Wednesday, April 30, 2008

DONALD TRUMP'S APPRENTICE, TAMMY TRENTA

Tammy is probably best known for being on Donald Trump's hit TV show "The Apprentice". She explained to me that she went on the show in order to give herself exposure knowing it would later help boost her company. At the end of season 5 of "The Apprentice", the winner of the show announced on live tv to over 11 million viewers that he was in love with Ms. Trenta. Since that headline-making moment, Tammy has used the press she recieved to help launch her luxury business bag line Theresa Kathryn. She named the company after her grandmother and based the business out of Los Angeles. Unfortunately, I don't think there was a lasting romance between the two contestants...

When I interviewed Ms. Trenta, I was struck by her fierce business savvy and by ability to take any situation and make it a positive and use it to her advantage. Tammy is also a wealth manager for the rich and famous of Beverly Hills. She is the perfect combination of sass, smarts and beauty to make her one driven, and successful, entrepreneur!

Monday, April 28, 2008

NBC - isee

KNBC has partnered with Veeker to create 'isee'. You can take pictures with your cell phone and sumbit them to KNBC via isee@knbc.com and they will post it on NBC's website and possibly use it on-air as well. It's a free service provided through Veeker. It will be interesting to see how this new relationship develops...

Friday, April 25, 2008

PERFECTBUSINESS NEWS - APRIL 24

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Thursday, April 24, 2008

MR. TRADER JOE

Trader Joe was one of the most interesting interviews I have had the privilege to do. "Trader Joe's" actual name is Joe Coulombe and he still lives near the very first Trader Joe's in Pasadena, California. He originally ran a chain of Pronto Markets, selling primarily dairy-based consumer products. But when 7-Eleven bought out his dairy provider, Joe Coulombe had to find a new angle and that was the birth of the Trader Joe's grocery store chain. He sold the chain to a German family in 1988 and now serves on the board for World Maket Cost Plus and for True Religion Apparel. We interviewed Joe Coulombe at his house in Pasadena. He has taken up painting and his fantastic art was all over the house, including the painting behind him in the interview...

Watch the Video

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

LADIES WHO LAUNCH

Ladies Who Launch is an organization geared toward helping women launch their businesses. It was started by Victoria Colligan and Beth Schoenfeldt and connects female entrepreneurs online and in person. I'm currently doing the Ladies Who Launch incubator program in Los Angeles. It's a four week intensive where you basically 'incubate' your idea or business. It's a wonderful organization that really celebrates women and the feminine approach to entrepreneurship. Amy Swift is the Editor-In-Chief for Ladies Who Launch and heads the Los Angeles incubator programs. She also contributes to one of my favorite websites, The Huffington Post. I interviewed Amy about Ladies Who Launch and her work there and asked her what advice she would give female entrepreneurs.

Watch The Video

Monday, April 21, 2008

PERFECTBUSINESS LIVE!













PerfectBusiness had its first LIVE! event this Saturday, April 19th in Los Angeles. It was a wonderful event where entrepreneurs sat down with experts and had their questions answered and had help with issues they were having with their businesses.
Our experts at the event were:

Our next event is scheduled for June and there should be many more to come. To find out when and where the next PerfectBusiness LIVE! event will be, just check out the Events Page.

Friday, April 18, 2008

PERFECTBUSINESS ON ABC!

This is a story on PerfectBusiness' initiative to remove the 9's and 5's on work clocks...

PERFECTBUSINESS NEWS - APRIL 17

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Wednesday, April 16, 2008

A PATCH OF BLUE

In addition to journalism, I am also a playwright, theatre producer and actor. I suppose my first experience as an 'entrepreneur' was when I started my own theatre company in London, Lost Luggage Productions. Running a theatre company and producing is like running any business - you become the last man, or woman, standing. Whenever anything goes wrong or anyone has a question, it always comes back to you and it took me some time to get comfortable with that pressure. The play that stands out the most for me from my time in London is one I wrote, produced and acted in called A Patch of Blue.

A Patch of Blue had its World Stage Premiere at the King’s Head Theatre in London. The play was Time Out’s Critics Choice for two weeks running and there are now talks of the play having its U.S. Premiere in Los Angeles.

It is the story of two strangers who meet and fall in love among the most unlikely of circumstances. Selina is a blind girl who knows nothing of the world except the impoverished life she shares with an abusive mother and a drunken grandfather. Gordon is a black man trying to make his way in a world of prejudice and racism in 1960 America. But together they discover love and the desire for freedom.

The play is based on Elizabeth Kata’s 1961 novel Be Ready with Bells And Drums. British director Guy Green adapted the book for the screen in 1965 and re-titled it A Patch of Blue. The new title came from a sailor expression - 'a patch of blue' was sign of safety in stormy skies. The film starred Sidney Poitier and Shelly Winters and garnered six Golden Globe nominations including a win for Best Actress and five Oscar nominations, including a win for Best Supporting Actress.

I was awarded exclusive rights to write the play adaptation of Elizabeth Kata’s novel. The biggest challenge I faced when writing the play was figuring out what I wanted to say and what I wanted to bring to the story. I loved the book so much it was hard to allow myself to bring my voice and my interpretation into the story. But once I let go of these mental limitations, it was an amazing experience writing about these fierce and rich characters. A Patch of Blue is a thought provoking play that exposes the deep-seated reality that we see in today’s headlines of racism and prejudice that can lead to political and social explosion.

THE TIMES REVIEW
THE EVENING STANDARD REVIEW
MUSIC OMH REVIEW

Monday, April 14, 2008

PERFECTBUSINESS NEWS - April 14

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AUTISIM AWARENESS MONTH

April is Autism Awareness month. One of my relatives has slight autism and I have learned a great deal about the disease from knowing him and his mother. Scientists cannot pinpoint exactly why some children have or develop autism, but one theory is that the thimerosal found in childhood vaccines is a cause. Basically the idea is that children who get too many vaccines within their first few months of life then suffer from mercury or lead poisoning. Thimerosal has been removed from most vaccines, but not all of them. The CDC is doing a lot of research into the potential correlation, but results are still inconclusive. It is a very emotional issue for both the parents and the doctors involved because there remain so many unanwered questions. After having worked on a story for KNBC about the possible link between vaccines and autism, I still don't know what the answer is, but I was glad to help raise awareness about the issue.

Thursday, April 10, 2008

ENTREPENEUR.COM

Here the test newscast pilot we filmed for Entrepreneur Magazine -
Entrepreneur.comNews

INSIDE THE INSIDER HEADLINES

The news director for PerfectBusiness Insider Headlines is Scott Plesha and the cinematographer and editor for the show is David Wakeling. Scott is a fantastic writer and he and I decide the headlines and order of the show. We always put one piece of quirky, fun news into the line up. It's amazing what bizarre news is floating around out there and the shenanigans people get up to! We also try and start the newscast off on a positive note, but with the doom and gloom of the current economic situation in the United States this has become quite a challenging task. The other challenge is providing small business news that applies to a national audience. We have to make sure we have small business news that is as helpful and informative to someone in Pennsylvania as it is for someone in Oregon. One of my favorite parts of the show is featuring one of the amazing entrepreneurs we have interviewed. A seasoned CEO, or a first-time entrepreneur, every one has a great story or a pearl of wisdom to pass on. Being an entrepreneur is such a brave life-choice and the more entrepreneurs I interview, the more impressed I become with their tenacity and perseverance to achieve their goals and risk everything in the process.


PerfectBusiness News airs every Thursday.
To see the latest insider headlines broadcast and to watch inspiring entrepreneur interviews, go to the PerfectBusiness Video Center.

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

"THE COOLEST CEO ON THE PLANET"

I once heard Wing Lam introduced as the "coolest CEO on the planet" and having met him, I have to agree. The CEO and co-founder of Wahoo's Fish Taco truly represents the essence of The Entrepreneur. Wing and his brothers Ed and Mingo came up with the idea for the restaurant while on a surfing trip in Mexico. Borrowing $30,000 from their parents, they opened the first Wahoo's in 1988. The brothers combined the influence of their Chinese parents (also restauranteurs) their childhood in Brazil and their surfing lifestyle into the atmosphere and the food of their first Wahoo's. They now have restaurants all over the U.S. serving Baja fresh taco's in a fun, funky surfer/snowboarder-esque environment. David (the cinematographer and my partner in PerfectBusiness crime) and I interviewed Wing Lam at their newest Wahoo location. He arrived after a morning of surfing in shorts, flip flops and orange Oakley sunglasses. After the interview he bought us lunch at the restaurant and talked about how making personal connections, giving without demanding anything in return and being genuine are the best ways to succeed in business. With a full belly and a new friend, I had to agree.

Watch the Video

Monday, April 7, 2008

PERFECTBUSINESS NEWS - April 7



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PINKBERRY VS. RED MANGO

As a frozen yogurt connoisseur, I make sure to stay abreast of all the latest creations and trends. Most recently we saw the "frozen yogurt wars" between Pinkberry and Red Mango. Starbucks founder Howard Schultz's recently invested $27.5 million into Pinkberry, giving the rapidly expanding frozen yogurt chain a very big boost. But around the corner has emerged Red Mango! What many don't know is that Red Mango started in South Korea in 2002 selling the famed all natural, tart-in-flavor frozen yogurt. Pinkberry took the idea to the U.S. and first opened it's doors in 2005. Dan Kim, Red Mango's President and CEO, opened his company's first US location in Los Angeles in late 2007. I interviewed him at this premiere location just a few weeks after it opened. As opposed to it's South Korean counterpart which has a more "Hello Kitty" ambiance to it, Red Mango has created a coffee shop feel to their U.S. branches. Although a fan of Pinkberry, I have to say I quite enjoyed Red Mango's creamy taste. Their yogurt is certified by the National Yogurt Association - most frozen yogurts do not have this certification because they do not have enough live active cultures. And they always have fresh fruit.

Bon appetit.

Watch Video

Friday, April 4, 2008

PERFECTBUSINESS NEWS - APRIL 3

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Thursday, April 3, 2008

INSIDER HEADLINES

If you haven't seen it already, I am anchoring a Newscast for PerfectBusiness.com. It's a great blend of small & big business headlines and fun, quirky news.

PERFECTBUSINESS NEWS - March 31


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