In case you haven’t heard ofStyleCaster, the 4-year old New York City based media company is fast becoming the 2.0 standard for style savvy.
It’s an online community for the latest in fashion, shopping, beauty and all things culturally cool. Want to know which stylist is your sartorial soulmate? Need help picking out jewelry? Lingerie? Or just want to know the weather? Thestylish social centerwants to let you know. It’s a vertical social network of fashion groupies conversing with editors, influencers, and each other. And brands can use it as a channel to reach engaged consumers. CEO and founder Ari Goldberg, who left his position as LeBron James’ manager to start-up StyleCaster with his brother, has generated $5 million from entrepreneurs and investors.
We caught up with Goldberg on this beautiful Friday morning to find out who’s on his #Follow Friday list and to learn more about his entrepreneurial endeavors. Check out the list after the jump.
CBM: What was it like working for LeBron James?
Ari Goldberg:Working for LeBron James was, by far, one of the coolest experiences of my life. Ever since I was cognizant, all I ever wanted to do was represent the greatest athlete in the world; everyone told me that would be impossible. At 25 I was able to do this, and it was literally every sports fans dream. LeBron is an unbelievable talent and having the chance to work with him was really special. The opportunity to work closely with some of the top minds and executives at the greatest brands in their respective fields made everyday special. I am honored to still work with many of them through our work at StyleCaster.
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CBM: When did you know you wanted to leave and start StyleCaster?
Ari Goldberg:I was sitting in my car in the-middle-of-nowhere, Ohio, and started discussing StyleCaster’s potential with with my mentor. He told me the best piece of advice I’ve ever gotten, “Trust your gut.” Once he said that, I knew what I had to do. We saw that readers and advertisers wanted a platform with the quality they found in print, but the social capabilities of digital. StyleCaster has always been a special business, a destined business, one that I have always believed can be a game changer.
CBM: How do you describe StyleCaster to your mother?
Ari Goldberg:I would tell her StyleCaster is Facebook meets Conde Nast, a social network powered by a diverse series of original, premium content. I always wanted to be a sports agent, but this is probably the best possible company my brother and I could have started for my mom. Going to fashion week is not a bad perk for mom.
While not all of the accounts are style-centric, these are his actual favorites, from whom he receives ‘style’ tips for all aspects of everyday of life:
1.@ESPN:talksabout sports, sports, and well … sports.
2.@StyleCaster:With over 35,000 followers on Twitter, StyleCaster, Ari’s company will tweet the fashion news you need to know!
3.@StyleCasterJTM– The StyleCaster junior team members AKA interns, and they’re hiring!
4.@BeautyHigh:Beauty Director@Rachel_Adlerfills you in on all the new products, tips, trends & other random nonsense.
5.@Sacca: The venture capitalist, private equity principal, company advisor and entrepreneur is also an investor in Twitter. He also recently made ourStylish Technology Entrepreneurslist.
6.@RichardBranson: The man is also one of my favorites to follow on Twitter. And I imagine the 1.2 million plus followers he has thinks so too.
7.@SummitD: The digital looking glass for content & conversations that make their way from the@SummitSeriesFantasy Factory to the online universe. See our article on the Summit Series here:Summit at Sea: The entrepreneur schmooze cruise of the year.
8.@MikeBloomberg:Entrepreneur, Philanthropist…oh and Mayor of New York City.
9.@Karl_Lagerfeld:Paris / New York / Monaco. This is all you need to know about the fashion icon:
10.@KanyeWestof Def Jam fame is even worse than Lagerfeld…
11.@DougImbruce:Ari’s business partner and friend…And the founder and CEO ofQwiki, an innovative search product, like Wikipedia but in digestible video form. A Connecticut native, now living in San Francisco via NYC.
12.@David_Goldberg:is Ari’s brother and the President of StyleCaster media group.
CBM: What is it like running a company with your brother?
Ari Goldberg:It’s the best. One of the keys to business is working with people you want to see do well. And there is no one I want to see be more successful than my brother. It doesn’t hurt that he is the best at what he does. I have no doubt that he is going to be one of the top people in media.
CBM: What are your fabulous Labor Day weekend plans?
Ari Goldberg:Looks like we might be heading out toMonterey for Renaissance Weekend.
CBM: Where do you see the future of the fashion industry going in regards to social media?
Ari Goldberg:That’s classified.
Story byCourtney Boyd Myers
Courtney Boyd Myers is the founder of audience.io, a transatlantic company designed to help New York and London based technology startups gr(show all)Courtney Boyd Myers is the founder ofaudience.io, a transatlantic company designed to help New York and London based technology startups grow internationally.
Previously, she was the Features Editor and East Coast Editor of TNW covering New York City startups and digital innovation. She loves magnets + reading on a Kindle.
You can follow her onFacebook,Twitter @CBMandGoogle +.
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