Daniel Abas '01, MBA '04
Position: CEO & Founder, Boost Inc.; Founder, Ghost Media Inc.; Founder, Red Butler
Industry: Technology, Hospitality and Marketing
Lesson Learned: There are no obstacles.
I remember falling in love with technology at a very young age. I'd buy anything that was small and did something cool. I started my first online business when I was in high school. During my time at LMU, my interests were refined, augmented and promoted. When I graduated, I set out to create products and services designed to meet the needs of professionals and leaders navigating an increasingly interconnected global culture.
In 2005, I launched Red Butler, a subscription-based virtual concierge and assistant service. Today we help thousands of professionals, Fortune 500 company employees and lifestyle enthusiasts with everything from organizing flights to booking that impossible dinner reservation. We also launched the Red Butler Privilege Card, which activates perks like room upgrades, priority seating and other benefits at hotels, restaurants and businesses around the globe. Red Butler built out its own proprietary technologies for both mobile and web environments, which are today utilized and licensed by several companies in similar marketplaces.
In working with numerous restaurants and hotel partners via Red Butler, I quickly identified a huge void in the marketplace for social media services. Marketing is no longer about convincing people to do things, it's about having your customers trust your brand or product. Businesses can build that trust by personifying their service or product using social media. Ghost Post helps businesses build, manage and establish their social identities.
At LMU, I received the support and encouragement that I needed to ignite that entrepreneurial fire. I relied on a well-rounded and balanced education, fusing technology, science, philosophy, history and business, which have all helped me grow both professionally and spiritually. Go Cubs, Go Lions.