more robust functionality and deeper analytics, all with an improved user experience. Company: Splash helps businesses unleash the power of an in-person event across the organization. Leaders know how important it is to build face-to-face relationships with their customers and partners, but it’s difficult to empower people across the organization to host events without running into serious issues with brand integrity, data visibility, and compliance laws, like GDPR. Splash changes that. We’ve built a platform that makes it easy for a trusted team to design entire event marketing programs that other people in the business can then use to market their own events. Residence: New York Company HQ: New York Education: Human and organizational development, Vanderbilt University Industry: Entertainment Awards: Splash was ranked 1,127 on the Inc. 5000 this year, which was a huge accomplishment for the whole team. Personally, I’ve been honored to show up on some pretty cool lists alongside people I really respect, including AlleyWatch 2019 NYC Tech Influencers, 2018 BizBash Top 500 People in Events, and NYC Tech’s 35 people to watch in 2016. Notable projects: My walking tour company, DC by Foot, becoming No. 1 on TripAdvisor. Producing JetMystery, Thrillist’s mystery flyaway to Jamaica. Splash launching at SXSW and powering 500+ events. Advice: “Don’t hope. Make damn sure.” Success: When I am no longer afraid. Mentors: Eben Pagan, first investor in Splash; Myles Kleeger, president of Braze; Scott Belsky, CPO of Adobe; Ben Lerer, CEO of Thrillist. Local companies you admire: Salesforce, Marketo, Spotify,
Tableau, Red Antler, Breakfast. First job: Dishwasher at an Italian restaurant in Cape Cod. Guilty pleasure: Haribo Fruit Salad. In the morning: I make a smoothie for my 2-year-old, Zoe. Before bed: I honestly just pass out face-first every night. What keeps you up: Not building the right product fast enough. Year ahead: Build a community of world-class event creators. Attend 30+ events personally. Manage an elite executive team.
JAMES KARKLINS
players in business, policy, entertainment, technology, art, travel, real estate, and dining. Residence: New York Company HQ: New York Education: BS, marketing and international finance, Bond University, Australia Industry: Online media Awards: Featured in Connectiv’s Emerging Leaders. Notable projects: Growing Observer Media’s brand to an even broader national audience, introducing additional markets, including Los Angeles and Washington, DC, and launching a new membership offering for commercial real estate professionals. Advice: Do the right thing and good things will come! Success: At Observer Media, I’ve led my team through a number of changes and rallied them around new initiatives. We have since grown double digits and become a profitable business in our space. Mentors: My former bosses and my peers who continue to inspire, motivate, and push me every day. Local companies you admire: Via. I take it every day to and from work. Via is a ride-sharing start-up in New York that’s trying to carve out a niche in a market dominated by Uber and Lyft. First job: Working on the family farm in Australia, which taught me about hard work and responsibility at a very young age. Guilty pleasure: Flat white latte from Bluestone Lane. In the morning: I hit the gym and do a 10-minute meditation on Headspace, which helps me relax and have a clear approach to start my day. Before bed: I tell Alexa to turn the lights off. What keeps you up: Emails. And trying not to answer them. Year ahead: To continue to build a national, digitalfirst, media and events company. And on a personal
note, continue practicing meditation every morning and reading a new book each month.
KATIE LOEB
DIRECTOR OF BRAND AND STRATEGY, LOEB.NYC
Sports Media Ent - NG10
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NEXTGEN 10
PRESIDENT, OBSERVER MEDIA Age: 33 About: I’m a digital media executive with 10+ years of experience in business information, media, and events across Australia and the United States, where I have scaled digital businesses for growth. I oversee Observer Media’s businesses, including Observer, Commercial Observer, and Realgraph. Prior to joining Observer Media, I was chief marketing officer for Newsweek. Company: Observer is a digital media company chronicling the world’s power
Age: 32 About: Under my vision, Loeb.nyc has become one of the most unique and nimble venture firms in the space, identifying nascent start-ups and developing and funding them until fully fledged. Company: By pairing smart capital with deep operational and marketing infrastructure, Loeb.nyc’s repeatable and dynamic model takes startups to the next level. Residence: Chelsea, Manhattan Company HQ: New York Education: BS, psychology, Union College. Industry: Media Awards: Responsible for The Or Not Experience, the company’s proprietary event series geared toward brand marketers. It focuses on the latest trends and tactics in the investment space. The flagship event draws a crowd of over 200 and takes place every spring in Southampton, NY.