CEO Interview: Aaron LaBerge of Coolspotters (Fanzter)
I’m excited to share this interview with Aaron LaBerge of Coolspotters fame. We here at Curious Office invested in Coolspotters alongside Second Avenue Partners, Rich Barton of Zillow & Expedia fame and others. Aaron is a forward thinking technologist that knows what kind of experiences entice consumers. The quality of their execution is second to none and they are a great prototype for any start-up entrepreneurs wanting to learn how to go from concept to world class product.
1) Tell us about Aaron LaBerge. How did you come to start Fanzter?
I am originally from Charleston, SC and graduated from the University of South Carolina (Go Gamecocks!) with a BS in Electrical and Computer Engineering. After school, I worked at a small Internet startup in Columbia, SC that was building database driven websites (before there were database driven websites). From there I moved to Seattle to work for an upstart software company named Starwave, where I was part of the team that helped launch ESPN.com. Disney eventually bought Starwave, through a series of mid-90’s acquisition acrobatics, and I ended up spending the next ten years working for ESPN, where I was lucky enough to work on some of the most visited and loved web properties in the world.
When I met my co-founder, Eric Kirsten, we were both thinking about what was next in our professional lives. We started brainstorming ideas and quickly realized that we wanted to start a company together. Fanzter was started as consumer-focused technology company. Our first product, Coolspotters (http://coolspotters.com), was born of the simple idea that product, style, and fashion trends are driven largely by celebrities and other public figures. At the time, there was no easy or reliable way to discover what products these celebs were wearing, eating, driving, and using, so we saw an exciting opportunity.
2) In a nutshell, how do you describe Coolspotters?
Coolspotters.com is quickly becoming the #1 destination for the latest celebrity fashions, trends, and click-to-buy shopping. We make it easy for people to discover, share, and buy the products and brands used by their favorite celebrities – in their real lives, and in movies and television. Think of it as an association engine that is centered around pop-culture and products/brands.
Coolspotters provides tools for users to share everything they know about their favorite celebrities, products, brands, and entertainment. Community members can “spot” celebrities with the fashions they wear in their real lives, or with the movies in which they’ve appeared, for example. They can also spot products or brands with the TV shows and movies in which they’ve been featured. The result is a universe of inter-connected profiles, allowing users to discover what’s hot now…or emerging as the next big thing. Rachel Zoe, celebrity stylist, called Coolspotters the “Google of People and Products”. We like that.
3) You just raised some new money. What did your investors love about the story?
We have some great investors that we view as true partners. Second Avenue Partners has supported us since day one. And most recently, Steamboat Ventures invested.
One of the things that resonates most with our investors is the idea that celebrities and their buying habits are huge predictors of trends and help define what’s “cool”. Until recently, the only glimpse you’d get into the product choices of your favorite actor, athlete, musician, or other public figure was from a page in a magazine, a hard-to-search blog, or some side feature on a celebrity website — none of which is easy to find or consume. With Coolspotters, all of the information on the latest celebrity products and trends are in one place – all of it indexed, searchable, and cross-referenced with some of your other favorite things – movies, TV, music, etc.
When someone discovers that their favorite celeb uses a product, they are exponentially more likely to buy it. Coolspotters helps facilitate that discovery, and based on our early numbers, our investors are pretty excited about our future as a new type of commerce engine.
They also love our next product – SimpleSports (http://simplesports). It’s a completely new way to consume sports information that will be launching soon.
4) What do you like most about your job? What do you dislike most?
I’ve always loved building products. I’ve been lucky enough in my career to help create a few really amazing products. Everything at Fanzter centers around providing an environment that allows our people to build great things, and “building” is my favorite part of my job. As far as what I dislike, there’s not much, but I’ll admit it’s more than a challenge maintaining a work/life balance. When you start a company, it’s not unlike having a child, it takes a ton of attention, focus, and care.
5) What bit of trivia would someone not know about Aaron LaBerge?
I have the same watch as Bill Clinton, Bob Iger, The Rock, and Pierce Brosnan. http://coolspotters.com/watches/panerai-luminor
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I am a fan of Coolspotters!and i sooo love the site!
That watch is totally gay!
Don’t let Slade get to you, LaBerge – Panerais are da bomb.
environment that allows our people to build great things, and ?building? is my favorite part of my job. As far as what I dislike, there?s not much, but I?ll admit it?s more than a challenge maintaining a work/life balance
Channel Shack – Movies, TV, Anime, Sports, Music, Documentaries & Live Streams…
I’ ……
Very nice resource thanks for sharing Mr Curious Office.