LEE SAMMARTINO
P.O. Box 1366 ▪ Solana Beach, CA 92075
www.gravityseeker.com ▪ email: lee@gravityseeker.com
EXECUTIVE LEVEL BRAND STRATEGIST, MANAGEMENT, AND MARKETING
Strategic positioning and management of international business, effectively maximizing brand exposure and sales.
I bring a unique perspective to business that incorporates extensive executive-level experience in all aspects of brand development, marketing, creative direction & design, with close attention to budgets, time frames, and quality. Well-honed presentation and negotiation skills within a multi-national environment.
Experienced in roles with high profile, international Fortune 100 and 500 clients, complex business models, and fast-paced environments. Past clients include (but not limited to): FunDailyDeal.com, Extreme Sports Channel, Luxottica, Apple Computers, Radio Shack, Lowes and Home Depot. Generated annual revenue increases by a minimum of 150%, increased profitability by a minimum of 43% per annum. Proven record of delivering profitable ROIs averaging 10% over estimated returns.
- Retail, Entertainment & Action Sports Industries
- All Aspects of Creative Branding & Marketing
- Strategic Alliances/Joint Ventures/Partnerships
- Market Opportunity Identification & Positioning
- Creative Media Direction/Production
- High-Volume Project Management
- Event Management
- Retail Design and Development
- Action Sports Member and Expert
- Account Management and Retention
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
2009-2010 INDEPENDANT MARKETING AND CREATIVE MEDIA CONSULTANT
Fun Daily Deal (http://www.fundailydeal.com): Brand Strategist / Creative Director / Marketing Manager
▪ Brand development ▪ Project lead ▪ E-commerce development ▪ Customer relationship management system design and integration ▪ Multistage billing and credit system ▪ Corporate identity development
▪ Graphic design, copy writing ▪ Video script and character development ▪ Social media development and training ▪ Onsite SEO management system ▪ Google Analytics integration.
Retail Design Institute (http://www.retaildesigninstitute.org): International Communications Chair
▪ Responsible for re-branding and launch of new corporate identity package ▪ Lead the Development of a complex, multi-tiered social networking website and database management system, custom built job board and resume search, custom built robust permissions module, events module with online ticket purchase functionality, phpBB forum integration, Single-Sign-On for members ▪ Social Media integration ▪ Training manual development ▪ Open X ad serving software integration and training ▪ Advertising media kit design, ▪ Event management ▪ tradeshow communications ▪ Search Engine Marketing Strategies ▪ Video media production and development ▪ 2008-2009 Member of the year.
Ono Sushi (http://www.onosushi.com): Brand Strategist / Creative Director / Online Manager
▪ Responsible for re-branding and launch of new website using Wordpress as the CMS ▪ Social Media integration ▪ event management ▪ Search Engine Marketing strategies ▪ Google Analytics integration and tracking ▪ Responsible for generating over 3,700 followers in 5 months ▪ Developed and implemented quantifiable social media programs driving significant traffic to the restaurant location and website ▪ Utilized new media technologies to virally promote the brand.
Anarchist Chef (http://www.anarchistchef.com): Brand Strategist / Creative Director / Online Manager
▪ Responsible for personality and brand development of food, travel and adventure expert, Paul Somerset
▪ Launched website generating over 150 unique visitors per day in two weeks with the average visit on the site being over 9 Minutes ▪ Social Media integration generating over 1,000 valid followers in three weeks ▪ Production development ▪ Editorial calendar development ▪ Copy edit ▪ Launched viral media campaign with NBC SoundDiego and Legit Radio as weekly segments ▪ Developed the Anarchist Chef as an EkoVenture Guru, columnist and producer ▪ Search engine marketing strategies ▪ Script development and storyboarding.
Tenacity Entertainment: Senior Marketing Consultant. Managed all aspects of marketing and strategic positioning in the marketplace for individual TV shows, Feature Films, and Documentaries: Fuel: Split (2004) & Tampa Pro (2005) ▪ Havoc Sports (2006), Havoc on the 101 ▪ RipeTV: NASCAR – Music Licensing (2005) ▪ EX TV on Fox Sports Net Programming – Content Acquisition, Licensing and Marketing (2001-2002) ▪ The Six Degrees of Helter Skelter (2009) ▪ Dearly Departed: Vol. 1 (2006) ▪ Pipe: The World’s Deadliest Wave (2010 Release).
Apex Base (B.A.S.E. Jumping Equipment Manufacturer): Brand Consultant ▪ Re-branding campaign ▪ Print advertising ▪ E-commerce website ▪ Marketing collateral ▪ Event signage ▪ Search engine marketing ▪ social media optimization ▪ Introduced design and consistency standards to meet audience profile of world’s premiere BASE community.
VERTICAL RETAIL SOLUTIONS, LLC, ANDOVER, CT / SAN DIEGO, CA 2001 to 2009 Founder and CMO/COO
Envisioned concept and founded this retail service consolidation provider operating throughout the United States and Canada. Developed and implemented all aspects of brand marketing, business and financial planning, sourcing, design, retail environment design and implementation, strategy, and business development. Managed successful long-term relationships with more than 600 retail suppliers, vendors, and independent contractors. Key clients included: Apple Computers, Electronic Arts, Luxottica, GNC, RadioShack, 24 Hour Fitness, Allsteel Office Furniture, Alu, Container Store, Longs Drugs, Equity Office Properties, Filenes, Gymboree, MTI Interactive, National Logistics, Office Depot, Palm, Rack Room Shoes, and Perfumania.
o Structured and implemented business, sales/marketing plans that successfully built brand name recognition and grew the company from a single-person start-up to Limited Liability Company with an average of more than $37.8 million in annual sales in less than 8 years.
o Solely responsible for development of all marketing collateral including advertising, website, logos, brochures, corporate stationary, etc. Designed, created, and implemented creative marketing collateral for sales presentations, trade shows, and client communications. Personally acquired Fortune 100, 500, & 1000 clients based on presentations to client’s executive staff and key decision-makers.
o Identified current retail industry trends and created complete store designs and fixture designs from concept to completion, on budget and on time. Implemented an internal and outsourcing process flow allowing for a seamless integration between clients and vendors. Design concepts and construction efforts earned client, Palm Retail Flagship Store, Award of Excellence in Design and Award of Merit by NASFM Magazine and AIA Memphis (2004).
EXTREME SPORTS CHANNEL / EXTREME INTERNATIONAL – CARLSBAD, CA
(2000-2001): National Marketing Director, Acquisitions & Distribution ▪ U.S. Tradeshow and Event Marketing ▪ Broadband Content Acquisition & Distribution ▪ Marketing Collateral Development ▪ Assisted in development of EX TV which was Fox Sports soft launch of Fuel TV ▪ The World Extreme Games (2000) ▪ Marketing and promotion of games in the U.S. through existing strategic partnerships.
Bachelor of Science ▪ Political Science/Law ▪ Marketing ▪ Northeastern University, Boston
Board Member, International Communications Chair, Retail Design Institute (retaildesigninstitute.org)
Proficiency in Mac/PC, OS X, Windows XP/ Vista / 2000 Workstation & Server/ 2003 Server, MS Office, Flash, Illustrator, Photoshop, Fireworks, Acrobat, Dreamweaver, Aperture, AutoCAD, Visio, Pro Tools, and Final Cut Pro. Have overseen and implemented the management of the following technologies: Linux Red Hat, Windows 2003 Server, Microsoft Exchange Server, and Microsoft SQL Server, HTML, PHP, MySQL, ASP, JSP, Java, XML, Perl, & JavaScript
