The Dream Home, with Robert Marks

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Robert Marks. Robert always wanted to build his own house. He even remembers being in middle school and doodling houses while his teachers droned on and on. About ten years ago, Robert and his wife found a beautiful piece of land that would be perfect for their dream home. They spent two years planning the construction, working closely with an architect, and then another couple of years building it. When the house was finished, it was incredible. Everyone loved it. His wife, their family, their friends, and even their dog. Robert liked to tell people that he built the greatest house in the history of Cleveland, Ohio. There was only one problem. Within a week of moving in, Robert realized he didn’t like living there. Eventually, his wife missed their old neighborhood and they decided to move back. In reflection, Robert realizes, building the home was his dream, not necessarily living there and changing their lifestyle.

Robert founded Fidelity Voice and Data in 1999 and soon grew the start-up into one of the largest telecommunication and cloud services competitors throughout the Midwest. Starting the company with a $600 investment, Robert grew the company into a $30,000,000 business. The business was launched to solve the problem of High-Speed Internet access to businesses, government agencies, non-profits, education and healthcare facilities. In 2004 the company launched a groundbreaking VoIP venture and built data centers in Cleveland, Columbus, and Chicago. Following this success, he sold the company in 2015 and decided to focus his attention on continuing to give back to his local community through multiple philanthropic initiatives. Along with Layne Swenson, Robert launched the startup Projector, LLC in 2020.

Robert currently lives in Chagrin Falls, Ohio with his wife and four children. Robert holds a B.A. in Economics from the University of South Florida.