the power of myths, icons, and metaphors in business branding

-brett h tomich and martin cavanaugh porter III, forbes legacy ventures llc

Myths, Icons, and Metaphors: Our Dreams and Stories

Companies need to believe in the power of mystery. It lies in the stories, metaphors, and iconic characters that give relationships their texture: the Forbes Legacy Venture LLC  oars on the life raft, navigating clients to safer shores.

The Fours of Mystery:

Tell your story and tell it often

Tap into Dreams

Nurture Myths, and Icons: They bring alive people’s memories, which is the wellspring to their heart (Nelson Mandela, Nike’s Swoosh, The Smiley Face).

Build on Inspiration: Help others to experience passion, elation, and heartache, which secures meaning and purpose from their commitment to your level of inspiration.

flash post: the corvarys group- next gen leaders-members of the l.a business war room

corvarys group

posted: martin cavanaugh porter III and brett h tomich,respectively ceo and cdo of: forbes legacy ventures LLC, and co-managing partners of the south park development group t. 001 213 550 4460 inquiries@flvllc.com

much more about michael van parys and rosa van parys (partners in the corvarys’ group and bright lights in downtown south park los angeles)  in the days and weeks ahead as they work shoulder to shoulder with forbes and the south park development group to build a better mix of businesses for south park and, specifically, to assist forbes with all subjects green.

bottom-line: http://www.downtownlabiz.com is doing a post about the van parys duo and their company because they are enlightened, flexible, and brilliant.

the corvarys group (TCG) sit in the solution’s chair developing sustainable resolutions to often intractable problems for real estate developers and home owners.

it’s not just that Michael is an architect. He is also one of the glittering lights in the world of LEED certification. He is a LEED AP – much more on michael van parys in later posts (note: one of the co-founders of the los angeles business war room).

rosa van parys leads the corvarys group design team and is also a certified LEED AP. International in outlook, a broad thinker, she none-the-less brings a tenable, powerful level of focus on execution that is astonishing. -we will be talking about rosa van parys in later posts as well- she is one of the few women who will be taking a leadership role in the los angele business war room.

For more info on the los angeles business war room please visit:

http://labwrblog.wordpress.com/(copy and paste into your URL)

http://downtownlabiz.com/2009/05/07/la-business-war-room-the-beginnings-of-a-proposal-by-the-founders-of-forbes/ (copy and paste into your URL)

wwe deal with all the Van Parys, I think: innovation, trusts, ethics.

when we see what the corvarys group is doing, we think- game changers.

corvarys group: 645 W. 9th Street #416, L.A C.A. 90015, t. 001 213 321 7910 mvanparys@gmail.com

“Obviously everyone wants to be successful, but I want to be looked back on as being very innovative, very trusted and ethical and ultimately making a big difference in the world” – Sergey Brin

l.a business war room -the beginnings of a proposal by the founders of forbes

There are a few young lights in  Los Angeles: Josh Gray-Emmer, Nick Van Parys, Brett H Tomich, Martin Cavanaugh Porter III, Cyrus Sigari, Ben Marcus, Mark Rojas, Matt Wilson, Jaspar Weir, Bryce Maddock, Mike Bayer, Jason Peterson, Casey Wasserman, Michael Van Parys, Tyler Joel Wilson, Joseph Pitruzzelli, Daniel Negari,Ari Mir, Ophir Tanz, Robby Berthume, Samuel Moon, James Requa, Ali Salomi, Nate Bolotin, Aram Tertzakian, Daniel Miller,  and the list goes on…who are bright, young, under 35, and have proven track records of branding, building, developing, and selling businesses.

The economic cycle has changed, the men in suits have not. Institutions are crumbling-it’s about time-and it’s up to the next wave to find new innovations, drive progress, and share resources (informational and financial) together.

It’s up to us to act together to be the influencers and decision makers in Los Angeles.

To vitalize a better way of doing business that is rooted in the following paradigm: maximizing profits, monetizing every aspect of a business, while, at the same time, engaging in ‘pull up your sock’ assistance to other young businessmen and women with great ideas and limited resources.

Further, to leverage our elan, youth, vitality, and vigor, combined with our economic clout and tech-savvy to encourage a new politics that combines a passion for reducing red-tape and the enemies of start-up business with a passion for social justice and equitbility.

The founders of Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC and The Hope Business (in Downtown South Park Los Angeles): Martin Cavanaugh Porter III, Brett H Tomich, and Nick Van Parys  (all under 35), are formulating the beginnings of a proposal: The Los Angeles Business War Room-an alternative to the recycled Chambers of Commerce, the endless, repetitive workshops, the closed doors, and the frustrating inability to actually connect, network, and advance.

Often times tipping points in a society arise out of a word-of-mouth (viral) consensus in society by young, affluent, progressive men and women. Our ability to be the button-pushers  of these  tipping points should be leveraged toward a better, brighter city led by younger, better businessmen and women who look like the city itself-from all races, creeds, colors, and points of departure.

We, the few, who take the tough, rewarding path of entrepreneurship can also take Los Angeles and build it into our vision.

“A creative man is motivated by the desire to achieve, not by the desire to beat others.” – Ayn Rand

Much more to come on this subject….

to chat about the Los Angeles Business War Room email us at: inquiries@flvllc.com

(soon to be up on the web-not yet-soon though-www.labwr.biz, and http://www.labwrblog.com)

our other blogs: http://www.recessionkillerblog.com and http://www.southparkla.com

posted by  forbes legacy venture LLC, south park development group, and thehope business planning center

LoftSEVEN still building: emmer rising -www.downtownlabiz.com

LoftSEVEN

posted by: martin cavanaugh porter III, ceo Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC, Tomich Porter Inc, and Co-Managing Partner of The South Park Development Group. 110o south hope street, suite 103, los angeles ca 90015  t. 001 213 550 4460 inquiries@flvllc.com

What we cannot do during this difficult economic cycle is allow the naysayers to undo the work of those forging forward, undertaking projects despite perceived difficulties. Josh Gray-Emmer has done just that, and for that Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC (VC-business development firm inSouth Park L.A) applauds him.

“Every man builds his world in his own image. He has the power to choose, but no power to escape the necessity of choice.”

Ayn Rand

Josh has created a new paradigm for downtown Los Angeles-a hyper niche: an event space that provides one-step-ahead-state of the art technology, that is green-friendly, and that aesthetically unparalleled.

“I have been living in….downtown for seven years now and I wanted to something new and unique…”- Josh Gray-Emmer.

You have Josh: Bravo.

http://www.downtownlabiz.com applauds the tiny club of true  innovators-Josh Gray-Emmer, you’ve joined.

mcporter@flvllc.com

http://www.flvllc.com or http://www.revanchistgroup.com

emotional rescue-www.downtownlabiz.com

Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC-TP INC Emotional Rescue

• Business is not won through position papers. It’s won customer by customer: Retain, Add, Grow.
• Human attention becomes the principal currency.
• Revanchist works with our clients to stop fad-racing and stop focusing on advertising and conventioneering. We need to focus on making consistent emotional connections with customers and allying with other organizations of merit to build identities people can love.
• Emotional Rescue: Customers want to embrace emotions.
• Emotions lead to action- reason leads to conclusions.
• Emotions are unlimited resource- to be tapped with new ideas, new inspirations, and new experiences.

find out how http://www.flvllc.com assisted a company with $50,000,000 annual revenue gain market share growing revenues to $65,000,000 annually by emailing us at: inquiries@flvllc.com

promised post about our blue-sky session on organic, human safe, and green etc…part one

posted by martin cavanaugh porter III, CEO Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC, mcporter@flvllc.com

We have taken on clients who are committed to falling within the spectrum of ‘green.’ FLV–LLC/TomichPorter does not pretend to be experts in this field but we do know the vast possibilities it offers and that it is a subject that simply cannot be ignored.

So, I asked the team to research each on his/her own everything that they could on the subject within these parameters: terminologies and possibilities Here follows a snap-overview of my take away from our blue sky session (there is so much ground to cover on this subject-far beyond this author’s ability to post tonight-but it was extensively and well covered at our internal Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC–TomichPorter Inc Session):

Of interest to me: That many products labeled ‘green’ or ‘organic’ maybe (or maybe not) in their final incarnation green but from their inception-that is to say, the entire process of manufacturing the product could be anything but: massive plants expelling toxins go into producing many products labeled ‘green’-So where does that leave you? To truly be green, to really be organic, one must examine the processes by which the product was manufactured and determine weather the process itself of production is antithetical to the precept of do no harm (to the earth), or worse, simply disastrous. We have made a commitment to one internationally renowned client in particular that the brand we build with them will be both green/organic in it’s final form and the processes of manufacture used to create the product.

In this case organic contemporary furnishings with the option human safe, organic fabric. We have entered into preliminary discussions with a high-level, first rate LEED Certified Green Consultant: Michael Van Parys to develop ground rules regarding this and intend to move forward with him as the project gains steam to do something rather dynamic: provide the consumer with start-to-finish certified, human safe organic furnishings. Our client will happily, be relocating to Down Town South Park Los Angeles, much to the benefit of it’s residents and the greater community. Much more on green and the blue-sky session in further posts. Summary: Lots to learn and lots of opportunity in the green-organic marketplace and because of this, consumer beware-many opportunists find ways to make money off of consumer’s growing (rapid-growth) desire to buy products that they believe reduce their overall carbon footprint, but in fact, may only add to it.

Summary from a VC/Biz-Dev Perspective: Massive, profitable (and karmic) opportunities abound for long term, determined players willing to go through the certification process and abide by it’s requirements. More to come…. posted by: martin cavanaugh porter III, ceo FLV LLC–TomcichPorter Inc (mcporter@flvllc.com) 1100 South Hope Street, Suite 103, Los Angeles CA 90015, t. 001 213 550 4460 . 001 817 7078

whole foods: financier?

http://www.southparkla.com

posted by: martin cavanaugh porter C.E.O,  brett h tomich, Chief Development Officer, and daniel c wang Chief Technology Officer  of FLV LLC/TomichPorterInc: A hybrid micro venture capital firm with ecommerce solutions, located in downtown southpark los angeles, 1100 south hope #103, los angeles ca, 90015. t.001 213 550-4460, inquiries@flvllc.com

Brett, Dan  I are forever looking for forward leaning, progressive, alternative financing for our clients. It’s our passion.

Our core focus is developing new businesses in downtown south park Los Angeles. Financing our clients, building ecommerce solutions for them, developing marketing and branding strategies tailored uniquely to South Park Los Angeles (applicable, if followed, for any business, anywhere, really). We will work with any business we are in congruency with, anywhere in the world, and we do-we’ve done business in Paris, Manila, Hong Kong, Seoul, Thailand, Marseilles, Barcelona-the list goes on, but downtown south park l.a is our passion-we live here, we work here, and we have a fundamental passion underpinned by hard analysis and forecasting that south park los angeles will be the next Manhattan given five, ten, fifteen years. We are young men with long horizons.

We believe in prosperity and in business and in being agents of prosperity. Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC/TomichPorter Inc are, fundamentally prosperity developers for small-mid sized business in first-second-third stage growth, or in some form of distress or duress.

FLV LLC-TomichPorter Inc builds business: lines of credit, alternative financing, turn-around strategies, angel investing, business plans, marketing and branding plans-and we act-we advocate-and manage many of the businesses that we take on as clients.

We have degrees in business and economics from Ivy League Universities  etc…but we have decided to create/ascribe to an alternative philosophy  underpinning our business that moves, to a degree away from what we have been taught in University, toward a broader, grander, more enlightened view of business. And its this (refined and revised from Buddhist Economics by E.F Schumacher):

“If the nature of (business) is properly appreciated and applied, it will nourish and enliven the higher man and urge him to produce the best he is capable of. It directs his free will along the proper course…into progressive channels. It furnishes an excellent background for man to display his personality.”

So you can imagine how gratified we were to find that whole foods is now in the business of financing.

If you are a local organic producer or distributor of organic produce with a good business plan and cash on hand to finance debt, you can submit your business for financing through their business development arm:

http://www.wholefoodskmarket.com/values/local-loans-apply.php

FLV LLC-TomichPorter Inc salutes businesses that, despite our ecomomic cycle, pump-prime business by providing alternative financing.

Whole Foods has done just that and we think its tremendous.

We would like your feedback: Success stories, problems, queires, thoughts, ideas, regarding how you are managing through this recession-and building prosperity and security for your families despite it. Email us at: mcporter@flvllc.com, or at btomich@flvllc.com, or, if you live in downtown south park los angeles (South Park L.A) pay us a visit at: 1100 south hope street, suite 103. Short of that, give us a call: 001 213 550 4460.

“Innovation is the specific instrument of entrepreneurship. The act that endows resources with a new capacity to create wealth.”

SouthPark L.A: Lets get to brass tacks-how to thrive as a business in South park (excerpt from www.southparkla.com)

Doing Business In South Park L.A: A road map to thrive and build (posted by Martin Cavanaugh Porter III, CEO Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC, TomichPorter Inc-Revanchist)

Our focus as a micro-vc, biz-dev firm in partnership with an internationally renowned ecommerce/web development firm (think Puma’s website and ecommerce solution, Hewlett Packard’s website and ecommerce solution, Sprint’s website and ecommerce solution, SBC website and ecommerce solution etc…think best-of-breed) is to bring a solid, hip mix of businesses to South Park L.A. and back them with strong financing and a powerful, blended mix of marketing tools, strategies and tactics.

We’ve said it before: in three (four?) years, South Park will be stabilized. In five to six years, The Manhattan of Los Angeles.

Our goal is to be pioneering amongst affluence. Though the lease rates are low, and many spaces are left vacant, and many developers are in deep trouble, the average income of residents and their education levels, are very high. The actual client mix is very good.

In order to for existing businesses to reach stabilization (reach the point at which their burn-rate=income) or new businesses that want to open in South Park, catering to its residents, they must engage in the following: A Targeted, niched, core focused, intense, and continued multi-tiered marketing campaign backed by the finances to do so.

What does that look like?

Concretely: Bricks and Mortar, Service, Retailers, Developers, Brokers, Realtors, Lawyers, Business Centers, Consultants, the list is endless: Businesses of all types must build into their budgeting and forecasting three years of meaningful capital outlays for marketing and action the following:

• Powerful best-of-breed website
• Highly monestizable, On Line eCommerce presence (online store-whatever it is you are selling-services or products-whatever it is)
• Supported by…..
• Targeted DMC: Direct Mail Campaigns (once monthly).
• Targeted Email Mkt Campaigns: (bi-monthly).
• Google AD Sense Campaigns (ongoing).
• Multiple Feeder Blogs: Tagging and meta-tagging your business onto Google with daily postings (daily-twice, three times daily).
• Social Networking: One coffee a day, three outreach events per week, walk the blocks, shake hands, be present= the potential tipping point that is word of mouth
• Find Three Local Stake-Holder Mentors-engage them, learn from them, give them as much as you ask for-give them value as you get advice and as they act as your calling card in the community (if you don’t give value on some level-emotional, actual, some kind of deliverable, your out of the game when it comes to mentors).

All of the above must be built on the following five foundations

1. Doable, monthly, year in, year out marketing budgets (supported by analytics and actual $ deliverables)
2. Low (really low) fixed costs:-drive tough bargains that still create win-wins
3. Multiple Stakeholders who want you to succeed.
4. Consistency in Marketing- systematized, creative, calendered.

Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC/TomichPorter Inc (Revanchist) is a massive South Park L.A booster.

I live here-work here-and see phenomenal benefits in businesses relocating to SouthPark or staying and in engaging in a formalized, process-driven turn-around strategy.

BOTTOM LINE:

UNLESS YOU DO ALL OF THE ABOVE WELL, YOUR CHANCES OF TURNING THE SHORT TERM NEGATIVES OF DOING BUSINESS IN SOUTH PARK LOS ANGELES INTO HUGE LONG TERM UPSIDES ARE SLIM TO NIL. ALL OF IT, EVERY COMPONENT MUST BE ACTIONED AND EXECUTED AT THE HIGHEST STRATEGIC AND TACTICAL LEVEL.

“Faced with crisis, the man of character falls back on himself. He imposes his own stamp of action, takes responsibility for it, makes it his own.” -Charles De Gaulle

This was our first post in our blog: www.southparkla.com- vigor, action, and intent-the way forward

Authored by: Martin Cavanaugh Porter II, CEO Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC & Tomich Porter Inc-Revanchist

Full Disclosure: Martin, Brett and the FLV-TomichPorter Inc-Revanchist team author and manage http://www.downtownlabiz.com and http://www.recessionkillerblog.com

I live and work in our SouthPark L.A neighborhood. I am the CEO of a  micro v.c and an ecommerce-branding business development firm and we’ve just headquartered our offices in SouthPark in the last three months at The Hope Business Center. Nick Van Parys, proprietor of The Hope Business Center, is an exemplar of customer service and willingness to do what it takes to help business-in this case, ours. We look forward to future, fruitful activities with him. He has our respect and sincere thanks.

I’ve been wondering  what http://www.southparkla.com’s first post subject should focus on and I’ve decided that this, our first post, should be a clear statement of intent: My team and I (all the members of Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC/Tomich Porter Inc are partners-we have no employees and so are fully committed and invested with passion and commitment to build the best organization we can for ourselves and for the community).

Declaration of Intent: Forbes-TomichPorter Inc will be a powerful, centralizing force in the South Park Los Angeles District-actively developing business in the neighborhood and bringing positive mix of  businesses and merchants to our community.

We’re putting our money (literally) where our mouth is:  Two of our clients will be relocating to South Park Los Angeles as a direct result of our efforts (business planning, financing, branding et al…). Both are absolutely positive additions:

A full scale health and wellness center (A Revitalization Center) complete with yoga, massage, acupuncture, and a multitude of other wellness programs.

A true green-organic ‘human-safe’ organic contemporary furniture store: How true? We will be working shoulder-to-shoulder with Micheal Van Parys, renowned Green LEED Consultant (and also a resident and stake holder in South Park)to insure that when the product goes live on the web, via an on line store and when the  bricks and mortar retail store opens both the furniture and the process of creating the furniture is human-safe and fundamentally green in nature. It’s about building confidence and being a  pioneer in South Park Los Angeles.

We’ve only just begun and we would like you to join us: Residents, Realtors, developers, merchants, landlords, Home Owner Associations, all the stake holders in South-Park,  join us, talk to us, email us, call us, let’s discuss projects, and with vigor and grace build a tremendous community.

As for us: Our focus is  South Park and developing business in South Park. Period. Look forward to hearing from you- to connecting, engaging, and growing together.

Final Note: Are the posts at our various blogs (downtownlabiz.com, recessionkillerblog.com, southparkla.com, and our corporate blog, revanchistgroup.com) wordy?  Yes. Why? We assume our audience is sophisticated, educated, and engaged. We’ve got lots to say-hope you stay in touch and read on, and, importantly respond.

Email: MCPorter@FLVLLC.COM/ MCPorter@RevanchistGroup.Com

Our Phone #: 001 213 550 4460

“Impossible is a word to be found only in the dictionary of fools.” – Napolean Bonaparte

downtownlabiz: SouthPark Los Angeles

The South Park Development Group: New Blog with a Core Focus: SouthPark Los Angeles-The Next Tribeca

Full Disclosure: Written by Martin Cavanaugh Porter III, CEO Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC, TomichPorter Inc-Revanchist (mcporter@FLVLLC.COM)

Our business is in South Park Los Angeles, which is kitty-corner to LA Live, Staples Center, and the upcoming Marriott Hotel and Ritz Carlton.

We believe in this area-we’ve invested our office and time and energy in South Park and were going to be a key-player in influencing investors and business to locate here-the kind we need, small-medium sized, hip, game-changer businesses.

To vitalize this goal we are creating a new blog: http://www.southparkla.com which is set to go live Monday, April 27th at 12pm.

Upfront: were boosters and will work with all the members of this community-businesses, artists, residents, merchants, investors, et al to shift the paradigm. Want to discuss this with us?

Please email me at: MCPorter@FLVLLC.Com, or drop us a line at 213-550-4460.

Better yet, just drop by: Our offices are in the heart of SouthPark-11oo south hope street, 103 (ground floor). Let’s chat. Let’s get in the arena and make change happen rather than bemoaning the current state of affairs. Join Forbes Legacy Ventures LLC–Tomich Porter Inc/Revanchist in building South Park Los Angeles.