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Review of ‘Revolution in a Bottle’ by Tom Szaky, Founder and CEO of TerraCycle

Thursday, March 25th, 2010

“The only way to prepare is to make sure that you’re ready to bounce back when something knocks you to the floor.”  – Tom Szaky, ‘Revolution in a Bottle’

‘Revolution in a Bottle’ by Tom Szaky is about the growth of TerraCycle, and Tom takes us from his ‘aha’ moment, his first ideas, his many challenges, and on to growing TerraCycle into one of the most exciting companies on the packaged goods landscape today.   It’s one of the best business books around – not just because it’s interesting and humorous, but because it’s filled with really good, original ideas.  Tom wanted the book to read like a novel, and he succeeded.  It’s a great story.  There’s a likable hero, suspense, drama, humor and a happy ending.  Can’t wait for the movie version, hopefully filmed in Toronto, Princeton and Trenton where it all started.

Entrepreneurs should read this book and keep it near their pillow at night.  Tom is honest about what it takes to build a brand, and entrepreneurs will find Tom’s story comforting during their own uphill battles.  He starts with a very good idea but it’s a long haul before the idea amounts to anything.  The rest is hard work, luck, getting up again and again, more hard work, meeting the right people, making the most of any opportunity, building on what succeeds, trying something different when it doesn’t and – oh yeah – more hard work.    And Tom’s not afraid to talk about the wrinkles along the way, and not afraid to show us that when things do work out it’s not because of brilliance or perfection, it’s about things working out – for now. 

There’s great humor in this book and entrepreneurs will enjoy – and recognize – the moments when a sense of humor goes a long way.  My personal favorite is when a TerraCycle receptionist, faced with a  line of hundreds of applicants for a handful of jobs, promptly quits.  Tom’s colleague, Robin Tator, looks at Tom and says, “You know, I bet you there’s a receptionist out in that line somewhere.”  Bouncing back and moving ahead.

Tom’s a business genius, and a business genius like Tom doesn’t come along very often.  He’s created a company with endless possibilities – great products made from non-recyclable trash, millions of people in towns, schools, and other organizations collecting items and sending them in, working with the largest consumer product companies in the world.  He connects with other leaders in the green business world – Seth Goldman at Honest Tea, Gary Hirshberg at Stonyfield Farm – and leaders in the Fortune 100 world – Walmart, Pepsico, Mars.  There’s really nothing else like TerraCycle, and it’s just beginning.  Put your popcorn in the microwave; this is going to be great.

I think of Walt Disney when I think of Tom – both true originals.  Disney changed family entertainment, and he did it by creating his own magical world and inviting everyone in.  Tom does this too –his world is one of great products at a great price, new products every day made from non-recyclable waste, making the discarded into things that are useful and good.  It’s magic too.  Disney started with a mouse and the Mouseketeers, Tom started with worms and has the Brigades.  And, like Disney, he’s building a generation of loyal fans, plus saving our planet at the same time.  So enjoy the book, enjoy the success of TerraCycle, and enjoy Tom Szaky and his genius.  We’ve seen the first chapter of something more – much more – to come.

KissMyCountry will post a two-part interview with Tom Szaky next week on 3/29/10 and 4/1/10, talking with Tom about TerraCycle, saving the planet and the places he loves – including a favorite spot in Trenton.  Enjoy!

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An Interview with Roger Bayley – Millenium Water and Building the First Sustainable Olympic Village

Monday, February 15th, 2010

“I’m a little bit of a pirate at heart and I like to have the more than occasional adventure.  This context of sustainable development is a whole new realm.  All of us are pushing the edge of opportunity.”
- Roger Bayley

Roger Bayley is the Design Manager of Millenium Water, the Southeast False Creek 2010 Olympic Village – Vancouver. Millenium Water is also the first Gold LEEDTM certified sustainable neighborhood in Canada, and one of the few in North America.  Developed by Millenium SEFC Properties Ltd., following the 2010 Olympics, Millenium Water will welcome permanent residents, and become an ongoing community in Vancouver.

Roger Bayley also spearheaded The Challenge Series, an online book detailing the conception and construction of Millennium Water.  It’s an amazing tale of a city and a group of professionals dedicated to sustainable living, and the steady and unique combination of talent, cooperation and circumstance that brought this plan to life.

KissMyCountry had the opportunity to speak with Roger Bayley just days before the Vancouver Olympics.  We invite you to enjoy hearing Roger talk about Millennium Water, about Vancouver, and about the places he loves.

Lexy:  Millennium Water is an extremely unique and complex project – far more ambitious than most Athletes Villages built for the Olympics.  Is this the first Olympic Village designed and built to be a permanent neighborhood?  What examples or roadmaps from previous Olympics did you use for your planning?

Roger:   I think other groups have built facilities that have been used after the Olympics.  Most have focused on facilities at universities, dorm type facilities, or affordable housing.  I think this is the first time that someone has focused on building something that will be brought to market.  We focused on what makes a sustainable community, and what we needed for a sustainable community.  We didn’t focus on previous Olympic Villages – although the Olympics made it happen by setting a schedule and timetable that made everyone work together to make it happen.

Lexy:  The Athletes Village is a very special place during the Olympics, and you’ve had a big hand in creating that special place for 2010.  What are you thinking and feeling right now, knowing the athletes will soon be living there?

Roger:  I’m very proud of the work we’ve done, and everyone involved is very proud of what we’ve done.  I’m a little humbled by the opportunity and when I think back over how I got involved I kind of stumbled into it.  We had a lot of support from The Millennium Group, a lot of support.  The athletes will be coming soon, and when they roll in – when the world rolls in – I think they’ll be impressed.

Lexy:  What do you think is the most creative sustainable feature of the Village?

Roger:  Pretty much everything we’ve done is something that someone has done before on an individual building, so the key issue here is the integration of everything together.  We wanted to create a better environment for people with less resource use and a reduced carbon footprint.  All of the pieces had to fit together.  Everybody got together, and worked together.  Decisions about energy affected decisions about heating, and decisions about heating affected the types of walls we built.  It was this way with every aspect of the design.  In the end we reduced energy consumption by at least 50%. And 65% of the heating comes from a waste energy source – the main Vancouver sewer line!   

Lexy: What might people find surprising when it comes to the sustainability of the Village?

Roger:  They’ll be surprised when they see the sign by the toilets telling them not to drink the toilet water.  We are not actually known for drinking toilet water in Vancouver! – unlike our cats and dogs.  And they’ll be surprised when they realize they have a device on their wall telling them in dollar terms how much money they are spending on energy.  I hope this encourages them to be up for the challenge – to realize the costs and adjust their behavior accordingly.

Lexy:  Do you have any advice for future Design Managers of the Athletes Village?  What would you like to pass on from your experience to those involved in the 2012 or 2014 Olympics?

Roger: Try and imagine what is going to come after the Games – how what you build will be used after the Games – and move the environmental bar a little higher.  The Olympics provide the opportunity to redefine your environment.  It gives you the opportunity to look at your environment in a new way and actually realize your creativity and innovation in a very compressed time frame.

Lexy:  Of course a busy and talented person like yourself is always thinking about their next project.   What are your plans following the Olympics?

Roger:  I’ve just been commissioned by Environment Canada to do a sustainable environmental project in Tianjin, China – in a sustainable city that is being built for 350,000 people.  Canada is sponsoring the design work for a Center there.  It’s very exciting.  And I’ll also be following up on The Challenge Series.  I’d like to take the knowledge we’ve gained here and push it out into the broader marketplace.  In February I’m making a series of presentations in South Korea at a conference on building, then I’ll be back to China in March, and in May I’ll be in Kuala Lumpur.  The Challenge Series is not highly technical yet it is engaging, and gives a background on what the issues are when developing a sustainable community

Lexy: At KissMyCountry we talk about saving the planet and enjoying the planet.  What places in the world do you most enjoy and love?

Roger:  I grew up on a very large sheep farm in New Zealand in the middle of nowhere.  So that’s in my DNA, and I love the rivers and the mountains, and love to be there.  I enjoy China too – there’s a frenetic pace and a feeling of optimism, and that’s great to be around.  I’m a little bit of a pirate at heart and I like to have the more than occasional adventure.  This context of sustainable development is a whole new realm.  All of us are pushing the edge of opportunity.

Lexy:  Very soon you’ll have lots of new visitors to Vancouver.  What would you like people to know about Vancouver as they prepare to visit?

Roger:  I’d really like them to feel the relationship between the water and the land, and the attention the City has paid to public amenities throughout the urban environment.  I’d like them to walk down Carrall Street from Gastown to Chinatown through the new urban greenway that runs through three downtown communities.  The city has spent a significant amount of money on creating this greenway.  It’s a very interesting social experiment and it’s just recently opened.  It’s in the heart of a gritty part of Vancouver.  So walk down Carrall Street and see what you think.

Lexy: We’re guessing that you’ve been too busy to get away for a vacation, but are you planning some time to relax after the Olympics?  Where will you go?

Roger:  Both of my children are getting married in July within two weeks of each other!  My son is getting married in Hawaii so I guess I’m going to Hawaii.  My daughter’s getting married in Vancouver. I also have trips planned to China, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.

Roger, we know that your travels are just beginning.  We’d like to stay in touch as you travel to China for your new project, and all over Asia to spread the word about Millennium Water, and hear how all of this unfolds!

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Patrick Govang, e2e Materials – A CEO Saving the Planet

Thursday, February 11th, 2010

“I wanted to make better products that have a significant impact.  The developing world aspires to our lifestyle which the planet cannot sustain, and America needs to step up with innovation to lead the way forward.” 
- Patrick Govang 

Photo by Michael Hall

KissMyCountry had the chance to talk with Patrick Govang, CEO of e2eMaterials based in Ithaca, New York for our continuing series on ‘CEOs Saving the Planet’.   A Green building company, e2e Materials creates a soy-based grass fiber composite  that can be used in place of wood or other building materials, and is strong, Green, and fire retardant – truly an amazing breakthrough.  The company is a spin-off from Cornell University, based on the discoveries of the Netravali Research Group at Cornell, and is providing an exciting alternative to traditional building materials.   Patrick Govang is enthusiastic about e2e Materials and Green building, and is using his experience in the US and internationally to save our planet.  Enjoy!

 

Lexy: Tell us a little bit about e2e Materials – how you got started by spinning off from Cornell University to become a private company and the plans you have for e2e Materials in the future.

Patrick:  Research was going on at Cornell from the early 90’s to develop high performance ‘Green’ materials – something as strong as Kevlar® or carbon fiber.  Kevlar® and carbon fiber are strong but not earth friendly, and there was interest in developing high performance products that were Greener.  Researchers wondered how could nature duplicate that strength, and the result was a material with similar strengths that was Green.   The technology is a true material platform giving us a very broad palate of properties that can go in many applications.

Lexy: When did you first become interested in Green and how did you become involved with e2e Materials?  What made you decide to be the CEO?

Patrick:  I guess I’ve always had a bit of Green in me.  I built a house that’s off the grid with an alternative water supply as a hobby.  It was more of a technical challenge and for my curiosity than anything else, but I was interested in Green.  While working in the automotive industry, I built several manufacturing facilities in India to California emission standards in the 90’s because it was the right thing to do.  With e2e, I was the Director of the Cornell Center for Materials Research at the time, helping researchers bring their discoveries to market.  The invention of this material personally resonated with me, and I knew I wanted to bring it to market.  I saw that I could use a lot of my experience from the automotive industry, and saw this as a real opportunity to do something great for the environment and build an exciting company.   I wanted to make better products that have a significant impact.  The developing world aspires to our lifestyle which the planet cannot sustain, and America needs to step up with innovation to lead the way forward.  Our responsibility is to show the world new technologies that save the planet and offer an unparalleled quality of life.  It’s exciting, and our mission easily infects everyone in the company.  It’s a true cradle-to-cradle concept that leverages a business model that’s inherently competitive.  By locating our agricultural feedstocks near the production facility and shipping within a 500 mile radius we enable a regional business model that creates sustainable, Green collar jobs spanning agriculture, manufacturing and high-technology.

Lexy:  One of your customers is Comet Skateboards, which is a great example of how the products you create can save our planet.   How did you come to work with Comet Skateboards?  Can you tell us a little bit about why your materials are an improvement on how skateboards are generally made?

Patrick: Our technology is broad, but we started with skateboards.  A Cornell graduate, Jason Salfi, co-founded Comet Skateboards, and was looking for ways to make his boards Greener.  He came to us.  With Comet we worked to eliminate epoxy and fiberglass from the boards.  The new boards have both high-performance and are earth-friendly.  Before, when the company used epoxy and fiberglass to make their boards Jason did not bring his daughter to the shop.  Now with our materials used for the boards he lets her crawl around the floor – pretty unusual for a manufacturing environment. 

Lexy: What do people always ask you about Green building, and what do you wish people asked?

Patrick:  When it comes to building materials, the materials and the processes we use today have had as much cost taken out of them through years of competition.  So, anything new – new materials, new processes – usually means higher cost, initially.    The resulting perception is that Green means higher costs.  The first question we always hear is ‘That’s great, how much more does it cost?’.  The reality is that we can take out 50% of the cost of the products we replace.  We can make a product that truly reduces our reliance on petroleum, and we can make our shareholders happy because the cost benefits translate to higher margins.  We focus on higher performing and more cost effective products that just happen to deliver unparalleled sustainability.

Lexy: We’re all thinking about the earthquake in Haiti right now, and the need to rebuild in that country.  As an expert on Green building, do you have any thoughts about rebuilding Port au Prince?  For instance, what can Green building materials do for Haiti that traditional building materials can’t?

Photo by UN Development Programme

Patrick:  We’re all very saddened by what’s happened in Haiti.  Our entire company is saddened by what’s happened.   Haiti has a sad but unique opportunity to rebuild the country to be efficient in terms of energy consumption.  Thinking about our own technology for Haiti, someday our materials will offer rapid deployment of materials that are strong and cost effective – and are safe as well.  We’re aware that many of the trailers sent after Katrina contained toxins and are working to provide a better product that will provide immediate shelter that is not laden with formaldehyde.  We have the opportunity to be more forward looking for Haiti.

 

 

Lexy: Also, in a few weeks the Vancouver Olympics will begin.  Vancouver is calling this Olympics the Greenest ever.   Any comments on the Olympic Village for Vancouver, which will achieve Gold LEED status?

Patrick:  What they’re doing is fantastic.  We couldn’t be happier to see more projects like this emerging with a global presence.  It’s a chance to show the world what can really be done with Green technology, and there’s a very elegant role for materials like ours to play.  The LEED process requires a lot of up front planning, so it’s impressive they received LEED status.

Lexy:  At KissMyCountry we talk about saving the planet, but we also talk about enjoying the planet.  What are your favorite places and why?

Patrick:  My favorite place is Ithaca, New York, where the company is headquartered and where I live.  I love the cultural and geographic diversity.  The campuses are a great meeting place for different viewpoints coming together, and the city is forward looking.  It’s an idyllic, beautiful area with waterfalls everywhere.   There’s a tremendous entrepreneurial community with a great vibe – lots of startups.  We’re all friends, we support each other and we’re excited about changing the world.

Lexy:  As a CEO you travel on business.  Do you have a favorite city for business travel?  What’s great about that city?

Patrick:  San Francisco.   I travel here quite a bit, and what I really enjoy is the ability to fly in, walk over to the train, and take the train to my hotel.  I feel like I’m reducing my footprint, and I feel great about that.  Like Ithaca, it’s a very forward looking city.

 
 
 

Photo by Bluerasberry

Lexy:  Have you ever been to a place that surprised you – either positively or negatively?  What surprised you?

Patrick:  I spent part of my career in the automotive industry in India.  In India I saw the impact of such a large population on the lifestyle and resources in the country.   It made me think about population and how so many people living together affects everything.  I lived there for three years developing manufacturing facilities for the automotive industry in India.  To be a success there we had to focus on coming up with solutions.   People there really are committed to creating a better quality of life.  

 
 

Photo by NASA

Lexy:  Have you been on a vacation within the past few months, or are you planning a vacation in the next few months? 

Patrick:  My whole life is a vacation.  When you love what you’re doing that’s how you feel.  I have no current plans for a vacation.  But my wife and I visited New Zealand several years ago for our honeymoon.  I was really impressed seeing such a self supportive lifestyle.  There’s a tremendous national feeling there to be self sufficient.

Patrick, we greatly appreciate the time you took to talk with KissMyCountry – and look forward to checking back with you as e2e Materials grows.  All the best to you and your entire group at e2e Materials as you help save our planet and build a great company!

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Jason Brown, Concept Development Group – A CEO Saving the Planet

Thursday, January 7th, 2010

Jason Brown Courtesy of Concept Development Group

Jason Brown is a Green serial entrepreneur who has created and run natural food and natural products companies for over 30 years.  In the past year, Jason became CEO of Concept Development Group, following his leadership as CEO at Organic To Go.  Now using his talent to advise companies in the healthy lifestyle industry, Jason spoke with KissMyCountry about being a Green Serial Entrepreneur, the work he’s done in the natural products industry, and the places he loves.

“I travel all the time, so the idea of traveling to some place I haven’t already visited isn’t really the exciting part.  It’s traveling with my family that makes me the happiest.  Whenever and wherever I can spend time with my wife and children, that is my favorite place to be. ”   Jason Brown

Lexy:  Tell us a little bit about your history as a Green Entrepreneur.  What was your first company, and what came from there?
Jason:  When I became interested in natural food, products and living, it was before it truly became an industry.  It was simply a way of life.  I had the pleasure of moving to Boulder, Colorado in 1975 and  natural food stores were just developing.  They had great food; fresh food that I liked.  The concept of eating food that didn’t have pesticides just seemed logical, so I was attracted to it.  I like food a lot, but I wouldn’t say that I’m a connoisseur by any stretch of the imagination. I just like eating good food.    It became my passion to shop at Alfalfa’s, which was developed by an amazing entrepreneur by the name of Hass Hassan back in the ‘70’s.  It was a wonderful place to shop with great products and that was the impetus of it.  For me the lifestyle was – no pun intended – a natural.  The first company I built was a natural clothing company by the name of Cotton Comfort, which I owned and ran until I sold it in 1984.  We sold drawstring pants and hooded shirts originally imported from Mexico and then eventually manufactured in a vertical integration format.  To answer your question, it wasn’t a business strategy, it was a lifestyle choice.  When I created Organic To Go, the company I founded in 2004, it was built on my conclusion that if people were given the choice to eat delicious food that was organic and natural,  convenient and fairly priced, they would make that conscious decision.  Organic To Go became that business model and we opened up a chain of cafes and expanded to service over 100 locations , including airports and universities as well as a catering company, where we would deliver hot, cold, organic, natural meals – breakfast, lunch and dinner.

 

 Jason:   I believe that food grown with pesticides or raised with hormones and antibiotics doesn’t taste the same and it doesn’t react the same inside my body.  I believe that food is fuel.  And I believe that consuming clean, refined food is better for you than putting in processed food that has additives and chemicals.  There’s no rocket science associated with any of this.
Lexy:  Right now consumers seem to be all about Green.  Everywhere you look everything is Green.  It wasn’t always this way.  Does the focus on Green surprise you right now – or not?

 Jason:  No.  I think it’s been a long, natural progression.  The phraseology continues to change.  But just like ‘organic’ was a big buzz word five years ago, the attributes haven’t changed.  The desire to have organic clean food, the desire to do good for the planet hasn’t changed.  The desire to recycle and be smart with the choices that you make about the products you buy – those are logical progressions.  The organic and natural or Green industry as you call it is an aging customer, and it’s a cyclical development as well.  I grew up as a young adult, and now an older adult and I’m not going to change my ways.  My trend is going to continue.  I like clean food, I like natural, I prefer to be conscious about Green and my children were raised with that as normality.  There’s no logical reason for them to have become the antithesis of that, so the expansion is continuing.  I have older children and younger children and my daughter has an organic and natural food household and lives a Green lifestyle.  They wouldn’t have it any other way.   I wouldn’t put it on the same category of religion, but it’s similar to religion.   People make the conscious lifestyle choice that that’s how they’re going to lead their lives and it just continues.  As I get into my 60’s, 70’s and 80’s, my children get into their 30’s, 40’s and 50’s and they have children, so it’s likely that it’s going to continue to grow as well.  The trends are very powerful.

Lexy:  What advice might you give to a new entrepreneur that wants to create Green or natural products for consumers?  Any words of advice for them at this point in time?
Jason: The attributes are what’s most important.  At Organic To Go the attributes of organic products and timely delivery were very important.  But what people wanted to know was that it was delicious, good for you, and met a standard.  Set your standards, develop those standards and then live by your standards.


Lexy:  You’ve built Organic To Go most recently, and now you have a new venture that you’re involved in – Concept Development Group.  This seems to be a place where you can really use your experience to teach others.  Tell us a little bit about Concept Development Group and what you want to accomplish with this new venture.
Jason: Concept Development is an old new venture and was originally founded in 1995.  Before Organic To Go was founded there was a company by the name of Custom Nutrition Services, which was a vitamin business  we had created providing custom nutrition around voices of authority – Dr. Andrew Weil, the Zone Diet (Barry Sears), and Pritikin.  Custom Nutrition was founded by myself and my team at Concept Development Group and is made up of the same team members that have been working with me all these years.  The purpose of Concept Development is to capitalize on our large filing cabinet of experience and to help existing companies to fully capitalize on their own business through some outside support and help.  Whether it’s people needing ‘consultants’ to facilitate a project, or whether they are needing to review their business to package it properly, psychologically as well as technically, for future investment.  That’s our focal point and I’m very proud to work with my team, it’s the key point for me or key opportunity.  They’re really great people, and they do significant work extremely well, so I want to make sure that we continue to do that together.

Courtesy of Godlyf

Lexy:  What companies do you admire in the natural and organic space right now – besides the ones that you’ve developed?
Jason:  I’ll put it into three categories.   In the large category, I think United Natural Foods and Whole Foods have taken their scale and strength and fully developed the opportunity of leading the Green movement.  UNFI doesn’t just distribute food, it’s one of the largest solar players in the world.  Whole Foods doesn’t just sell food, it consciously is doing the best that it can to help promote buying local and to be the best that they can be in the business.   In the mid-size companies, there’s significant strength around some of the players like New Hope Communications.  You’ve got New Hope that is leading the charge for Penton and putting on a Green (literally) exhibition for the Natural Products Show annually.   They go out of their way and it is very impressive.  In the small company space you look at companies like Honest Tea and Late July.  These are dynamic, smaller companies that just do a beautiful job of making delicious food and drinks while building a successful enterprise, helping their employees, vendors and investors.

 Lexy:  Sometimes advising companies is a lot about telling them what to do, and it’s just as much telling them what they should be very be cautious about.  Is there a place where companies can seriously go wrong with consumers when it comes to natural and organic?
Jason:  Do your research and make sure that you don’t overstate the truth.  If you are going to be an organic company be the best that you can be.   At Organic to Go we were the first USDA certified organic fast casual café.  That was a big deal.  We decided that if we were going to have organic in our name that we needed to set the pace and be that kind of a company.  If you’re not that and you’re just on the fringe tell people you’re on the fringe – communicate it.  From my perspective my definition of leadership is to help people to succeed.  So my job at Concept Development is to support people in understanding what they’re asking for, but to look hard with them to make sure that is really what they need.  Be careful what you wish for.  My goal is to help lead people through giving them better information and an outside perspective, then it’s their opportunity to figure out how they want to move forward.

Lexy:  I’d like to ask you some questions about places that you love.  We’re about saving the planet and enjoying the planet.   What places do you enjoy being on this planet?  Do you have a favorite place?  What places do you love to go to?
Jason:  I’ve been blessed in this life and had the opportunity to live in New Zealand and Australia, Miami and Aspen, San Diego and Santa Cruz.  I’ve traveled much of Europe and Asia – Thailand and India.  So I’ve been to a lot of places and have had time to be in those places for more than just a weekend.  My  most favorite place is wherever and whenever I am with my children.  I love being outside with my family.  It’s not necessarily climbing a mountain, it’s being on a river bank skipping stones in Seattle or Redmond, Washington which is 10 minutes from our house.   It’s one of the prettiest places I’ve ever seen.   I’ll be on the Cowlitz River on Sunday fishing with my kids.

Photo by Kiwi-Sonja

Lexy:  Can you think of a place that you’ve been to that really surprised you when you traveled there?  Maybe you were not expecting much and were pleasantly surprised, or expecting it to be fantastic and it wasn’t? Jason:  The South Island of New Zealand.   You take a ferry from the North Island of New Zealand which lands in a place called Picton.   I have never seen more beautiful waters or a more gorgeous way to live than what I’ve seen throughout New Zealand.  That’s what I would tell you.

 

 

Lexy:  You like to spend time in London when you’re thinking about a new idea and new ventures.  What is it about London that inspires you in that way?
Jason:  From a retail perspective, I think that London is a place where merchants abound, and they do it in a way that’s quite unique.  There are lots of small merchants that are ahead of a trend and by being in London I get an opportunity to quickly get my arms and mind around what’s out there in the marketplace.

Lexy:  Do you have any vacations planned in the next couple months and where might you go?
Jason:  The only vacation that is completely planned is to be with my children and grandchildren in San Diego over the Christmas holiday.  I enjoy being with the kids and have been very fortunate.  This year I spent a week in Koh Samui, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Thailand.  It was amazing.   I also went to India visiting Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai where I spent two weeks.  It too was incredible.

Lexy:  Thank you for doing this.  Those are all our questions and we know you’re time is tight today.  We especially appreciate your talking with us today.  Have a great, great holiday.
Jason: I love doing this and thank you for asking.  I wish you a healthy and happy holiday season and I thank you for your interest. I truly do appreciate it.

  

Courtesy of Ntoper

Lexy:  You say that you started this as a lifestyle choice. What has kept you committed to this over a period of time – over the past 30 years?

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