Thursday, May 23rd, 2019

10:45 AM - Noon - Herscher Hall, Guerin A, Webcast Live

Entrepreneurs and Innovators: Sharing Experience - Real Life Stories - Lifestyle Choices and Lifestyle Alternatives

Leah Caplanis, founder and CEO, Social Sparkling Sake @SocialSparkling

Julie Spira, CEO, Cyber-Dating Expert @JulieSpira

Debra Fine, CEO, Fine Line Accelerator; Founder, Well Healed @DebraLynnFine

Elizabeth Barrutia, CEO, BARU Marketing & Media @BaruAdvertising

Erin Kapczynski, SVP Marketing, Kontrol Media, @ErinK217

John Parks, CEO O2 Health Lab, @O2HealthLab

Linda Sherman, Managing Editor, Boomer Tech Talk, @LindaSherman, Moderator

Erin Kapczynski has built her career as a marketing executive in media, technology and advertising. Currently serving as consultant and advisor to leading Silicon Beach startups and mid-stage businesses in adtech, Erin is helping to grow the next wave of unicorns. She has helped the likes of Demand Media (now LeafGroup), MomentFeed, and OpenMail (now System1) with her innovative marketing strategies. Erin’s passion for marketing centers on looking at how a business can transform and grow, leveraging data and user experience, while building customer trust. Erin helps clients plan and execute
customer acquisition, content creation, and branding—often tying these pieces together to generate growth.  Coming into the role via acquisition,

Erin was formerly VP of Marketing for the media and technology platform Purch, where she oversaw all global consumer and corporate marketing that grew audiences and accelerated ad sales and lead-gen deals for partners to well over $100M in annual revenue.  Prior to Purch, Erin served as VP of Marketing at Panache, an early mover and market-leading digital video adtech business that was acquired by WPP.  She also held senior level marketing positions at Herbalife's HQ and Move.

Leah Caplanis is the founder and CEO of SOCIAL Sparkling Wine, a company she launched in 2014 after successfully battling and beating cancer.  During her recovery, she realized that there were no clean alcohol options on the market. With the help of expert brew master Ray Klimovitz, she developed a truly clean alcohol beverage, an organic, low-calorie, gluten and sulfite free sparkling sake wine, and so, SOCIAL Sparking Wine was born. Prior to this, Caplanis worked in sales and marketing for Nestle USA. She holds an MBA from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business and a bachelor’s degree from Western Michigan University. Caplanis has been featured on CNBC’s Billion Dollar Buyer, profiled in numerous news publications and broadcasts, and is a sought after speaker.

Elizabeth Barrutia, CEO, BARU Marketing & Media: Elizabeth Barrutia is a female entrepreneur and the CEO of BARU Marketing & Media ( http://www.baru-ad.com/).  Elizabeth founded BARÚ in 2007 to engage untapped consumer groups. With a 20-year career in general and Hispanic markets, she is an industry innovator in multi-cultural marketing and media. Elizabeth has designed campaigns on more than 120 feature films for Walt Disney Studios, Focus Features, Universal Pictures, and more. Her category expertise also includes technology, retail, and consumer packaged goods, for brands such as Microsoft, Sears, Petco, Del Real Foods, and Treasury Wine Estates. Prior to founding BARÚ, Elizabeth held leadership positions at Arenas Entertainment, Carat USA and Focus Media. Having lived in Spain, Brazil, and Mexico, she is fluent in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. A graduate of UC Berkeley, with a Bachelors of Science in Mass Communications and Latin American Literature.

Julie Spira is an online dating expert, media personality, digital matchmaker, and bestselling author. She started her digital career in 1981, where she was an executive at RKO Radio Networks, the country’s first commercial satellite radio network. Julie’s held executive positions at global satellite companies including IDB Communications Group and InterPacket Networks, where she was Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing. At InterPacket, Julie was responsible for delivering high-speed Internet via satellite to over 100 countries, helped the company through the IPO process, and was part of the management team for the company’s acquisition by American Tower Corporation (AMT: NYSE). Julie was an early adopter of the Internet, and as the CEO and founder of Cyber-Dating Expert, she’s been coaching singles on finding love online for 25 years. She’s ranked as the most influential person in the multi-billion dollar online dating industry. Julie’s a frequent guest in the media and has been featured in/on over 1500 media outlets with her dating advice including: ABC, BBC, CBS, CNN, Cosmopolitan, E! Entertainment, Good Morning America, NBC, Nightline, Today Show, New York Times, NPR, Washington Post, and USA Today. Julie appeared in the VICE Media documentary, “The Mobile Love Industry” and was the online dating expert in the award-winning documentary, “The Lonely Italian.” Julie’s been dubbed the “Pioneer of Online Dating” by Cosmopolitan and is a dating expert at Match. She’s the author of the bestseller, “The Perils of Cyber-Dating: Confessions of a Hopeful Romantic Looking for Love Online,” a tell-all memoir where she shared her journey of being an Internet dating pioneer. Her book launch coincided with forming her business Cyber-Dating Expert, LLC. In 2017, Julie was awarded “Best Dating Coach of the Year” at the iDate Awards, the dating industry’s most recognized awards ceremony, which celebrated her for her excellence in navigating love. Follow @JulieSpira on Twitter and Instagram. Visit CyberDatingExpert.com.

Debra Fine, CEO, Fine Line Accelerator: Fine Line Accelerator, is a strategic growth firm that takes companies from start up through exit. She has been the CEO of companies in the lifestyle, consumer products, and entertainment technology sectors and was Managing Partner of EM Ventures, a $100 Million  Entertainment/Technology Venture Capital Fund.  Fine was Executive Vice President of  MCA (Marketing Corporation of America), developing marketing strategy for Fortune 500 companies/brands such as Kraft, Quaker, American Express, Pepsi, Kellogs, Fox Entertainment, Vivendi Universal, and Disney. There was a lifechanging event for Fine in 2013. Fine was shot four times in the Santa Monica College mass shooting. Active shooter, John Zwahari had stepped out of of his home where he had executed his father and brother and was aiming his rifle to shoot two women, she drove in between them and saved their lives. Fine was the only survivor who had been shot in the massacre that took five lives. Instead of taking a political stance on guns, Fine decided to get to individuals to help them change paths before getting to the guns. She joined the board of The Maple Center, which provides mental health care for those who cannot afford it. She became CEO of “I Have A Dream Foundation- Los Angeles, a non-profit that provides education and scholarships for at-risk youth and is now working with the Dominguez Dream, a non-profit that provides at risk schools in California, Texas and Colorado with educational services and mentoring. After undergoing several surgeries herself, Fine recently founded “Well Healed”, an aftercare undergarment/lingerie company , combining healing, comfort and beauty for those undergoing masectomies, hysterectomies and any form of radical surgeries.

John Parks is Founder and CEO of O2 Health Lab, an innovative Wellness Concept whose focus is Recovery, Beauty and Anti-Aging, Health and Wellness. With over 35 years or experience John has broad experience as an Entrepreneur and Marketing Executive. O2 Health Lab features an array of natural therapies in an innovative, non-medical environment. These include Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, Cryotherapy, Light Therapy, PEMF Therapy and other adjunctive treatments. He is a passionate proponent of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, having used it to recover from severe illness. Prior to this role, John was retired and enjoying life from the sale of companies. John was also Founder and EVP of International City Racing, a company which owned and operated Endurance Sporting events. He helped grow the Long Beach Marathon from a mere 3,000 to over 25,000 participants. He served as Senior VP for Baseline Enterprises, Inc, a firm that specialized in construction of themed restaurants including the House of Blues and Planet Hollywood. He co-founded Market Evolution, a firm specializing in lifestyle and technology marketing. Projects included working with JPL/NASA to promote Educational Outreach for space missions nationally. John was Vice President for M&FM, a national marketing agency specializing in Sports and College Marketing where he headed up national marketing projects for Pepsi, Saturn, and General Motors. His focus included negotiating and implementing sponsorships and events at Colleges nationally. He started his career working for 2 years with the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee. A Southern California native, John has traveled extensively, lived and attended school in Vienna, Austria, and is fluent in German.  Born in Pasadena, California, John holds a BS in Business Administration from the USC.

Linda Sherman, Co-founder, The Courage Group: An international, multi-cultural marketing pro, Linda brings a distinguished background of international subsidiary CEO/CMO to her Social Marketing expertise. These included CEO Club Med Japan, CEO Barilla Japan and CMO Wal-Mart Japan. She devised and implemented an innovative guerrilla marketing plan for ZIMA in Japan that produced a lasting, profitable success. Linda is Managing Editor of BoomerTechTalk.com and an advocate for both boomers and the older adults they support in the fields of entertainment, lifestyle and technology. She has been featured and quoted in Forbes, The New York Times, The Christian Science Monitor, and other leading publications. Linda Sherman shares her recommendations for streaming film & series, and TV on her TVReview.co website. Linda has an influential on-line presence. You can find her social profiles at CourageGroup.com including @LindaSherman on Twitter. Her deep understanding of social marketing includes experience with WordPress website production and search engine optimization. Her company, The Courage Group, provides services in personal and company branding, social marketing strategy and training.