Distribution & Manufacturing
WINNER
Jonathan Scott Hirshberg
President and CEO
ENI-JR286, Inc.
www.enijr286.com
Jonathan Scott Hirshberg is the CEO and president of ENI-JR286, Inc., a license firm that specializes in sporting goods accessories. He started the firm in October 1998 as a private company, working with many top brands such as Fila, Speedo, Under Armour, Crocs, K-Swiss, Red Bull and other action sports companies.
The company, which is only one of four global partners, currently holds a global license with Nike Inc. The business is responsible for design development manufacturing and distribution for the products under license.
The company distributes to 100 plus countries with approximately 240,000 ship-to locations, which represents about 20,000 customers globally. The company has 28 distributors that work within its commercial platform. Hirshberg also runs a technology company that holds design and utility patents as well as trademarks that ENI-JR286 uses in products.
Under Hirshberg’s leadership, ENI-JR286 continues to grow through the pursuit of innovation, quality, value creation for consumers, and enhancing the athlete’s performance and sports experience. When ENI-JR286 licenses brands, it strives to be the licensor’s most respected and effective licensee. For its retailers, distributors and consumers, ENI-JR286 works to be the most reliable and most preferred partner.
Hirshberg runs ENI-JR286 as if it will be one of the first billion dollar global sports accessory firms. In reaching that goal, ENI-JR286 strives to become the preeminent expert in creating, building and marketing sports accessories that are an integral part of the athlete’s sports experience and success.
To further these aspirations, Hirshberg ensures that his team at ENI-JR286 celebrates successes, learns from mistakes and encourages thoughtful initiative. Enjoying work and enjoying those with whom you work is key to the ENI-JR286 culture. And, just as in sports, ENI-JR286 and Hirshberg vow to never lose their hunger to excel, to grow and to compete.
FINALISTS
Peter Kim
Founder and CEO
Hudson Jeans
www.hudsonjeans.com
Peter Kim, founder and CEO of Hudson Jeans, a global leader in premium denim, has more in mind than just selling jeans. The mission of the company is to transcend product and inspire people around the world to live out their passions, push life to its fullest and challenge themselves to be their very best.
Kim recently sold his majority stake in the company to Joe’s Jeans, and a great deal of synergy is expected from this partnership. The deal garnered a lot of attention because of the standing the brand had achieved in a relatively short time, as well as the spontaneous uptake by celebrities who have made Hudson one of the hottest jeans globally.
Kim has a vision for what his and the brand’s future entails beyond just denim. His vision is to build a brand that changes people’s perspective and creates positive change in the world. He looks to take Hudson’s platform, synergy, infrastructure and resources to create other categories of the apparel business and build an empire of like-minded people with the same passion to empower and inspire others.
Kim hires his employees based on the sense that they must be given creative freedom. He believes businesses function best when they have a vision, create the right environment, hire the right team, clearly communicate the vision to the team, then step away and let them be free to act even when they make mistakes.
Kim epitomizes the phrase “work hard, play hard.” He is an avid bicyclist, surfer, yoga practitioner and sushi connoisseur. He is an active member of the Young Presidents Organization, and has been honored with several awards for outstanding community service and his dedication to charitable work.
Rami Rostami
Founder and CEO
Technocel/TYLT
web.technocel.com
Rami Rostami was sent to the U.S. alone at the age of 13 after the Iranian Revolution in 1979 with no means of support. Growing up alone in Oklahoma, he faced extreme racial hostility and such loneliness that he could hear his own footsteps during high school graduation because no one clapped for him.
After graduation, Rostami stayed in the U.S., translating his obstacles into opportunities. At age 19, he founded his first company, Technocel, which evolved into a multimillion-dollar global wireless accessory manufacturer serving hundreds of corporate and private label customers and carrying an 11,000-product assortment.
Technocel established its reputation as a trusted original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and distributor of well-established brands through its long-standing carrier channels for many years. As a visionary who wanted to adapt alongside the rapidly changing mobile technology environment, Rostami, CEO, launched his own brand, TYLT, which blossomed into a mobile innovator, expanding worldwide with distribution in 75 countries.
Technocel was a natural outgrowth of the cellular boom of the 1980s, founded in 1986 because of the opportunity Rostami saw to market and develop his own product line to compete with existing OEMs.
The biggest challenge in the wireless industry is forecasting and obsolescence of products because handsets change regularly. Thus, as technology evolved, Rostami realized that to stay competitive, the technology underlying the existing accessories model needed to advance as well. In response, he invested heavily in research and design and began developing his own line of innovative products and brands under the TYLT brand to maintain his competitive edge.
Rostami has created an investment fund where 100 percent of the proceeds go directly to help promote children’s education globally. Thus far, with the disbursed capital, the fund has been able to sponsor the education of over 100 children in the past two years.
