Curt J. Creel, Senior Associate Curt Creel is a valued associate of Creative Sports Strategies, and a long-time partner in the sporting goods industry. His years of experience with companies like SPEEDO contribute to his instinctive style of event management and operations. Creel oversees special projects and client services for Creative Sports Strategies from his location in the State of Florida. His expertise in the areas of retail promotion, merchandising and logistics provides a unique insight into building turn-key, successful promotions that return immediate results. His aggressive style and intense organizational skills provide our clients with a clear blueprint of what it takes to succeed, and often exceeds their expectations. Creel is experienced in the field of audio production, and spent many years in the music and entertainment industry, a field in which he produced a top-rated morning radio program in the Orlando market. He was part of a merchandising team at SPEEDO that promoted top-level beach volleyball and aquatics athletes, including 3-time Olympic gold medalist, Karch Kiraly, and fellow Olympic beach volleyball gold medalists, Misty May-Treanor (2004) and Eric Fonoimoana (2000). Creel was part of an event team that included Lori Okimura, Lynn Okimura, and Gino Ferraro at the 2000 U.S. Olympic Challenge Series, 2000 FIVB World Tour USA Grand Slam, and the Beach Volleyball America professional men's and women's beach volleyball tour (2001). Creel is one of Creative Sports Strategies top contractors, with a proven track record of success with national retail promotions, professional sporting event operations and merchandise management. He was the General Manager of the Universal Skate Center in Orlando, Fla. and is also an Independent Sales Representative for ZAMST in Florida and Puerto Rico. He can be reached at curt@creativesportsstrategies.com.
Ann Herold, Media Relations Consultant Ann Herold is an award-winning journalist with an impressive resume of media expertise that includes both professional and educational endeavors. She is currently the Managing Editor of Los Angeles Magazine, one of the nation's premier publications, where her heartfelt piece on a bread-making family was a finalist for the Best Food Writing 2011 anthology. Ann previously served as Managing Editor for The Los Angeles Times Magazine from 1991 to 2007 and helped usher in the magazine's reincarnation as West in 2005. . She was the Copy Chief of both The Los Angeles Times and the Los Angeles Herald Examiner, and a Contributing Editor for Saveur Magazine. Ann has been a Senior Lecturer at the University of Southern California since 1980, teaching courses on editing and design to undergraduate and graduate students in the School of Journalism. An alumna of USC, Ann graduated magna cum laude with her Bachelor's Degree in Journalism, and received the Order of the Laurel as one of the top graduating women at the University. Ann earned a TIMES EDITORIAL AWARD in 1990 as "Copy Editor of the Year," and received a coveted JAMES BEARD FOUNDATION AWARD in 2004 for "Best Magazine Series."
Matthew C. Knutson, Sales & Marketing Manager Matt Knutson is a marketing and event manager who specializes in sales promotion and branding campaigns. He has an extensive background in sales and is currently part of the lead team managing the business development and introduction of ZAMST, a Japanese sports injury prevention company,to the U.S. sporting goods market. Matt is responsible for territory sales, account management, and promotions for ZAMST in all 50 states. He is involved in the planning and activation of ZAMST's national sales and marketing strategy and event management. Matt is responsible for interacting with a national sales force, and major national tradeshow and events for clients at ZAMST, and has managed consumer events, and sales account management . Before joining Creative Sports Strategies, Matt was a campus rep for FLEX WATCHES, a new trend setting brand of watches with a philanthropic mission. Matt has extensive coaching experience in the sport of volleyball, which he has played all his life. He is an accomplished club and high school volleyball coach in Orange County and Los Angeles. Matt was a Junior Olympic volleyball bronze medalist as a youth player, and earned All-CIF Division V honors and All-Academy League Most Valuable Player honors during his high school career at Capistrano Valley Christian in San Juan Capistrano, Cailf. He played collegiate volleyball at Irvine Valley College and Orange Coast College, where he earned second team All-Orange Empire League honors as the starting outside hitter, and his team won the State Championship that same season. Matt finished his collegiate career as an outside hitter at the University of Southern California. He was a key back up player on USC's Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) men's volleyball conference championship team in 2008, and was a member of the school's 2008 NCAA Men's Volleyball Championship runner up team. He graduated from USC with a Bachelor's Degree in History. He can be reached at matt@creativesportsstrategies.com.
Lynn C. Okimura, Creative Consultant(Animation and Film Production) Lynn Okimura is the President of Big Village Productions (www.bigvillageproductions.com), and a specialist in the area of traditional and computer animation and animated film production. Besides being the sister of Creative Sports Strategies President, Lori Okimura, Lynn is an experienced producer, animator and graphic artist that has worked on film, print and web-enabled campaigns. She worked at Disney Studios in Burbank, Calif. in the production office of Disney's "Lilo & Stitch" animated series, DVD and motion picture, and as a production associate for "The Emperor's New School", a new animated series. She left Disney in late 2005 to pursue a private venture in independent film production. She is a past-winner of the prestigious UCLA "Spotlight Award," awarded annually to critically acclaimed work by students in the UCLA School of Film, Television and the Performing Arts, and her work has been featured in many film festivals and screenings. Her current film, "Funetics" was a crowd-pleaser on the independent film festival circuit, and was selected to screen in the prestigious Hawaii International Film Festival in October 2004. Lynn was a finalist in the General Motors Pontiac division's national contest for the launch of the Pontiac Vibe. She has developed many "e-mercials" for her clients throughout the Southern California area, a talent that has become a staple in her services menu. Lynn is a graduate of UCLA, where she earned her bachelor's degrees in Fine Arts (Film) and Psychology, and her master's degree in film animation. She returned to the UCLA School of Film, Television and the Performing Arts in 2006 to join the faculty as an adjunct professor in the School of Animation. She periodically serves as a visiting instructor at the critically acclaimed Cal Arts. She can be reached at lynn@creativesportsstrategies.com.
Julie A. Newman, Senior Associate Julie Newman is a project management and executive operations specialist, with several years of top level operations and logistics experience in Silicon Valley. She recently worked for the Chatsworth Company in Atherton, Calif. where she was involved in managing multiple corporate transactions in real estate and land development projects across the United States and provided expertise in financial planning and budget review including extensive involvement in charitable trusts, planned giving and philanthropic contributions. She worked previously in the technology industry for San Francisco based companies Actify and I/PRO, managing business development and operations. Newman is a third generation member of the Redwood City Women's Club, and is actively involved in several non profit associations including the Boy Scouts of America, Ragazzi Boys' Chorus, the Riekes Center for Human Enhancement, and the Menlo School Association (she is an alumna). She is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Menlo College School of Business Administration with a bachelor's degree in Marketing. Julie resides in Redwood City, Calif. and manages marketing projects for our clients in the Bay Area. She can be reached at julie@creativesportsstrategies.com.
Jennifer Purser-Schmall, Senior Associate Jennifer Purser is a marketing expert based in Atlanta, Georgia. Purser spent several years at the Dallas Morning News managing sales incentive programs for the Dallas Morning News and North Texas Belo Properties, one of the nation's largest media companies. Prior to that, Purser held account management positions with The Wilson Group, a sales and marketing agency in Texas. During her tenure at The Wilson Group, Purser worked on high profile marketing campaigns, some involving celebrity athletes, with clients like Coors Brewing Company, Ocean Spray, and Gillette. Her career began at Host Communications/Streetball Partners, where she was an integral part of the company's grassroots sports division. While at Host Communications/Streetball Partners, she served as the interim Public Relations Director for NBC's coverage of the NBA Hoop-It-Up Tour, was the Team Services Supervisor for the NFL's Air-It-Out Tour, and was the National Event Director of the company's successful Spike-It-Up Tour, a 10-city national grassroots volleyball tour that remains the most successful participation tour in the sport today. Purser is a native of Sandy Springs, Oklahoma near Tulsa and received her Bachelor's Degree from Oklahoma State University. Purser can be reached at jennifer@creativesportsstrategies.com.
Char M. Taguinod, Senior Associate Char M. Taguinod is a veteran of the sporting goods industry, specializing in event mangement and marketing. She has built an impressive resume with experience in both soft and hard goods. In March 2005, she was named to the Executive Steering Committee of the Volleyball Council of America, a non profit organization serving to oversee the volleyball industry and its future development. In March 2007, she was tapped to become the first Vice President of Sales & Marketing of Third Degree Sportswear of Huntington Beach, California.
Taguinod worked in promotions and marketing for the Miller Brewing Company in the Southern California area before returning to the sporting goods industry in athletic inflatables manufacturing earlier in 2006. Taguinod was formerly a Marketing Manager at ASICS America Corporation, where she was responsible for point-of-purchase and point-of-sale programs. Prior to that, she served for over five years as the Marketing Manager of Team Sports before taking on a new role in the company. As the Marketing Manager of Team Sports, Taguinod is credited with the redirection of the company's product line to set the trends in the industry and to introduce new technological advances in footwear production for the sport of volleyball specifically. Colleagues and competitors alike describe her as one of, if not the most knowledgable in the industry when it comes to apparel and footwear development and marketing. During her tenure at ASICS, the company built an impenetrable portfolio of the largest and most successful consumer events, youth volleyball properties and tournaments. She was responsible for building official partnerships with over 40% of the major volleyball events and college programs in the U.S. Taguinod contributed to product development, marketing, merchandising and sales while at ASICS, resulting in many years of profitability for the Japan-based company. Taguinod previously served as a Special Events Manager for Mikasa Sports, a manufacturer of athletic inflatables based in Irvine, California. She was the Program Director for the Amateur Athletic Foundation of Los Angeles, overseeing a $90-million grant budget from the surplus of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games that was appropriated to Los Angeles County non-profit youth sports organizations. She is a member of the United States Youth Volleyball League (USYVL) National Advisory Commission, and was a member of the the Sporting Goods Manufacturer’s Association Volleyball Executive Council as an Executive Committee member and Chair of the Marketing Committee. For several years, Taguinod was a high school volleyball coach and certified athletic trainer at Rosary High School in Fullerton, California. She coached for the Magnum Volleyball Club in Anaheim, California, considered one of the nation’s premier junior clubs in the 1980’s and 1990’s. She is on the Board of Directors of the Sinjin Smith Volleyball Academy and is involved in the management of her family's business, the Downey Veterinary Clinic in Southern California. Taguinod is a graduate of the California State University, Long Beach with a bachelor’s degree in Physical Education. She can be reached at char@creativesportsstrategies.com.
