Blaine Vess

Blaine Vess
Born 1980/1981 (age 35–36)[1]
Occupation Co-Founder and CEO of Solve
Co-Founder of Student Brands

Blaine Vess is an American internet entrepreneur and film and television producer. He is the co-founder and CEO of Solve and the co-founder and former chairman of Student Brands.[2]

Career

Vess founded Student Brands in his college dorm room in 1999 and served as its CEO until 2015. Student Brands had no outside investors and was acquired by Barnes & Noble Education for $58.5 million in cash in August 2017.[2] Vess currently serves as the CEO of Solve, which is an airport services company that is part of Y Combinator's Summer 2017 class.[3]

Vess worked at New Line Cinema as an interactive marketing consultant where he helped market films including Snakes on a Plane and Wedding Crashers.[4] Vess co-created and produced the television series I'm Married to a... on VH1[5] and has produced films, including I Am Sun Mu,[6] Trophy,[7] and Gook.[8]

Philanthropy

Vess serves as the chairman of Liberty in North Korea (LiNK),[9] which provides protection and aid to North Korean refugees hiding in China.

Vess' interest in human rights in North Korea was first sparked by an episode of National Geographic Explorer.[10] He has since traveled to North Korea.[4] In July 2013, Vess screened Liberty in North Korea's documentary, Danny From North Korea, as part of a fundraiser at his home.[11] In 2014, he purchased a $64,000 dram of Macallan scotch at £10 (Ten Pound) in Beverly Hills, with all of the funds being donated to Liberty in North Korea.[9]

References

  1. ↑ Watson, Dan. "Digital Entrepreneur Blaine Vess Brings His ‘Home Work’ to WeHo". WEHOVille. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
  2. 1 2 Griffith, Erin. "The 17-Year Slow Burn: A Dotcom-Era Dorm Room Startup Finally Gets Its Exit". Fortune. Retrieved 8 August 2017.
  3. ↑ Tepper, Fitz. "Solve escorts you through the airport like a VIP". TechCrunch. Retrieved 5 July 2017.
  4. 1 2 Dave, Paresh. "Blaine Vess harnesses the Internet to help students succeed". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
  5. ↑ Rose, Lacey. "VH1 Adds Trio of Shows, Renews 'T.I. and Tiny: The Family Hustle'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
  6. ↑ Linden, Sheri. "‘I Am Sun Mu’: DOC NYC Review". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  7. ↑ Schager, Nick. "Sundance Film Review: ‘Trophy’". Variety. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  8. ↑ DeFore, John. "'Gook': Film Review %7c Sundance 2017". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 22 January 2017.
  9. 1 2 "CEO of WeHo-Based StudyMode Buys $64k Scotch Whiskey with Proceeds Benefitting Liberty in North Korea". WEHOVille. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
  10. ↑ Jang, Yang Hee. "[뉴스 풍경] 탈북자 구출 돕는 미국의 청년 백만장자". Voice of America, Korean. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
  11. ↑ Jang, Yang Hee. "[뉴스 풍경] 미국 부촌 베버리힐스서 탈북자 지원 모금행사 열려". Voice of America, Korean. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
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