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It’s great to wake up every morning and play with toys. It’s like the movie “Big.” A lot of people don’t get to have fun at work, and we do here. But I do work hard. It’s a very competitive industry.
I get up around 8 in the morning. First thing I do is go downstairs and see my family. I’m married and I have four kids between the ages of 4 and 17.
I have a light breakfast, usually a glass of hot water with a lemon wedge. Every morning I have a cup of fruit. Other than that I piggyback with the kids. I could be as fortunate as to get French toast or pancakes if that is what they’re eating, usually not.
I do a yoga exercise routine in the morning. I’ve been doing it for over three years. Because of my athletic endeavors as a kid I’ve been involved with tennis my whole life, I toured on the professional tennis circuit I need a place in my life for fitness and health.
Yoga is good because I travel all over the world and I don’t have to carry weights. I can just clear a spot on the floor and work out for 45 minutes.
Usually I get to work around 10:30 in the morning. It’s pretty late but I also work late at night. The challenge for me is overseeing all the departments from product development to advertising to sales. Every day, I have all kinds of people that need my attention.
Usually when I come in I have over 100 e-mails waiting for me to review. I check them and then I touch base with my division heads in sales, finance, manufacturing and product development. I look at different retailers.
We are a supplier for KB, Target, Wal-Mart and just about any store that is serious about toys.
Our whole top floor is product development. My office is on the third floor for a reason: I constantly have my hand in the creative process. Every time I get up to grab a snack or go to the bathroom I am checking to see how functional this toy is, or how the packaging looks on that one.
Sometimes I go out for a working lunch, other times I just try to fit eating into the day’s schedule.
We create two lines a year. We’ll launch 40 or so items for each line, so there are always new ideas being pitched. We compete against the movie industry and the video game industry for kids’ time so we have to make our toys as cool, hip, and fun as possible.
I’m at work until 7 or 7:30. I go home to Pacific Palisades and have dinner with my family. We put the little kids to bed. Then my wife and I spend time with the big kids.
At 11 everyone but me goes to bed. Then I plug into our Hong Kong offices, I spend a couple hours getting into the issues of the day and usually I go to sleep around 1 a.m.
The irony of my job is that I didn’t think I would work with kids. I worked in the construction industry for a while. I’m so glad I do what I do instead of putting down carpet.
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Brian Kessler
Founder and President
Maui Toys Inc.
Hometown:
Youngstown, Ohio
Education:
Undergraduate degree in international economics and business from George Washington University
Early Gig:
Mailroom employee on Capitol Hill
Fond Memory:
Playing tennis with Ted Kennedy
For Fun:
Went to the U.S. Open this year
