Speaker:Roberto Milk, Novica
Roberto Milk shared his experiences starting his company, Novica , linking consumers and artisans.
October 20, 2005 @3:00pm-5:00pm, Cordura 100
Speaker Bio:
Roberto Milk, Chief Executive Officer. Prior to co-founding Novica, Mr. Milk worked as an entertainment industry consultant and as an investment banker for Prudential Securities, where he helped raise over $1 billion in capital markets transactions, M&A transactions and venture capital financing. In addition to his investment banking activities, Mr. Milk founded Wall Street Advisors LLC, a niche publisher of corporate finance manuals. Mr. Milk has worked in the National Tax Department of Peru and the International Relations Department of San Antonio, Texas. An avid traveler, Mr. Milk had long written about creating an economic development model for artisans in Peru and other developing nations around the world.
Mr. Milk is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA). He received his A.B. in International Relations with Honors from Stanford University and is fluent in English, Spanish and Portuguese. Mr. Milk also enjoys photography and is a competitive soccer player.
About Novica:
Novica.com, part of the National Geographic family, was founded five years ago with the mission of aiding artisans & preserving ancient craft traditions. Novica has quickly become one of the largest handmade gift and home décor websites in the world, selling the works of more than 2,000 artisans in developing nations (nearly 20,000 limited edition and one-of-a-kind gifts and home decor items, including fine handmade jewelry, clothing, gifts, home decor, and original paintings). Unlike traditional retail channels, Novica.com works directly with artists and artisans through its seven regional offices in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
Categories on the website include home decor, handmade jewelry, vases, mirrors, sculpture, area rugs, paintings, tapestries, necklaces, masks, and unique gifts. Novica is the recipient of prestigious cultural and business awards, most recently the America Economia Excellence Award for Cultural Preservation and the Schwab Foundation Award for Social Entrepreneurship.