Robert Gray (businessman)

Robert Gray (born 17 April 1956) is an advertising entrepreneur and venture capitalist.

Early life

Robert Gray was born in Great Neck, New York, the son an automotive dealer and his wife. In high school (1969-1974), Gray showed an entrepreneurial spirit by organizing private, paid-admission dance parties, as well as reselling songs on custom 8-track disco mix tapes^{[citation needed]}. He attended the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania from 1975 to 1978, earning a degree in Finance and Marketing.^{[citation needed]}

Career

Custom music programming and advertising

After graduating from Penn, Gray began a service providing programmed music for Ann Taylor, The Limited, The Gap and others. The company was acquired by a Seattle based competitor for $2 million 1982.^{[citation needed]}

In 1984, Gray founded POP ("Point Of Purchase") Radio Corporation, which expanded on the idea of a corporation-specific radio service by adding advertising. Gray was joined by Robert Hussey. POP Radio went public on NASDAQ (POPX) in 1986. By 1990, 210 chains such as Eckerd Drug, Kroger, Walgreens, CVS and Kmart enrolled a total of 22,000 grocery, drug and mass merchandising stores in the service in the US and Canada. It was acquired by Heritage Media Corporation in 1990 for $86 million.

In 1992, Gray developed a service for Bally Health Clubs, and provided separate local-area broadcast signals so that club patrons watching one of several monitors could tune a personal radio to a broadcast frequency to listen to a chosen monitor's sound. Gray termed this "Private Silent Local Simulcasting."

Dating services

From 1995 to 1997, Gray was involved in the design for a dating service called Introvision, becoming its CEO.^[1] The company attempted to match individuals based on answers to behavioral questions like "Do you like to drive fast?" or "Do you prefer to socialize or stay home?" The company did not achieve success.^{[citation needed]}

Venture capital

Gray went on to become an investment banker, working one year for the Atlanta based firm J.P. Turner. In 2000, he opened his own boutique placement firm, vSource1, Inc., where he remains General Partner. He is also involved with Scarborough Capital, Inc.^{[citation needed]}

Personal life

In 1989, Gray married Karen Castles; they had two children, Caroline and Alexander. The lived in Atlanta, Georgia from 1994 to 2003, and then in Manhasset, NY from 2003. The couple divorced in 2007 and Gray currently lives in Great Neck, NY.^{[citation needed]}

References

• POP Radio, Media and Marketing Decisions, May 1988, page 67
• Adweek, May 1988, page 17
• POP Times, September, 1988, page 7
• Forbes Magazine, April 5, 1989, page 30