Ryan Babenzien

Ryan Babenzien is an American entrepreneur and footwear designer. He is the founder and CEO of the sneaker brand Greats, and the former CEO of Boast.[1]

Early life

Ryan Babenzien was born in Manhasset, New York[2] and grew up in Long Island.[3] He is the brother of fashion designer Brendon Babenzien[4] and his father coached at a high school gym.[5] In high school, he worked at Suburban Sports, a sneaker store in Bay Shore, Long Island.[6] Ryan attended Fordham University, at which time he also held an internship with Capitol Records.[7] After college, Babenzien moved to Los Angeles, California.[4]

Career

Babenzien began his career managing clients at ICM Partners. Towards the end of the 1990s, he began consulting with fashion companies, including Eckō Unltd. and Mecca. He later worked for Puma, eventually landing with K-Swiss.[7] Babenzien served as the director of lifestyle and entertainment marketing for that company,[8] and then the Global Director of Entertainment Marketing.[7] Babenzien became the CEO of Boast in 2010, re-establishing the retail brand[9] that had been founded in 1973.[10] Babenzien worked with Andy Spade to revive the company, and began showing collections[11] for both men and women in advance of the company’s 40th anniversary.[12] In 2013 Babenzien founded the online footwear company Greats Brand[13][14][15][16][17][18] with Jon Buscemi.[2] He knew that he wanted to create a high quality footwear brand that was sold direct to the consumer rather than through 3rd party retailers.[19]

References

  1. ↑ Click, Calvy (2016-05-05). "How Greats Brand Turned Social-Media Savvy Into Sneaker Sales". Footwear News. Retrieved 2016-05-07.
  2. 1 2 "You Should Know: Ryan Babenzien". Guest of a Guest.
  3. ↑ Siegel, Emily. "'Williamsburg Isn't Dead': Brooklyn-Born Sneaker Brand Holds Its Ground". Mashable. Retrieved 2016-04-21.
  4. 1 2 Emily Siegel (6 October 2014). "'Williamsburg Isn't Dead': Brooklyn-Born Sneaker Brand Holds Its Ground". Mashable.
  5. ↑ "Capsule Show". Capsule Show. Retrieved 2016-04-21.
  6. ↑ "Brendon & Ryan Babenzien Interview". Highsnobiety. Retrieved 2016-04-21.
  7. 1 2 3 "3 Lessons Learned: Ryan Babenzien of GREATS". Behind The Hustle.
  8. ↑ "Andy Spade is old-school cool". latimes.
  9. ↑ Jian DeLeon (27 March 2013). "Cut and Show: BOAST's Middle Finger Attitude to Classic, Preppy Style (VIDEO)". Complex CA.
  10. ↑ "Weekend Warrior: Ryan Babenzien of Boast". Rue Now.
  11. ↑ Yale Breslin. "Behind the Line: Talking the Rebirth of BOAST USA With Ryan Babenzien". GQ.
  12. ↑ PAPERMAG. "Boast's Ryan Babenzien On the Iconic Preppy Brand's Revamping + Leafy Logo". PAPERMAG.
  13. ↑ Jian DeLeon. "Sneaker of the Week: GREATS Trophy Pack". GQ.
  14. ↑ "GREATS Is Building The Next Great Footwear Company". Forbes. 3 October 2013.
  15. ↑ "NATIVE ADVERTISING AND STYLE BLOGGERS: IS THE PARTY OVER?".
  16. ↑ "Great Shoes Are Greats' Business - How This Shoe Company Sold Out Products In Just 90 Days". Forbes. 13 March 2015.
  17. ↑ Jack Smith IV (8 January 2015). "Long Live Retail: Fashion Startups Finally Learned Why Physical Stores Still Matter". Observer.
  18. ↑ Lindsey Rupp,Jing Cao (3 February 2016). "Amazon Bookstores? Yup, E-Tailers Are Hitting the Mall". Bloomberg.com.
  19. ↑ "Greats Website". Retrieved 21 November 2016.
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