Alexandre Mars
Alexandre Mars (born c. 1976)[1] is a French-born businessman and philanthropist, known in France as the "The French Bill Gates."[2] He is the founder and CEO of Epic Foundation, a global nonprofit startup working with high impact organizations that help underserved children and youth around the world.[3] He is also the founder and CEO of Blisce/ a family office investing in high-impact tech startups and companies around the world, running on the mission of combining technology and partnerships with change-making leaderships.[4]
Prior to Epic Foundation, Mars made a fortune leading two tech startups to profitable exits.[5] He founded the instant messaging technology company Scroon, later acquired by BlackBerry Limited,[6] and was the CEO and founder of the world's largest mobile agency, Phonevalley, sold to Publicis Groupe in 2007.[7]
Early life
Mars was born in the Boulogne-Billancourt neighborhood of Paris, and raised in France and the United States. His parents were French; his father Dominique was an entrepreneur who founded Mars and Co., a consulting company, and his mother was involved in social causes.[8] Mars has said that his parents had a profound effect on him, both in his evolution as an entrepreneur and his turn to social good.[9]
He attended Florent Schmitt de Saint-Cloud high school, HEC Paris, and Paris Dauphine University.[8] At 17, while still a high school student, he founded a concert promotion company. [10][11] With the money earned from his venture, he bought several computers and started one of Europe's first web agencies, A2X.[10]
Entrepreneurship
From 1998-2001, Alexandre Mars ran his own venture fund, Mars Capital. In 2001 he founded Phonevalley, a mobile telephone company that would later become the world's largest mobile agency. He sold it to Publicis Groupe in 2007, staying on as manager of the Publicis mobile phone division until 2013.[8] In 2006, he founded ScrOOn, a social media management system which offers brands a chance to manage their conversations on social networks.[10] He sold ScrOOn to BlackBerry Limited in 2013.[11]
Philanthropy
While working as a venture capitalist in New York, Mars visited his girlfriend, now wife, in India where she was working in an orphanage for disabled children founded by Mother Teresa.[12] It was a memorable experience for both, but left Mars with a desire to change course. Upon selling his sixth startup, Mars began a seven month odyssey to study philanthropy outside of the United States.[10] With his wife and children beside him, Mars traveled around the world for several months trying to understand what could be changed.[9] His research showed that "people want to give, but they do not know who, through lack of confidence and knowledge."[13]
In 2014, he founded a New York-based philanthropy startup called the Epic Foundation, designed to link individuals and companies looking to do more with charities helping children and youth.[11] The foundation's goal is to "develop new tools that will enhance how donors select, monitor and experience their impact.”[1] The foundation accepts applications from non-governmental and social service agencies from all over the world. The selection team, headed by a former United Nations head of policy, sorts through the applications to analyze each organization's impact, leadership and finances, among other criteria.[14] The 20-member staff then makes recommendations to the foundation's clients, and helps them to track the effect of their donations. Mars funds the Foundation's operations personally, for $2 million (and counting) each year, so that 100% of donations go to the targeted charities.[1][14]
In 2015, he was named one of New York City’s top 20 philanthropists under 40 by the New York Observer.[1]
Advocacy
Mars has been an outspoken critic about advertising on mobile platforms. He has said existing advertisers do not focus on the technology well, saying they "always go with the easiest answer. Google for sure—less and less AOL."[15] He has criticised data mining from companies such as Facebook, saying the company needs to get additional permission from users in order to individually target them more carefully.[16]
Mars has been an advocate for children and youth; he launched Epic Foundation in 2014 with the mission to bridge the gap between individual and corporate donors and organizations supporting kids globally using innovation. The Foundation works in the United States, Western Europe, Brazil, East Africa, Southeast Asia and India.[17]
Through the work of his foundation, Mars urges people to use their success to give back.[14] [13] He is described as a "disruptive philanthropist," wanting to change mindsets about how we give our time, money and resources.[14]
Awards
In December 2016, France's popular radio station Europe 1 awarded Mars the trophy for "Personality of the Future."[18]
Personal life
Alexandre Mars wed his high school sweetheart, Florence Chataignier Mars, who has deeply inspired his work with children.[12] They have three children together and live in Brooklyn, New York [12] Mars is an avid runner and sports fanatic.[14] He is a devoted practitioner of mixed martial arts and has competed in the New York Marathon.[14][8] In 2016, Mars was appointed Chair of the Sport and Society Committee, part of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games bid.[14]
References
- ^ a b c d "The Top 20 Philanthropists Under 40". The Observer. April 1, 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
- ^ Chaperon, Isabelle (2015-09-29). "Alexandre Mars, le petit Bill Gates français". Le Monde.fr (in French). ISSN 1950-6244. Retrieved 2016-12-15.
- ^ "Executive profile: Alexandre Mars". Bloomberg. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
- ^ Mars, Alexandre. "Club, Investors, Foundation". blisce.com. Retrieved 2016-12-13.
- ^ MacBride, Elizabeth. "This star entrepreneur donates so that others may build homes, schools". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved 2016-12-15.
- ^ "BlackBerry Acquired Social-Media Startup in May". Bloomberg. 21 November 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
- ^ "Epic Foundation, le don débridé". Le Monde (in French). 31 March 2015. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
- ^ a b c d "Alexandre Mars, the man behind Publicis Mobile". TransMark Partners. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
- ^ a b "Alexandre Mars is reinventing philanthropy for the digital age". Canadian Business - Your Source For Business News. 2016-06-08. Retrieved 2016-12-15.
- ^ a b c d GQ. "Alexandre Mars, le smart philanthrope français". GQ. Retrieved 2016-12-15.
- ^ a b c Murray, Sarah (June 4, 2015). "Alexandre Mars: High-tech philanthropist looks to tap the wealth of entrepreneurs". Financial Times. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
- ^ a b c Chaperon, Isabelle (2015-09-29). "Alexandre Mars, le petit Bill Gates français". Le Monde.fr (in French). ISSN 1950-6244. Retrieved 2016-12-15.
- ^ a b "Alexandre Mars, le philanthrope 2.0 au service de l'enfance". lesechos.fr (in French). 2016-07-11. Retrieved 2016-12-15.
- ^ a b c d e f g Salman, Saba (2016-11-29). "Alexandre Mars: States don't have the money to do good. Business does". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2016-12-15.
- ^ "Publicis' Head Of Mobile Disses AOL While Sitting Next To AOL's Director Of Mobile". Business Insider. 14 June 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
- ^ Bradshaw, Tim (5 February 2012). "Facebook looks to make mobile click". Financial Times. Retrieved 19 May 2015.(subscription required)
- ^ MacBride, Elizabeth (July 14, 2015). "This star entrepreneur donates so that others may build homes, schools". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- ^ "Europe 1 - Trophées Europe 1 de l'Avenir : Alexandre Mars... | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2016-12-15.