Meet a 10-year-old suburban CEO
When Parker Krex founded Glenview-based Brick Loot, he knew his market well. Fans of Legos and other toy brick products can be selective on what they like and what intrigues them.
After all, he's 10 and a Legos fan, too.
The young CEO helped to create and run Brick Loot, a subscription service that ships a monthly box of toys to its customers. Parker wanted kids and adults to get a surprise each month that's worthwhile and “not a box filled with junk,” he said.
“This is all stuff that I would like to get,” he said.
He researches various companies and gets the latest items to surprise customers with from companies as NanoBlock, BrickStix, Brick Popper and BrickMania.
Subscriptions range from $23 to $27 per month, plus the cost of shipping. So far he has about 1,200 subscribers, including 60 percent youngsters and 40 percent adults.
“He does all his own research and he's always looking for bigger and better companies,” said his mother, Erin Krex, 39.
He thought about developing the new company while at his parent's garage sale last summer. He had just gotten what he called “another box of junk” in the mail and thought he could do better at selecting brick toys for other fans.
His mother liked his idea and the two created their own “Shark Tank” type of presentation for his father, Steve Krex, 49, who would be the investor.
“Parker knows what the fans want and Legos are his passion,” Erin said.
Parker has been collecting Legos and related bricks since he was 3 and he has so much he just cannot count them all, he said.
“I like them because you can build whatever you want, and if you don't like it when you're done, you can just destroy and rebuild it,” Parker said.
The company shipped its first package last December and has grown so much that it has added shipping to Canada and the United Kingdom.
Parker and his parents already have hired their first employee to help with the growing subscriptions. They also obtained warehouse space in Northbrook.
Apparently the young entrepreneur takes after his parents, who also own and operate their own company called First Class Care Inc., a Northbrook-based placement agency for nannies, housekeepers, chefs and others.
As Brick Loot continues to grow, the Krex family hopes to get a storefront and possibly create more departments.
In the meantime, Parker has been a featured guest at brick-related conferences, including the Brickworld Lego Exposition last week at the Renaissance Convention Center in Schaumburg.
He's become so well-known now in the industry that some companies send him samples and make pitches to him. It's also led to the Krex family to establish a YouTube feature where kids take video of the first time they open their monthly boxes.
“I like the idea of getting something in the mail every month, and I think others do too,” he said.
Beam us into Aurora
Don Gingold and his wife Katharine, managing directors of Sprocket websites in Naperville, were in the crowd at Aurora-based American Wrench when legendary actor William Shatner last week drove a 3-wheeled motorcycle-type car to begin an 8-day, 2,400 mile drive from Aurora on behalf of the American Legion.
Terlato taps golf
William A. Terlato, CEO of Terlato Wines International in Lake Bluff and an avid golfer, said he's launched Jack's House with two new wines created in partnership with golf legend Jack Nicklaus. Ten percent of each sold bottle of Jack's House Wine will benefit the new Jack's House Foundation, which focuses on health care and education.
FastTracks
Wauconda resident David Cunningham, owner of Wondertucky Distillery in Woodstock, said his crafted corn whiskey under the Wondertucky label is now being sold by Binny's Beverage Depot and is available at the Benton Street Tap in Woodstock. We featured Cunningham in the People column in April.
Attorneys Andrew Fuller and Warren Fuller of South Barrington-based Fuller & Fuller have joined North Barrington-Kelleher & Buckley LLC. The two firms are now collectively named Kelleher & Buckley. Warren is Andrew's father. ... Edward Jones Managing Partner Jim Weddle in Itasca received the Glassdoor's Highest Rated CEO recognition for 2015. Glassdoor, a career website, released its annual report highlighting the highest-rated CEOs throughout North America and parts of Europe.
Joseph Flanagan of Evanston is among the four new members of the board for the Cook County Health Foundation, developed to support Cook County Health and Hospitals System. He is CEO of Acquirent after creating JP Flanagan Corp. insurance agency and then selling to Hub International in 2001. He sits on a number of health-related boards throughout Chicago.
Russ and Dave Peters mark 50 years of Mount Prospect-based Mobile Print Inc. ... Greg Bedalov, president and CEO of the economic development group Choose DuPage, is the new executive director of the Illinois Tollway Authority. He replaces Kristi Lafleur.
Carol Cook, owner of The Music Room in Palatine, said the business was named one of the world's Top 100 music stores by the National Association of Music Merchants. The business also is a contender for the Dealer of the Year award, in addition to competing in seven other categories. ... Terri Greeno cut the ribbon at the new Express Employment Professionals of Crystal Lake.
• There's more to business than just the bottom line. We want to tell you about the people that make business work. Send news about people in business to akukec@dailyherald.com. Follow Anna Marie Kukec on LinkedIn and Facebook and as AMKukec on Twitter.