Some people just have that spark. They’re passionate and ambitious, and they use that passion to put St. Louis on the map in their chosen fields. T&S recently chatted with two power players about their careers and what’s next.
Dan Curran, 10X Lab president
St. Louisan Dan Curran is a marketing and branding guru and entrepreneur seeking to revolutionize the way brands tell their stories. He’s spent his career building and selling successful marketing agencies, and just last month, his Chicago-based 10X Lab purchased two local firms: Twist and Evolutionize. Both merged with 10X, which also has offices in St. Louis, to form 10X Studios.
The acquisitions represent the ideal integration of technology and agency services, Curran says. “These are the perfect acquisitions to fit into the 10X portfolio, and we believe St. Louis to be an exceptional place to exponentially grow our business,” he notes, adding that 10X has more than 100 clients between Chicago and St. Louis and is looking to double its growth in 2016. Clients include AAA, Sansone Group, Lodging Hospitality Management, and Marriott International Hotels.
10X Studios offers clients solutions that combine publishing automation and content marketing services, Curran says. “Brands today need to place a greater emphasis on public relations in the digital space, positioning themselves as thought leaders and publishers; they need to own the distribution of their message,” he says. “While traditional and digital agencies do not keep pace with consumers and technology, 10X is able to offer that perfect marriage of technology and content.”
Curran boils down 10X’s specialty to helping clients find order in a chaotic marketplace. “We’re amazing at helping our clients navigate the constantly changing landscape,” he says. “The velocity of change when it comes to social media and consumer expectations is nothing short of the new normal—our clients look to 10X to help them navigate those waters.”
10X hopes to innovate marketing services through PowerPost, the marketing automation software it will soon launch. “We’re creating a content publishing platform for mid-size and enterprise-level brands to help grow their business,” Curran says. “This will be game-changing to the industry. Clients are demanding real-time analytics and real-time publishing, and this tool will allow them to publish content anytime, anywhere.”
Building, buying and selling successful businesses is what Curran considers his specialty, he says. 10X is his seventh company. Created in April 2015, it currently employs 50 people and is actively looking for additional acquisitions. One of the keys to his success, Curran says, is the team he puts together. “I’ve tried to hire people who can adapt and are not married to the status quo, people who are constantly evolving and questioning assumptions,” he notes. “And frankly, I ask and demand our clients to do the same.”
Marie-Hélène Bernard, St. Louis Symphony president & CEO
With less than a year under her belt as head of the St. Louis Symphony, Marie-Hélène Bernard might be a newcomer to St. Louis, but over the last 20 years, she’s earned plenty of accolades elsewhere managing prestigious musical organizations. Her past stints include executive director and CEO of Boston’s Handel and Haydn Society, as well as leadership roles with the Canton Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra and Cleveland Orchestra.
Although she played music growing up, Bernard wasn’t always professionally involved in the field, spending the first years of her career as a lawyer in her native Canada. “I eventually realized my calling was to combine my musical side with my legal and business side and work in music management,” she says.
When the opportunity to run the St. Louis Symphony arose, Bernard knew it was the right move, in no small part because of the sterling reputation of conductor David Robertson and the symphony’s musicians. Now, she’s dedicated to spreading the word about this amazing cultural asset. “I want as many people as possible to know we have one of the finest orchestras in the country,” Bernard says. “That it’s the second oldest in the U.S. truly says something about St. Louis’ vision and spirit.”
Bernard loves the multi-faceted, ever-changing nature of her role leading the symphony. “There’s a great variety of things the role calls for,” she says. “It’s running a business like any other, but at the same time, its outcomes and goals are different from both an artistic and fundraising standpoint.”
One theme runs common through her career: cultivating lasting community support for symphonies and orchestras. As part of this mission, the symphony offers a diverse array of community and educational programs, including its free annual concert in Forest Park. SLSO also regularly partners with local cultural institutions to bring innovative projects to the city, like its current collaboration with Shakespeare Festival St. Louis to offer four weeks of events featuring the Bard’s plays and stories.
To help support its programs, the symphony is launching a new fundraiser next month, Four Seasons of Fashion, an event featuring a runway presentation of classic couture, on April 4. “In the end, this will allow children in school to visit Powell Hall and hear the symphony or perhaps get a special music lesson or be introduced to classical music for the first time,” Bernard says.
Photos: Bill Barrett
