Ian Stephens

Forward thinking with a Renaissance brain. Brand dev specialist. Marketing and design maven. The future is now.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ian-stephens-01b708113
Santa Monica, California, United States
Member since August 19, 2016

Forward thinking with a Renaissance brain. Brand dev specialist. Marketing and design maven. The future is now. Quote_down

About

Investor interests

Locations of interest	Santa Monica, California, United States
Credentials	None

I am a(n):

Entrepreneur

Companies I've founded or co-founded:

Magnolia Moonshine, Reely

Companies I work or worked for:

Feeling Smitten

Achievements (products built, personal awards won):

Performing in Carnegie Hall, Building a brand (Feeling Smitten) that's been featured by Oprah and carried in thousands of shops, hotels and spas, publishing my first comic book

If you're an entrepreneur or corporate innovator, why?

Because I love the ultimate challenge. If you want to enjoy the view you have to climb the mountain.

My favorite startups:

Dollar Shave Club, Uber, Kiva, Airbnb, Choremonster, Kickstarter

What's most frustrating and rewarding about entrepreneurship/innovation?

I'm impatient so the frustrating part is that things are NEVER moving as fast as I want them to. So much of entrepreneurship is just putting one foot in front of the other every single day.

Innovation is as close to creation as we mortals can reach. It's our opportunity to grasp the Promethean flame and change the future.

What's the No. 1 mistake entrepreneurs/innovators make?

Going it alone or being terrible at delegation. You're only as good as the team around you. Choose wisely.

What are the top three lessons you've learned as an entrepreneur?

You're only as good as the team you've surrounded yourself with.

If your message isn't crystal clear, you'll never be heard.

Every day there is something you can do or something you can improve that will put you closer to realizing your future. Find that thing and...DO IT!

Full bio

My passion is building brands. The following are examples of recent ventures:

Founder // Reely

Reely is the future of sports highlight delivery. We use our proprietary computer vision software to to deliver streaming video highlights straight to your mobile device. Simply select your favorite sports teams and you'll be able to vote on highlights, save them to your own personalized highlight reel and share across media platforms.

No more searching through social media or waiting on SportsCenter to watch the big play you missed. Reely is instant gratification for mobile sports lovers everywhere.

Founder & CEO // Magnolia Moonshine

Magnolia Moonshine spirits are old-fashioned recipes made to serve. Each small batch is handcrafted with 100% fruit and aged with non GMO Georgia corn whiskey for natural sweetness and a smooth finish. Magnolia Moonshine can be found in premier steakhouses around the Pacific Northwest and will launch on the East Coast in 2017.

Owner // Feeling Smitten Bath & Body

As featured by Oprah, People Magazine, Good Morning America and many more, Feeling Smitten's line of bakery themed bath and beauty products are carried in over 2,000 gift shops, spas and hotels from Seattle to Dubai.