Crains New York - August 13, 2012 - (Page 22)

They’re winging it Continued from Page 21 Pennsylvania,a new office in North Carolina and potential clients anywhere in between, it just made sense to use it for corporate trips. “It has allowed us to convince clients that we can effortlessly get to wherever these job sites are,” said the 49-year-old architect, explaining that his business has grown 10% to 15% per year since 2003, even during the downturn. He attributes much of that success to the plane. Though 80% of the flying he does is for business, there’s always room for another flight—if it has a purpose. “Very few of us go up just to buzz around up there,”he said.So he started volunteering, flying patients who can’t afford it to distant hospitals for treatment. There are a few organizations that help fill the void for pilots looking for more reasons to fly. Angel Flight Northeast is a nonprofit network of more than 1,000 pilots that arranges such flights. Mr. Cole has flown around a half-dozen missions. His first Angel flight back in 2009 was bringing someone from Islip airport on Long Island to Buffalo for a bone-marrow transplant. Volunteering is a common theme among pilots—a way to indulge their expensive hobby for a good cause. Jim Cear, a senior portfolio manager at U.S. Trust Co., started flying with the Air National Guard in 1982,and when he finally left the Reserve in 1998, he was looking for other reasons to fly. He found ‘Very few of us go up just to buzz around’ Angel Flight Northeast through a flier posted on a board at his hometown airport. He’ll never forget his first Angel mission flight, back in 1997. It was to pick up a mother, father and toddler in Boston and bring them back home to Long Island. The toddler had been caught in a horrible house fire, and had to fly to Boston for reconstructive surgery as she grew. “It’s a special group of pilots,” he said.“We try to make it a really great experience, and for a little while, you can see people get disconnected from the problems they’re facing.” He’s been flying six to eight missions a year in his Beechcraft Bonanza, which he keeps at Gabreski Airport in Westhampton Beach, L.I. Now the chair of Angel Flight Northeast, the 60-year-old has seen the organization grow from about 30 missions in its first year to about 4,000 flights this year. At any given time, the group has between 50 to 100 flights open for participating pilots to sign up for. Peter Turecek, senior managing director of business intelligence and investigations at Kroll, has done a puppy rescue with Animal Rescue Flights, which swoops in to save animals from kill shelters and bring them to adoptive families. The 43-year-old tries to fly every weekend, even if it’s just for an hour. “My wife realizes that this is kind of like my yoga,” he said. Alan Sutin, chair of the global intellectual-property and technology practice at law firm Greenberg Traurig, does pro bono work for a different network that coordinates corporate jets for medical emergency flights when they are not in use.But when Mr.Sutin flies his own plane,a Cirrus SR22 that he keeps at Westchester County Airport, it’s mostly for recreation and social trips. He’s certain the social flights help him win and retain clients. “There isn’t anyone who doesn’t enjoy it,” he said. “I’ll fly up to Block Island for breakfast and take a friend with me, and we’ll be back by the afternoon.Ninety percent of my trips are timed around some meal.” SOURCE LUNCH: by Adrianne Pasquarelli RICHARD KRANTZ A CEO with the right makeup Flying for burgers Food is a common theme. “When I fly, it is always revolving around food,” said Alberto Corvo, managing principal for financial services at eClerx Services. He also flies a Cirrus SR22, which he parks at Caldwell/Essex County Airport in New Jersey. “It’s an excuse to go to Maine for a lobster,” he said. The $100 hamburger is a familiar joke among pilots:a $5 burger,after factoring in the price of fuel and other fees, ends up costing at least $100.In fact,there are websites dedicated to this thinly veiled excuse, like 100dollarhamburger.com and fly2lunch.com, that detail pilots’ favorite airport lunch spots—and the coordinates needed to fly there. To a man, they say the skills to be a good pilot—being organized, having situational awareness and being prepared for curveballs—all translate to their day jobs. “It’s the same sort of skill set,” said Mr. Turecek. “When I uncover somebody who’s stealing money from a corporate client, it’s the same rush as making a good crosswind landing on a rainy night.” But underneath the justifications, it’s really just about getting up in the air. “The fun is in the flying,” said Mr. Corvo. “Going to a nice place is just the excuse.” M ost New Yorkers know Ricky’s, the quirky beauty chain that is the place to shop for Halloween. But they probably don’t know Richard Krantz, the retailer’s new chief executive, who joined about three months ago. The New York City native, who founded sportswear shop Warehouse Stores in the 1980s, until recently ran his own consulting business. Now he’s stocking up on vegan nail polish, expanding Ricky’s store count and gearing up for Oct. 31. There’s plenty of “white space” for the brand—i.e., Washington, Boston, Philadelphia, Southern California—Santa Monica’s a natural. People love the New York City aspect of Ricky’s. Over the next five years, we could easily double our store footprint. We’re planning to downsize just a little bit the square footage of stores to the neighborhood of 2,500 square feet. We also are the king of Halloween with our pop-up stores.This year, we’ll have a minimum of a double-digit footprint, and we’ll also convert parts of our existing stores into Halloween. How much of your sales are from your website? Why is Ricky’s a good fit for you? Ricky’s is great brand, with a lot of moving parts and a lot of action. It reminds me of when I was at Macy’s New York: One of my most fond positions was running their juniors business back in the day. I also had the cosmetics area there.It was a fast-fashion business, and Ricky’s is also very trend-oriented. What’s first on your beauty agenda? WHERE THEY DINED I’m trying to layer on top of a successful base and core business that was built up over the years by adding an element of product that’s even more on trend. Nails are big right now. We’re moving them to the front of the stores and expanding our assortment by introducing some vegan-based nail companies and some paste-on nails. We also want to introduce indie brands and give young entrepreneurs the opportunity to reach the consumer more easily. Should New Yorkers expect to see a new direction for Ricky’s? NOMAD HOTEL 1170 Broadway (212) 796-1500 www.thenomad hotel.com It’s a modest amount. Strategically, the lower-hanging fruit for us is to connect with our customers via social media. One thing I’ve learned is that in beauty and hair, consumers are really into the blogging feedback on products and the how-to’s. It’s really a golden opportunity for us. We could put out content [online] or “Ricky TV.” How are you handling competitors like Sephora? AMBIENCE: Elegant and chic with waiters clad in bespoke suits. An inviting skylight lends warmth to the main dining room. WHAT THEY ATE: Tagliatelle with king crab, Meyer lemon and black pepper; black bass, slowcooked with summer squash, shallots and mint Radicchio salad with apples, basil and mozzarella; scallops, seared with sorrel, lemon and maitake mushrooms Iced cappuccinos, butter caramel cake with sourcherry compote Tab: $153.38, including tip We can lead in most of the categories of hair and beauty because we have an eclectic mix, an educated staff, and we carry a wider content than most of our competitors—we’re deeper in hair than anyone in New York City.We still sell Marvis toothpaste. How are you capitalizing on the uptick in male shoppers? As a matter of fact, one of my initiatives is to focus more on our logo—the pink and blue—because I think it’s an iconic image. We want to go with our original DNA. We’re predominantly female—90%—and I’m looking to whether there’s an opportunity in male. The barbershop niche that Art of Shaving is in—a version of that within Ricky’s should get traction. There’s a trend where men are now using a shaving brush; that’s a category we can test. Will you dress up for Halloween? So you’re up to 29 stores now that your South Beach shop opened this month. Are you planning even more locations? I’ve never been a huge Halloween person, but I’m gonna have to be orange in October. I’ll have my pick of costumes! HOW WAS LUNCH? ‘It exceeded my expectations. It was the right cross between quality and quantity.’ 22 | Crain’s New York Business | August 13, 2012 http://www.100dollarhamburger.com http://www.thenomadhotel.com http://www.thenomadhotel.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crains New York - August 13, 2012

Crains New York - August 13, 2012
Table of Contents
IN THE BOROUGHS
IN THE MARKETS
THE INSIDER
BUSINESS PEOPLE
CORPORATE LADDER
OPINION
GREG DAVID
REAL ESTATE DEALS
FROM AROUND THE CITY
REPORT: SMALL BUSINESS
THE LIST
CLASSIFIEDS
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
SOURCE LUNCH
OUT AND ABOUT
SNAPS

Crains New York - August 13, 2012