• Thursday, May 3, 2007

Join us for this networking event as part of E Week 2007. Featuring a panel discussion with four entrepreneurs, all under 40 years of age and at different stages of business, who will discuss what they've learned about starting and running a business.

PANELISTS

Casey Cooper (Theatre School '91) is Principal of Botanicals, Inc., one of the most well-known and respected floral design businesses in Chicago. Upon her graduation from DePaul Theatre School in 1991, she went into theatre and helped to found a theatre company in Chicago, where she worked for two years as Artistic Director. She had been in the floral industry for nearly twenty years, working at various flower shops and freelancing with others. She started out on her own by doing the flowers for a friends wedding on top of washing machine. After that, one reference led to another and orders started coming in. She decided to make a business out of it, and launched Botanicals in 1993.

Within a couple of years, the basement operation was outgrown and the business was moved to an old Wicker Park mansion. Not long after, more space was needed, so another move was made, followed by an expansion, and then a final move to the location that Botanicals is housed in now, a 6,500 square foot studio near Lincoln Park that has housed the business since 2002.

Botanicals, Inc. specializes in arrangements that are modern, chic, but still have a very organic feeling and root. The company has captured the attention of local magazines and media, which featured the business in several pieces. Botanicals has gone from doing weddings to large-scale corporate and social events, even doing work for the Field Museum events, as well as being featured on Oprah’s 50th birthday show earlier in 2004. Not long ago the services offered by Botanicals were expanded as clients asked for more than flower arrangements. Botanicals Inc. now does complete designs for special events, including table settings, lighting, props, linens and so on.
Read more about Casey here.

Adam Robinson (Kellstadt '04) is co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Illuma LLC.

Before launching Illuma, Adam served as Senior Director, Professional Services at Click Commerce, Inc., a leading provider of collaborative commerce and RFID technologies, where he was accountable for successful delivery across a global portfolio of enterprise software implementations.

Adam serves on the Board of Directors of the Entrepreneur's Organization and is a member the Executive's Club of Chicago, the Young Professionals of Chicago and the Young Executives Club.

Adam graduated with a B.A. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and received his MBA from DePaul University. He is the author of the upcoming book, "Redefining Recruitment: Assessing the Value of Recruitment Process Outsourcing for Your Organization," available in September 2007. Read more about Adam here.

Pete Kadens is the Founder and CEO of Acquirent. He is a widely respected sales professional and leader who believed in a vision and made it happen by building Acquirent. He has been featured in Inc. Magazine on six separate occasions and is a well known speaker and author on sales, specifically on "Unique Sales Strategies" and entrepreneurship. In June of 2005, after only 2 years building Acquirent, Pete sold a significant stake in Acquirent to private equity investors. Pete was elected by his peers, and currently serves as the President of the National Association of Sales Outsourcers.

Prior to Acquirent, he was employed at UBS Financial Services and Investment Bank, rising the sales ladder quickly and consistently achieving top decile sales production nationwide

Charles Smith has over 10 years of insurance industry expertise. Currently, he is the President of Employee Benefit Advantage, an Illinois-based insurance brokerage consulting firm specializing in group employee benefits solutions. In the past, he has worked at CNA, Liberty Mutual, and MetLife insurance in various roles. These include sales, marketing, and product development. Charles works with small to medium-sized businesses looking to add or enhance their group benefit packages. Charles is a Depaul Alum currently completing a M.S. Degree in Public Service.

MODERATOR

Jason Jacobsohn (Kellstadt '02) is the director of the Small Business Development Center and a business advisor at the Chicagoland Entrepreneurial Center. Jason is an entrepreneurial business professional with cross-functional expertise in consulting, research, strategy, relationship management, due diligence, and financial and business analysis. Jason has performed consulting assignments for emerging growth firms by helping entrepreneurs with strategic plans, raising capital, and competitive analysis. Prior to CEC, Jason was a senior business analyst with the National Association of Realtors, an associate with Vcapital, a financial analyst with Equity Office Properties, and a senior consultant with Realogic Analytics.

In addition to Jason's professional experience, he is a seasoned networker believes relationship building as a key component to entrepreneurs success. Jason currently serves as the president of the DePaul Entrepreneurs Association (DEA) and sits on the DePaul Alumni Board. Further, Jason writes the networking column, "Tech Connect" for ePrairie.com, the Midwest's number one technology business publication. Lastly, Jason received his MBA from DePaul University and BBA in Finance and Real Estate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.