting involved and serving as a board member for the nonprofit organization, Animal Hero Kids, he was able to see first hand the abuse and murder that comes along with animal agriculture. This also served true for seeing how plant-based living helps with health and wellness, as well as the positive impacts on the environment.

So now, SoFlo Vegans is committed to making South Florida a global hotspot for veganism. This starts with developing a community focused on building emotional relationships and connections between residents of South Florida.

Digital Digest

The SoFlo Vegans Digest is a quarterly digital magazine that contains articles, videos, and podcasts that showcase the many ways South Florida is a global hotspot for veganism. Our preview issue launches in November.

Discount Cards

SoFlo Vegans partners with local businesses to provide our members with discounts and special giveaways. Discount Cards come with all levels of our membership, starting at $30 a year.

Podcast

The SoFlo Vegans Podcast features interviews with a growing number of local and global voices in the vegan community. It’s hosted by SoFlo Vegans founder, Sean Russell and currently contains interviews with Earthling Ed, Ingrid Newkirk, and Dominick Thompson.

Vegan Toolbox

The Vegan Toolbox contains listings of popular categories and serves as an online resource for our community. Sections include restaurants, cookbooks, podcasts, with more categories added every week.

Original Events

SoFlo Vegans Unite – a monthly event SoFlo Vegans can come together to enjoy amazing food and learn from vegan professionals in the domains of Animal Rights, Health & Wellness, and Environmental Stewardship.

SoFlo Vegans Drink – South Florida’s premiere vegan happy hour event. Come out to connect to other members of the growing vegan community and learn about various causes from our nonprofit partners.

SoFlo Vegans Speak – food demonstrations and information about living a healthy life as a vegan.

SoFlo Vegans Eat – VIP dinners hosted at restaurants around South Florida.

Festivals and Expos

Heal the Planet – a yearly event that celebrates Earth Day by bringing together the South Florida community for a day of fun, family-friendly activities.

Mindbody Expo – community-driven events are designed to nurture the minds of individuals looking to live an inspired life of health, love, and compassion.

Organic Health and Beauty Festival – features eco-friendly products and natural health and wellness practices for the skin and body, offering a unique marketplace where consumers can learn about products, engage with health practitioners and enjoy a day of fun events for the entire family.

Palm Beach VegFest – a free vegan festival that hosts local vendors, food trucks, music, and speakers.

Seed Food & Wine Week – the largest weeklong vegan festival in the country that hosts burger battles, workshops, tasting villages, fashion shows, yoga sessions and so much more.

VegFest Expo – an annual vegan festival held in downtown Fort Lauderdale that features hundreds of vendors, food trucks and unique activations that shine a spotlight on the growing South Florida vegan community.

• Spectrum Realty Group (May 2018) – SoFlo Vegans is featured in an article about why Miami is a top choice for vegans.
• Live Ultimate (May 2018) – SoFlo Vegans founder, Sean Russell is interviewed by Bryan the Botanist and Live Ultimate.
• Vegan Fine Foods (April 2018) – SoFlo Vegans founder Sean Russell wrote a guest blog post about the opening of Vegan Fine Foods.
• Food Proof Podcast (Feb 2018) –  The Food Proof podcast interviewed the founder of SoFlo Vegans about running a plant-based business and community.
• Miami Chronicles (Feb 2018) – Miami Chronicles covered our Dr. Will Tuttle lecture that was held at Vegan Fine Foods on Saturday, February 3, 2018.
• Ola’pi Creative (Jan 2018) – Ola’pi Creative speaks with SoFlo Vegans Founder, Sean Russell about the growing vegan movement in South Florida.
• Panther Now (September 2017) – Florida International University featured an article about SoFlo Vegans founder, Sean Russell. This interview was featured in their magazine and is available on their PantherNow website.