QUICK CONNECT
Quick•Connects are“speed dating” sessions with local experts. You will sign up for a session at SMASH, and when the “gong” sounds for your session, you get to talk to your chosen expert … until the gong sounds again!
Register for your Quick•Connect meetings when you arrive at SMASH.
Reservations are first-come, first-served.
Check out these confirmed SMASH! ‘24 Experts
Alexis Jenssen - Marketing
Alexis Jenssen, Founder & Creative Director at The Bowerbird Agency is a classically trained fine artist with over 15 years of marketing and development expierence supporting business and non-profit organizations serving a local audience.
Alexis can help people identify how to grow awareness and increase engagement across social media how to create effective, omnichannel marketing to increase sales, and how to begin/grow a wholesale offering.
Sarah Gilbert - Literary
Sarah is the Public Relations Manager for Lulu.com, the publishing and print on demand company started in 2002 by Red Hat Founder Bob Young. Her primary role is to educate creators about the benefits of Lulu and publishing. Sarah is passionate about helping authors and publishers find ways to connect with their audience. In previous roles, she led public relations campaigns for over 75 authors, consulted with indie, hybrid, and traditionally published authors, and coached many more in preparation for their book launches.
Ask Sarah about publishing, producing, or launching a book, and especially how a book can contribute to the success of your brand.
David Nahm - Legal
David is an attorney with Morningstar Law Group in Raleigh. A graduate of UNC School of Law, he has practiced law for over fifteen years with a focus on contract drafting, business formation and real estate transactions. In addition to the law, David is an author and musician. He published his first novel, Ancient Oceans of Central Kentucky, in 2014, and has recently completed his second. He also regularly plays music with various groups in the Triangle.
Ask David about how contracts work, contract pitfalls to watch out for, and about creation of business entities.
Charles Sexton - Legal
Charles is an attorney and Partner of Eunoia Law Firm. He began his legal journey helping small business owners in Greensboro, NC with business services from entity formation to think tank strategy sessions. As the Branding Attorney at Eunoia Law Firm, he has used his love for music and the arts to help artists, creatives, and entrepreneurs. Charles has negotiated artists’ deals, created contracts for production companies, and advised creatives on the proper ways to earning more money through their intellectual property.
Talk with Charles about protecting your work through copyrights and trademarks, knowing what it means to build/grow your brand, the importance of licensing and the necessities of a contract.
Kayleigh Bain - Marketing
Kayleigh Bain has been in the Social Media world since Myspace and has seen the transition to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and now Threads! From owning her own fitness studio, to selling her paintings, running event promotions to running 10-franchise store's marketing, she learned one thing- she loves helping others with their own marketing and teaching others how to use it! She now owns Honeygin Marketing Agency where she dives deep into the personal story behind the business and helps convey that to your audience. Every business has a story and people want to know more about that! This year's trend that is going to blow up more is storytelling.
Ask Kayleigh about anything Social Media and how you can get your story out there! Whether you are not sure how to use social, not sure when to post, or have no idea where to start, Kayleigh can help you!
Thea Fotiu Howell - Marketing
Thea Fotiu Howell, The Artist's Concierge offers professional artists the tools and resources to become Fearless and Fluent in Marketing. Her approaches center around the individual in developing their brand and marketing. She's served more than 100 hundred artists since launching The Artist's Concierge in 2018. In her 25+ year career, she's produced large and small events in directorship roles, and served as a lecturer and teaching artist for numerous organizations. As an artist who is well-versed in multiple disciplines, she approaches the work by supporting the artist as an individual and shares in their mutual desires for comfort and authenticity. She offers a variety of content writing and website services, 1:1 consultation methods, and uniquely themed programming.
Thea can help you think through producing a more comfortable and authentic artist career, helping you to become Fearless and Fluent in Marketing.
Brandon Huffman - Legal
Brandon is an attorney at Odin Law and Media focused on representing video game developers and other creative and technology clients. Brandon volunteers as general counsel to the International Game Developers’ Association, the largest trade organization focused on supporting individual game developers. He is the chair of the North Carolina Bar Association Small Firm & Technology section, and past chair of the NCBA’s Sports and Entertainment Law section, past chair of the Triangle ArtWorks board of directors and former engagement editor of the American Bar Association’s Business Law Today.
Ask Brandon about copyright for artists and other legal issues around creative work.
Laurel Rupe - Small Business
Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina (EDPNC)
Laurel is an experienced business consultant and small business advisor with over 30 years experience in the fields of management, customer service, and human resources. In the corporate world, she has worked for both large and small companies all over the US; IBM, Kodak, and others, before putting down roots in North Carolina. A member of the Carolina Mixed Media Art Guild since 2004, Laurel has served the Guild as President, Past President, and is currently serving as Vice President. She’s a mixed media artist who enjoys working with antique and vintage textiles, watercolor, and acrylic and has been accused of having “ALL the colors”.
Ask Laurel about business structure, how to manage your creative business and how to connect with state resources for small businesses.
Sharon Walker - Small Business
Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina (EDPNC)
Sharon Walker is a Small Business Advisor with the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina and costumer. She is an experienced business consultant and small business advisor with almost 30 years of experience in customer service and technical support. Sharon has worked with government agencies DHHS and NCDOR, along with small startups and large corporations such as Kodak and WorldCom. Sharon also volunteers with an international 501c(3) and has served as treasurer and instructor for the local chapter. Sharon is a seamstress and costumer with over 30 years of experience working with textiles.
Ask Sharon about business structure, how to connect with state resources, and tips for making managing your business easier.
Kevin Landwehr - Marketing
Kevin Landwehr/Nothing Something
Kevin conducts marketing and design direction for brands & products, startups, and hospitality groups for design agency Nothing Something. Blending design with an instinct for what a market really wants, Kevin crafts identities that speak naturally and grow steadily for businesses including Magnolia, Intelligentsia, Scribe Winery, Joseph Phelps, Apple Music, and others. Additionally, Kevin uses design to effect change and mobilize humanitarian meal delivery for World Central Kitchen / On The Line.
Ask Kevin your questions about branding and marketing your art business or arts non-profit.
Peter Singh - Legal
Pete currently works as an attorney with Fourscore Business Law. In February 2023, he started the nonprofit Carolina Lawyers for the Arts & Entertainment (CLÆ). Previous to this work, Pete was with a startups practice group in Raleigh, which followed an in-house stint with a private equity company in Durham as a Corporate Counsel and M&A Attorney. Through the years, Pete has helped clients with a wide range of matters including M&A deals, venture financing, copyright and trademark cases, complex commercial litigation, dispute resolution, outside general counsel, contract drafting and negotiation. Outside the office, he serves as a NC DRC certified mediator and arbitrator.
Pete is also a professional musician, model and founder of Alarm Mattress Topper Inc., which is home to his Timely Topper™ mattress pad invention.
Pete can help you think through how to form an entity; equity splits; approaching big deals; music publishing and licensing; legal agreements required for film and documentary projects.
La-Tasha Best-Gaddy
Small Business/FInance
La-Tasha Best-Gaddy, the Chief Strategist of Infinity Bridges Inc., boasts an extensive 25-year career spanning Accounting, Insurance, Financial Services, and Non-Profit Industry sectors. LaTasha is a dynamic thought leader and entrepreneur, and an alumna of North Carolina Central University with graduate and undergraduate degrees, and she holds a certificate from The College of Insurance in New York. She's a graduate of the NC Rural Economic Development Institute, Leadership North Carolina, and Leadership Triangle. Actively engaged in the community, she holds pivotal roles, serving as Chairman of the Black Business Alliance for Chapel Hill-Carrboro, Facilitator of the Durham Small Business Resource Collaborative. La-Tasha is also a Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce Board Member, Treasurer & Co-Founder of the NC Employee Ownership Center, and Treasurer of Rebuild Durham.
Ask La-Tasha about starting and running a small business and how to tips for getting a handle on your budget and finances.
Mark Prokop - Bookkeeping/Nonprofits
Since 2001, Mark Prokop has worked in the NC non-profit field by being a part-time bookkeeper, 2) to being a one person financial show that did anything and everything, including payroll and HR, 3) to being an Executive Director 3 times, one of which I founded, and 4) to being on multiple Board of Directors.
Ask Mark about how to get a non-profit started in NC and financial questions related to nonprofits.
Chris Weeks - Small Business
Wake Tech Entrepreneurship and Small Business Center
Chris Weeks is the Senior Director of the Wake Tech Entrepreneurship and Small Business Center. He manages and creates educational opportunities for entrepreneurs to start and scale their businesses and administers programs like Launch Wake County and The Inc. Business Accelerator program, and oversees the Small Business Center, Wake Tech's North Carolina Military Business Development and Contractor's Academy. Weeks also teaches Entrepreneurship and The Business of Music to students across disciplines to ignite the entrepreneurial spark within them in whichever field they choose to embark upon. Prior to Wake Tech, he spent 25 years running a full-service entertainment firm that focused on helping artists become sustainable entrepreneurs.
Ask Chris about entrepreneurship as a creative, and how to get your art business started or accelerated.
Janet Ecklebarger - Tax/Finance
Janet Ecklebarger earned her Master's degree from Cranbrook Academy of Art in 1992. She has been working as a tax preparer since 2005. She has been working as a tax preparer since 2005 and specializes in deductions for artists, musicians, and other creative types while also offering tax and accounting techniques for the right brained. She is a practicing artist who tends to a 30 acre property in North Carolina and is excited to participate in the creative community and advocacy in her new area.
Ask Janet about income tax filing questions, whether or not you should start an LLC, and tips to financial confidence.
Serena Ebhardt & David zum Brunnen - Theatre
Serena and David are the creative energy behind EbzB productions - a company that has toured nationally with a roster of live theatrical productions, has seen its work broadcast on PBS (airing in US and Canadian markets), and has now evolved into full feature film production (under its subsidiary WhyNot Theatricals). Both Serena and David are accomplished actors (with Serena most recently featured in the Hulu/Disney streaming series Dopesick) with experience in Arts Administration (Serena was formerly the Managing Director at Temple Theatre in Sanford, David the General Manager at PlayMakers Repertory Company, and Executive Director of NC Theatre Conference, as well as Production, and Technical experience in the performing arts throughout their careers. Their work over the years also includes also conducting school & community-based dramatic art residencies.
Talk to Serena and David for insights and connections to enhance your personal & professional ideas and dreams - and that includes the creative, organizational, financial, and legal logistics.
Jeannie Rovira -Finance/Bookeeping
Jeannie Rovira, a first-generation American and New York Native, is the driving force behind Marigold Bookkeeping, LLC, a minority-woman owned bookkeeping firm. With a rich background in bookkeeping, human resources and project management, Jeannie has carved a path of success that embodies resilience, dedication and continuous learning. As a certified bookkeeper, Jeannie has had the privilege to help many small businesses from the initial startup to growth phase. Her specialty is financial visibility, budget review, payroll management, and accounting software training.
Ask Jeannie about how to tackle managing your books as a new small business owner.
Rebecca Brown - Public Art
City of Durham Cultural & Public Art
Rebeca Brown is the Cultural & Public Art Program Manager at the City of Durham, providing administrative support for the City’s arts and cultural public boards, cultivating community partnerships, and developing private and public investment in public art opportunities for the Durham community. She developed and oversaw the Bull Moon Rising weekend-long special event featuring public artist Luke Jerram, the Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Asphalt Art grant with artist Candy Carver, and the Black Wall Street Garden public art by Stephan Hayes and David Wilson, in addition to launching Durham’s first ever Poet Laureate Program. Rebecca Brown earned a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Photography from the University of Georgia, and earned a Masters of Arts in Arts Administration from Goucher College.
Ask Rebecca about pathways into public art and local government's involvement in the arts sector.
