News

Kansas-based Evolv Solutions has announced the launch of MBEConnect, a business social networking Web site created to enhance communication among minority- and women-owned businesses. MBEConnect was conceived as the result of Evolv Solutions’ business relationships, networking events and involvement with various national and local business associations.

The site addresses specific concerns voiced by the MBE and WBE communities over the years. Evolv Solutions discovered a strong desire for a common platform from which minority- and women-owned businesses could better represent themselves with respect to awareness, contracting opportunities, business growth and improved networking. Equally important was input from corporate representatives who also expressed an interest in having a common platform for facilitating supplier search efforts, documentation, certification verification, collateral accessibility and other communication improvement capabilities.

MBEConnect is not intended to operate as an alternative social networking space. The site is specifically designed with the minority-owned business and women-owned business in mind. It aims to be the business social networking platform for MBEs and WBEs.

“Although the site is in its infancy, it contains a variety of capabilities and features found on other well established social networking sites,” said Eric Harland, vice-president of IT projects for Evolv Solutions.

“MBEConnect isn’t trying to re-invent the wheel, we simply set out to give the MBE better control of contracting opportunities and broader visibility,” said Ron Harland Jr., vice-president of Evolv Solutions.

“It’s an important mechanism for our profile members and the businesses we’re trying to connect with. MBEConnect is a much needed tool and this is an opportunity for MBEs and WBEs to be considered on a broader scale, nationally or maybe even globally.”

Evolv Solutions discovered that in order for MBEs to do business with more organizations they needed a way to showcase their services and products on a much broader scale. They also needed a way to connect with other MBEs and WBEs for collaborative efforts. MBEConnect also serves as a valuable tool for corporate, municipal and federal entities. The site provides these entities with a common platform allowing them to bridge gaps regarding time, distance, and overall awareness of who and where MBEs and WBEs are located, as well as what they bring to the table.

MBE owners report that they are accustomed to hearing, “I didn’t know you were out there” or “I didn’t know you had those capabilities.” Additionally, sourcing managers seeking to hire MBEs often have to gather, assess and maintain a substantial amount of data about MBEs, which is expensive and time consuming, especially for larger organizations.

“We have every reason to believe that MBEConnect is the tool MBEs, WBEs and sourcing entities need,”

said Eric Harland. “Currently it provides efficiency for supplier sourcing and business development and as the site gains momentum, additional features and functionality will be added.”

There are no fees associated with becoming a member of MBEConnect for an MBE, WBE or sourcing entity. The site allows individuals and organizations to create both personal and business profiles, each serving a distinct purpose. The business portion will allow users to create a data profile with 40-plus data points and document upload capability in a secure environment. Profiles support an array of document types such as certification forms, business collateral, white papers, presentations and video. In general, business profiles provide important information such as business size and scope, product or service descriptions, years in business, growth, special certifications, relevant associations, publications and awards. These attributes essentially provide the MBE and WBE with its own business data library that can be accessed from any location.

Sourcing entities will be able to establish contact, post opportunities, press releases or event notifications, query reports and review contracting statistics. MBEConnect will facilitate organizational search efforts for supplier matches across varying lines of business, including keyword searches. Other benefits include: Up-to-date information, national/regional/local search capability, access to collateral downloads, historical contract and performance data, billing and invoicing capabilities, and D&B reports. Sourcing entities will also have the option of making direct and secure requests for financial data from identified MBEs and WBEs.

“Our greatest challenge will be raising awareness about the MBEConnect site,” said Ron Harland Sr..

“Our continued involvement in the minority- and women-owned Business community will be critical as well as our ability to properly assess member feedback about the site’s functionality and value.

Evolv Solutions, LLC is a certified MBE that provides document management services, and print solutions and information technology services that improve document workflows and output infrastructures for small, medium and enterprise customers. For additional information visit www.mbeconnect.com and www.evolvsolutions.com

The unique, interactive communication model of www.cross.tv allows members and visitors to access the site in more than twenty languages. Registered members can communicate in their native language through the use of an advanced language filtering system. Membership currently spans over 100 countries.

The online community combines the best of social networking with high quality HD streaming and a multilingual communications platform.

Founded by Andreas Kisslinger and Stefan Jager, currently residing in Vienna, Austria, cross.tv is quickly becoming the social network of choice for many Christians around the world.

“We allow people around the world to be easily united on a faith-based community platform in a way that has not been done before anywhere to our knowledge,” said Kisslinger. “Users are able to post and read in their own native language and at the same time connect with thousands around the world, present their own ideas and projects, as well as find out about others.”

“The wide range of functionality and media sharing opportunities enable ministries to reach more people in a greater efficient (and statistically trackable) manner. We enable people around the world to share their God given creativity and audio-visualized ideas,” he added.

cross.tv has developed many applications specifically designed with the cross.tv community in mind. One such new feature, introduced in February of 2009, includes a never before developed background designer tool. Users can create a background page that is unique to their tastes and moods. The feature also supports a wide range of design functionalities, including the ability to match colors and styles in keeping with corporate marketing campaigns and logos.

Users are free to upload videos, pictures, publish blogs, add friends and develop their own sub-networks for their families, churches, ministries or projects. They can also communicate with friends and members instantaneously through the cross.box tool, which allows instant message functions and media management.

Unlike other social networking websites such as Facebook and MySpace, having a dedicated online content monitoring team helps cross.tv offer a safe and clean community that can be accessed by all ages. All uploaded content are screened to ensure they maintain high standards and conform to family-friendly values.

High standards are not only found in the values cross.tv upholds, but also with the website development and video content produced by cross.tv. Their first commercial, entitled: “My.Space.Book.Flick.Tube” was recently awarded the prestigious Silver Telly Award.

Founded in 1979, the Telly Awards is the premier award honoring outstanding local, regional, and cable TV commercials and programs and the finest in film and video productions. Winners represent the best work of the most respected advertising agencies, production companies, television stations, cable operators, and corporate video departments in the world. cross.tv is now a proud part of that heritage. Their second commercial: “Around the World in 30 Seconds” is set to launch in August 2009. Both videos can be found on http://www.youTube.com and on http://www.cross.tv.

Thoughts.com had a successful Grand Opening of their Winter Garden office on Wednesday, August 19th. Guests including the press, business owners, and local Thoughts.com members arrived as the event started at 10am. The founder and CEO of Thoughts.com Ben Ogden, took the stage at 10:30am and spoke of the company’s first community event:

“Today I am proud to announce that Thoughts.com will be holding our first Job fair on Wednesday, September 9th. By opening up this office we are creating 30 new jobs for the Central Florida community. We’re still actively hiring for Web Developers, Project Managers, Web Designers, Content Writers and Marketing Specialists. We are also creating internships for marketing students at 4 Florida Universities this semester including UCF, UF, FSU and UNF. Next semester we will be adding Universities from across the county to our program and creating a minimum of 20 additional internship opportunities. If you are interested in learning more about working with us please visit thoughts.com/careers. ”

Ogden also spoke of part of the company’s investment plans for the Central Florida community.

“We are absolutely thrilled to be opening up our office today and creating these new jobs, however, this is only the beginning for us,” said Ogden. “We expect to outgrow this space within two years, so Thoughts.com is already researching locations for our next office building. This will be a 20,000 square ft, multi-million dollar investment into a state-of-the-art office complex. By opening that campus, we will be creating even more high paying technology jobs. At the same time we will be helping the local construction industry by building a world-class technology center here in Central Florida.”

Currently Thoughts.com has a growing membership over 200,000 of the internet’s most gifted and talented users.

Governed by their “One Love Philosophy,” the culture at Thoughts is one that strives to ignite positive change in the world, spread awareness and make positive contributions toward helping those in need.

Thoughts.com, owned by Thoughts.com LLC, is one of the fasted growing Web 2.0 blog communities on the internet. Thoughts.com is a 100% free online conversation community. Thoughts.com features include unlimited bandwidth, photos, videos, podcast sharing, community forums, and live discussions. Thoughts.com is located at 4028 Winter Garden Vineland Rd. in Winter Garden, FL.

We are so glad to announce that again this year Bouhammer himself will be a panelist at the biggest blogging conference in the country. It is called Blog World Expo and you can read more about it at http://www.blogworldexpo.com/. Last year the Annual Milblog conference was held in conjunction with the expo, and Bouhammer was afforded the opportunity to be a panelist then. Just to give you an idea on the numbers that attend this conference, in 2008 there were over 280 speakers, over 15,000 in attendance and over 92 million people that watched on the internet.

This year we moved the annual Milblog Conference back to Washington DC, which we held in April. However Blog World Expo wanted to have dedicated milblog track so there are several panels chaired and ran by milbloggers on the first day of the conference.

Bouhammer is honored and flattered to be sitting on a panel called “Getting The Picture: What’s Next for Milblogs?” The description of the panel is below.

“Audience demands and demographics are changing. New technologies are emerging that, according to some, make blogs as much dinosaurs as print technology. What does the future hold for milblogs? Come join a panel of milbloggers and social media gurus as they discuss the future of milblogging.”

Bouhammer is sitting on this panel with some very esteemed bloggers and good friends. With him on this panel is his partner-in-crime on YouServed.com Blog and Radio show, CJ Grisham. Also his very close friend and brother-in-arms, Scott Kesterson who writes several blogs and is the director and film-maker of the acclaimed documentary, At War. The highly respected Scott Henderson from www.mediasauce.com is also sitting on the panel. Last, and certainly not least the panel is being moderated by Bouhammer’s good friend and MilBlog Master, Matt Burden from www.Blackfive.net.

There are many panels over the three days, and I encourage you visit http://www.blogworldexpo.com/ to learn more about the conference and see the entire schedule. Some of the other milblog panels are ; “They Also Serve: Spouse Bloggers”, “Best Milblogs You’ve Never Read”, and “Milblogs: Not Your Standard News Source”. You should check out the breakdown of the other panels and see if your favorite milblogger in going to be on a panel at www.warriorlegacyfoundation.org/?page=BlogWorldExpo

Joining a broad cross-section of more than 1,000 companies, academic institutions, communities, related groups and individuals, The Linux Box is now part of Open Source for America, a unified voice for the promotion of open source in the U.S. Federal government sector. Open Source for America strives to effect change in government to encourage broader support of open source technologies and the open source development community.

“We’ve received great response from companies, organizations and individuals interested in joining together to advocate for greater use of open source software in the U.S. federal government,” said David Thomas, principal at Mehlman Vobel Castagnetti and spokesman for the Open Source for America campaign. “We are very pleased to welcome The Linux Box in joining our cause and look forward to their active involvement in articulating the true value open source delivers to the U.S. government.”

Founded in 1999, The Ann Arbor-based company is a bespoke software development consultancy that customizes open source projects for clients across a variety of sectors. The Linux Box provides professional services for organizations looking to gain competitive advantage, reduce IT costs and increase the control they have over their open source technologies.

“As part of the Infrastructure Subcommittee, The Linux Box will be calling on over a decade of integration and project management experience in the open source space,” said Elizabeth Ziph, CEO and co-founder of The Linux Box. “In this tough economic climate, both private and public companies are leveraging open source technologies to solve business and IT challenges. The U.S. government, however, has not been as quick to leverage the collaborative power of open source software. As a member of OSA, we will do our best to promote the freedoms that open source software and open technology solutions can provide – an open, transparent and cost-effective option – for government agencies.”

As a member of Open Source for America, The Linux Box has pledged to support the organization’s mission and its founding principles. This includes the belief that the U.S. federal government can and should become more transparent, participatory, secure and efficient by leveraging the advantages of open source software; the open source community can drive collaborative innovation for government; and the decision to use software should be driven solely by the requirements of the user.

To learn more about Open Source for America, please visit http://www.opensourceforamerica.org.

About The Linux Box
The Linux Box (www.linuxbox.com) is a professional services organization specializing in open source technology and the Linux platform in the server, cluster and desktop environments. It provides software development and customization services to a broad range of clients in industries ranging from energy and financial services to government, life sciences and the utilities.

About Open Source for America
Open Source for America is a coalition of industry leaders, non-government groups and academic/research institutions organized to serve as a centralized advocate, to encourage broader U.S. Federal Government support of and participation in free and open source software. Membership in Open Source for America is open to any individual or entity signing the campaign’s mission pledge. Learn more at http://www.opensourceforamerica.org. You can also follow Open Source for America on Twitter at https://twitter.com/OpenSourceGov

Michael Newman, an audio industry veteran who has helped companies such as Mackie, Digidesign, Gibson and Cerwin-Vega, has launched a blog dedicated to helping musical instrument manufacturers, professional audio companies and resellers with creating successful social media marketing strategies.

“I want to provide a central location where we can share ideas and communicate about this constantly evolving area of internet marketing,” Newman states.

“I am encouraging participation so I can adjust the topics accordingly. If I can help companies with social media marketing, then manufacturers, musicians, sound companies and dealers all benefit.”
To check out Newman’s blog please visit: http://michaelnewmanconsulting.com/blog/.

For more company information visit the web site at: www.michaelnewmanconsulting.com.

Hiztoria.com, the latest Web 2.0 project from young entrepreneur Matt Callegari, has today unveiled the new and improved version of its website to a select group of Beta testers ahead of its long-awaited launch at the end of August. The original version however, is still available for the general public to use.

The much-hyped social network, which allows users to rate, review discuss and exchange comments on websites and online services of all shapes and sizes has introduced a raft of new features which look set to provide users with an even broader functionality, and to make the site even more appealing to the Web 2.0 masses.
The version overhaul which will see Hiztoria ‘2.0’ come into being, includes a substantial overhaul of existing graphics, including a new identity for the Hiztoria brand, along with features Founder and CEO Matt Callegari believes will set it apart from the crowd.

“The latest version of the Hiztoria website has been a long time in the making, and I’m excited to be this close to unveiling it for the world at large. We’ve been receiving excellent feedback from our testing community, and my team and I have been working day and night to get things together ahead of our launch in late August.”

“The new features we’ve incorporated in the latest version of the website are too many in number to list. We’ve taken on board the suggestions of our early Beta testers to come up with something we think is a much more refined model, and we’re convinced our users will find our new functionality pretty cool.”

The latest version includes a whole range of new features and improvements, including a redesign of site navigation, over 1,000 website profiles to rate, review, share and discuss, a new notification system, a more streamlined and intuitive process for adding site profiles, and advanced forum features to enable members to communicate more openly about Hiztoria and the websites it covers.

Additionally, users will benefit from a range of how-to videos, scheduled to be uploaded to the Hiztoria site through September to help users make the most of the new functionality incorporated by the Hiztoria team.

The network, currently in the final phase of Beta testing, is preparing to launch its radically overhauled site concept at the end of August 2009, with a view to accepting its first advertising clients from the fall of this year.

About:

Hiztoria (www.hiztoria.com) is an online website review community, allowing users to share comments, and review and rate the web. Covering websites big and small, Hiztoria is a new concept in social networking, connecting web users from across the globe through one central repository where members can meet and interact around their favorite websites.

ScanSafe, the pioneer and leading provider of SaaS Web security, today revealed its latest data showing that employers are gradually tightening the reins on which websites their staff can view and are increasingly choosing to block access to popular social networking sites.

“When Web filtering first became an option for companies we generally saw them block access to typical categories such as pornography, illegal activities and hate and discrimination,” comments Spencer Parker, director of product management at ScanSafe. “In recent months, employers are obviously wising up to the dangers and negative impact on productivity linked to certain sites and more and more of our customers have chosen to block social networking, online banking and Webmail.”

An analysis of more than a billion Web requests processed by the company each month confirms a 20% increase in the number of customers blocking social networking sites in the last six months. Currently, 76% of companies are choosing to block social networking and it is now a more popular category to block than online shopping (52%), weapons (75%), alcohol (64%), sports (51%) and Webmail (58%). Surprisingly, employers don’t take the same stern approach to online banking and less than half (47%) of our customers block this category.

ScanSafe specifically found an increase in the number of customers choosing to block the below categories in the last 6 months.

• 28% increase in travel
• 27% increase in restaurants and bars
• 26% increase in sports
• 26% increase in online shopping
• 19% increase in Job Searches
• 16% increase in Webmail

In economic times like these, having a productive workforce is more important than ever and companies are now often expecting employees to work harder for less. Restricting access to non-work related sites could be a way to encourage this much needed productivity.

“Social networking sites can expose businesses to malware and if not used for business purposes can be a drain on productivity and bandwidth,” says Parker. “Given the option, companies are increasingly taking a sterner approach to the sites that their employees are allowed to access. I imagine before long, social networking will be up there with pornography in terms of categories blocked.”

ScanSafe Web Filtering provides control over how employees use the Internet. It provides easy-to-use tools to create, enforce and monitor company Web usage policies. Using the most accurate categorisation databases, Web Filtering helps manage the firm’s Internet traffic, protecting the network and staff from undesirable Web content.

About ScanSafe

ScanSafe (www.scansafe.com) is the pioneer and largest global provider of SaaS Web Security, ensuring a safe and productive Internet environment for businesses. ScanSafe solutions keep malware off corporate networks and allow businesses to control and secure the use of the Web. As a SaaS solution, ScanSafe eliminates the burden of purchasing and maintaining infrastructure in-house, significantly lowering the total cost of ownership. Powered by its proactive, multilayered Outbreak Intelligence™ threat detection technology, ScanSafe processes more than a billion Web requests each month and 200 million blocks each month for customers in over 90 countries.

Today Forward Motion Studios, a Web and graphic design firm launched the next part of their commitment to social media by launching their new web site Twitter and Beyond.Com at www.twitterandbeyond.com. The site currently features free Twitter Backgrounds in 9 different categories with a rage of artistic designs.

Heather Montgomery, CEO of Forward Motion Studios is excited about this latest venture for her design firm, “I am excited to offer free Twitter backgrounds to our clients and the general public at large. The next phase is to offer custom backgrounds for people looking to brand their Twitter backgrounds. I know some people can do this in Photoshop, but I feel for businesses the backgrounds would be more professional and correctly sized if a web design team designed it.”

For some examples of Forward Motion Studios custom Twitter backgrounds they invite you to view www.twitter.com/forwardmotion and www.twitter.com/8womendream

In addition Heather’s company is popular on Facebook at www.facebook.com/forward.motion.studios. The company web site is located at www.forwardmotionstudios.com where viewers can see some examples of their design work.

“I invite everyone to continue checking on our sites as we reach out to the community through our social networking sites. We will also be offering social media classes to businesses.”

About Forward Motion Studios-
Based in San Francisco’s North Bay Area, Forward Motion Studios specializes in complete marketing and design solutions and project management for business including website development, graphic design, social media and product photography. Their focus is on helping clients achieve their branding goals through successful design projects.

As social networking grows increasingly pervasive, more employers are utilizing these sites to screen potential employees. Forty-five percent of employers reported in a recent CareerBuilder survey that they use social networking sites to research job candidates, a big jump from 22 percent last year. Another 11 percent plan to start using social networking sites for screening. More than 2,600 hiring managers participated in the survey, which was completed in June 2009.

Of those who conduct online searches/background checks of job candidates, 29 percent use Facebook, 26 percent use LinkedIn and 21 percent use MySpace. One-in-ten (11 percent) search blogs while 7 percent follow candidates on Twitter.

The top industries most likely to screen job candidates via social networking sites or online search engines include those that specialize in technology and sensitive information: Information Technology (63 percent) and Professional & Business Services (53 percent).

Why Employers Disregarded Candidates After Screening Online

Job seekers are cautioned to be mindful of the information they post online and how they communicate directly with employers. Thirty-five percent of employers reported they have found content on social networking sites that caused them not to hire the candidate. The top examples cited include:

* Candidate posted provocative or inappropriate photographs or information – 53 percent

* Candidate posted content about them drinking or using drugs – 44 percent

* Candidate bad-mouthed their previous employer, co-workers or clients – 35 percent

* Candidate showed poor communication skills – 29 percent

* Candidate made discriminatory comments – 26 percent

* Candidate lied about qualifications – 24 percent

* Candidate shared confidential information from previous employer – 20 percent

Fourteen percent of employers have disregarded a candidate because the candidate sent a message using an emoticon such as a smiley face while 16 percent dismissed a candidate for using text language such as GR8 (great) in an e-mail or job application.

Why Employers Hired Candidates After Screening Online

Job seekers are also encouraged to leverage social media whenadvertising their skills and experience.Eighteen percent of employers reported they have found content on social networking sites that caused them to hire the candidate. The top examples include:

* Profile provided a good feel for the candidate’s personality and fit – 50 percent

* Profile supported candidate’s professional qualifications – 39 percent

* Candidate was creative – 38 percent

* Candidate showed solid communication skills – 35 percent

* Candidate was well-rounded – 33 percent

* Other people posted good references about the candidate – 19 percent

* Candidate received awards and accolades – 15 percent

“Social networking is a great way to make connections with potential job opportunities and promote your personal brand across the Internet” said Rosemary Haefner, Vice President of Human Resources at CareerBuilder. “Make sure you are using this resource to your advantage by conveying a professional image and underscoring your qualifications”

Haefner recommends the following DOs and DON’Ts to keep a positive image online:

1)DO clean up digital dirt BEFORE you begin your job search. Remove any photos, content and links that can work against you in an employer’s eyes.

2)DO consider creating your own professional group on sites like Facebook or BrightFuse.com to establish relationships with thought leaders, recruiters and potential referrals.

3)DO keep gripes offline. Keep the content focused on the positive, whether that relates to professional or personal information. Makes sure to highlight specific accomplishments inside and outside of work.

4)DON’T forget others can see your friends, so be selective about who you accept as friends. Monitor comments made by others. Consider using the “block comments” feature or setting your profile to “private” so only designated friends can view it.

5)DON’Tmention your job search if you’re still employed.

Survey Methodology
This survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Interactive© on behalf of CareerBuilder.com between May 22 and June 10, 2009 among 2,667 hiring managers and human resource professionals (employed full-time; not self-employed; with at least significant involvement in hiring decisions; non- government) ages 18 and over. With a pure probability sample of 2,667 one could say with a 95 percent probability that the overall results have a sampling error of +/- 1.9 percentage points. Sampling error for data from sub-samples is higher and varies.

Shutterstock, the world’s largest subscription-based stock photo agency, announced today the launch of Shuttertweet, a new tool for Twitter that empowers stock image and stock footage submitters by instantly sending out messages (or “tweets”) announcing when new images and footage clips have been added to their Shutterstock portfolios.

Shuttertweet also enables submitters to monetize their use of Twitter. Submitters earn a referral commission from anyone who makes a purchase after clicking on the link to their Shutterstock gallery in one of their Shuttertweet messages.
In addition, Shuttertweet sends an update regarding submitters’ download counts on a daily basis to share the success of their portfolios with people that follow them on Twitter.
“Shuttertweet is truly a win-win for our submitters: not only does it automatically showcase their work, it also allows them to make money via our affiliate marketing program using Twitter,” said Jon Oringer, founder and CEO of Shutterstock.
To sign up, submitters login to the submit site and click the option under “Make Money” or click here to enable Shutterstock to send tweets on their behalf. Submitters can deactivate Shuttertweet at any time.
“Shuttertweet is a great way to advertise my work,” said Jake Hellbach (Shutterstock submitter name: JHDT Stock Images LLC), a successful Shutterstock photographer and videographer based in Sugarland, Texas. “I used to post links to my images and footage clips manually on Twitter when I had the time, but with this tool, I know my name is getting out to stock photo and stock footage buyers each day, so I can get back to shooting.”
About Shutterstock(R)
Founded in 2003, Shutterstock is the largest subscription-based stock photo agency in the world. Its outstanding collection of premium photos, illustrations, and vectors combined with a selection of innovative, user-friendly subscription plans has made Shutterstock a trusted resource for an expanding global customer base. An industry pioneer in selling royalty-free stock by subscription, Shutterstock was also the first online photo agency to offer editorial photos and launch a video library. Shutterstock Footage offers a comprehensive library of royalty-free video clips available on a per-clip basis or by subscription. For more information, visit Shutterstock.com.

MAGIC, the world’s most comprehensive fashion trade event, will exclusively equip its attendees with their own secret style weapons via a debut Twitter campaign set to launch at their upcoming summer events. A select group of esteemed fashion journalists and stylists will be canvassing Project Global Tradeshow, POOLTRADESHOW, WWDMAGIC, S.L.A.T.E., Street, Premium, Menswear and Sourcing at MAGIC, unleashing a bevy of product picks, key trend forecasts, can’t miss exhibitions, celeb spottings, party promotions and the best of what Las Vegas has to offer.
Attendees are invited to follow any and every Marketplace channel, our goal being unparalleled and expert access that engages and informs our attendees in real-time. Each expert will cover all areas of MAGIC, PROJECT and POOL with their own unique voice and focus. These Twitter feeds are currently available for pre-registration and Twitter kiosks will be available throughout Project and MAGIC for on-site registration. Also present will be a dozen large plasma screens that will feature these live Twitter feeds as they happen on the show floor.
“The MAGIC Marketplace is the ideal environment for social networking, especially as our attendees #1 goal is always to find what’s new and next amongst our exhibitors in a matter of days,” said Chris DeMoulin, MAGIC International President and Executive Vice President of Advanstar’s Fashion Group. “We are very excited about Twitter and the ability to provide such a great tool that will enormously benefit our customers.”
MAGIC’s live Twitter updates will come courtesy of industry experts Sherri Hoke, celebrity stylist and fashion journalist; Michael Nash, celebrity stylist and contributing GQ fashion editor; Antenna fashion editor Jenni Lee; founder of Third Rail Clothing, Kelly “Risk” Gravel; and Sourcing expert Daniela Gilbert.
Sherri Hoke, who will be covering womenswear for WWDMAGIC, PROJECT and POOL, has dressed numerous A-list celebrities, including Nicollette Sheridan, Taraji P. Henson, Jennifer Hudson, Isla Fisher, just to name a few. Her clients have been featured on countless best-dressed lists and Vogue, InStyle, The New York Times – and many more have praised her style selections. She has also produced style-focused shows for E! and The Style Network.
Michael Nash will tweet about menswear for MAGIC, PROJECT and POOL. Michael is a creative and brand consultant, wardrobe stylist, costume designer and contributing fashion editor for GQ magazine in NYC. Prior to his freelance work as a creative and brand consultant, Michael was Fashion Director of Vibe magazine and Fashion Editor of Mens Journal.
Bringing her fresh perspective to all things Progressive Street within MAGIC, PROJECT and POOL will be Jenni Lee, Fashion Editor of Antenna Magazine, the first mainstream magazine dedicated to the newest and coolest products on the horizon. Featuring everything from fashion to footwear and technology to cars, Antenna is considered to be a non-disposable guidebook for the progressive streetwear community.
Kelly “Risk” Gravel, who will be following Street trends throughout MAGIC, PROJECT and POOL, is world-renowned graffiti artist and the founder of Third Rail clothing. After years as a successful designer and fashion entrepreneur, Risk has shifted his attention back to art and his work can be seen in motion pictures, music videos and art galleries throughout the world.
Daniela Gilbert will lend her eye to the latest trends in materials and manufacturing from a Sourcing perspective. Daniela is a former fashion editor at WWD and HFN, where she conceptualized and developed the publications’ textile trend reporting and feature stories. Most recently, she held various textile executive positions with leading brands including Diane von Furstenberg and Chado Ralph Rucci, sourcing fabrics and materials from around the world.
Register to follow MAGIC on Twitter today at:
Project Global Tradeshow Twitter handle: projectshow WWDMAGIC Twitter handle: wwdmagic MENSWEAR at MAGIC Twitter handle: menswearatmagic S.L.A.T.E. at MAGIC Twitter handle: slateatmagic STREET at MAGIC Twitter handle: streetatmagic Sourcing at MAGIC Twitter handle: sourcingatmagic POOLTRADESHOW Twitter handle: pooltradeshow
About MAGIC
Every August and February, the fashion industry converges in Las Vegas for the most influential event in the business – the MAGIC Marketplace. The August 2009 MAGIC marketplace will run from August 31 – September 2. For up-to-date exhibitor listings, seminar scheduling, travel support and registration information, please visit www.magiconline.com.