He turned a Florida swamp into one of America’s richest cities | Don Soffer
What kind of man looks at 800 acres of mosquito-infested swampland and sees high-end apartments, a golf course, and a luxury shopping mall?
In 1967, Don Soffer made the biggest bet of his life: transforming undeveloped wetlands into what would become Aventura, one of Florida’s most iconic and extravagant communities. In this episode of Big Shot, Harley and David sit down with the 92-year-old visionary to hear how it all happened—straight from the source.
From convincing the Florida governor to back his development plan (after a well-timed flight to Tallahassee) to bringing in golf legend Robert Trent Jones to design a course, Don sold a dream that turned into a $4 billion reality. He built Turnberry resort, launched Aventura Mall, and packed them with celebrities—from Elton John to Madonna and John McEnroe.
Decades before “influencer marketing” was a thing, Don was using star power to shape a city.
In this episode, you’ll hear about:
• The environmental pushback Don faced after buying swampland—and how he got the green light from the governor of Florida after chartering a jet and flying to Tallahassee
• Don’s celebrity-packed playbook: how he used influencers before we even had a word for it
• Don’s take on why Jewish people have become such successful entrepreneurs
• Don’s definition of common sense—and approach to solving complex problems with simplicity
• Why he says it’s a privilege to have a hard problem to solve
• His advice for the next generation of Jewish entrepreneurs
• And much more!
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In This Episode We Cover:
(00:00) Intro
(02:07) How Don accidentally swallowed his dad’s glass eye
(03:03) Don’s early work building shopping malls with his father
(05:01) Why Don trusted his intuition and took a chance on developing swampland in Florida
(09:04) How Don got the governor of Florida on board to green light his project
(11:00) Early influencers: How Don leveraged the power of celebrities
(14:25) Building Aventura Mall
(19:27) Don’s common-sense approach
(21:52) Don’s relationship with his father
(24:00) Why Don says it’s terrible to run a family business
(25:11) Don’s current roles and how he set his kids up
(27:01) Don’s explanation for the success of the Jewish people
(29:37) A dinner with Frank Sinatra
(31:44) Advice for young Jewish entrepreneurs
(33:37) Where Don got his confidence and conviction
(35:06) How Don saved the Pittsburgh Mall after the excavator destroyed private property
(37:50) Don’s thoughts on when to sell and when not to
(40:05) Don’s friendship with Tony Bennett
(41:21) How to cultivate strong business relationships
(43:49) Don’s advice to future generations of Soffers
(45:52) Why Don still thinks Florida is a good place to develop
(46:42) Closing
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Where To Find Big Shot:
• Website: https://www.bigshot.show/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@bigshotpodcast
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bigshotshow
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bigshotshow/
• Harley Finkelstein: https://twitter.com/harleyf
• David Segal: https://twitter.com/tea_maverick
• Production and Marketing: https://penname.co
Big Shot
If the walls of Kosher delis could speak, they would (schm)ooze invaluable wisdom and endless laughs. Harley Finkelstein (Shopify) and David Segal (DAVIDsTEA) are Jewish entrepreneurs influenced by the greats who came before them. But, they realized no one was archiving the best behind-the-scenes stories ever told. Before time was up, they set out on a passion project to preserve the memories, mishaps, and wins of the people who have seen it all. Big Shot tells the stories of the people that shaped an entire generation.
- No. of episodes: 31
- Latest episode: 2025-06-12
- Business Entrepreneurship
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