S4 E8: Vincent Ficarra

Indie Congress sits down with Paul Tamburello to talk about professional values, philanthropy, Little Man Ice Cream, and his other ventures. Paul Tamburello’s name has become synonymous with creative design and transformative, value-driven development throughout Denver’s unique neighborhoods. A project with Paul’s stamp on it is sure to be a thoughtfully integrated, pedestrian-friendly space that enhances the community by catering to the needs of those living and working in the area. Paul developed and consulted on several well-known projects around the city and in particular the Highland neighborhood including Highland Lofts; Root Down and Linger restaurants, and LoHi Market Place (Olinger) and is now working on five adaptive re-use projects in the Sunnyside neighborhood. Paul also owns Little Man Ice Cream, a popular Highland ice cream shop in the shape of a milk can. His efforts dubbed him the name “Godfather” of Highland.   In Paul’s Real Estate endeavors, he carries over 20 years of expertise in the Denver area. His knowledge, along with his passion for service facilitated his 1994 “Rookie of the Year” award that was given during Paul’s first 12 months in Real Estate. In commercial sales, he earned the respect and trust for his knowledge and expertise from organizations like the Archdiocese of Denver, United Methodist Church, Urban Ventures, Colorado Vincentian Volunteers, Habitat for Humanity, and numerous others. Paul’s mission is simple; develop buildings that will endure for residents, visitors, and the community at large. The goal is always to assemble a talented and visionary team and then provide them the tools, resources and support to execute that vision. Paul’s formula for success is straightforward: communicate through every challenge, work to never overlook the details, and always make every effort to deliver on time.

In the season 5 premiere of Indie Colorcast we sit down with Ryan Diggins. Ryan is the co-founder and CEO of Midnight Auteur, a hotel development, branding and operations hospitality company specializing in design forward, cocktail anchored independent hotels. Here, he leads hotel concepting, development and operations. Created in 2022, Midnight Auteur leverages the experiences of two established groups – Gravitas, the developer and operator of the widely successful Ramble Hotel in Denver, and Gin & Luck, the globally recognized bar and restaurant group, most well-known for the Death & Co brand – to build and operate hotels that immerse guests fully and seamlessly between social spaces and retreat.

Marc Graser helps brands become storytellers. After spending nearly two decades covering all aspects of the entertainment and marketing industries in senior editing and writing roles at leading industry publications Variety and Advertising Age. Moving from Los Angeles to Washington, DC, Marc became the first Editorial Director for Marriott International, where he developed multi-channel content strategies for the company’s 30 hotel brands and Marriott Bonvoy loyalty and partnership teams. In the role, he launched Marriott Traveler, making it the hotel industry’s most popular online travel magazine, and a new revenue stream for the world’s largest hotel company. More recently, he assembled and managed the creative team that produces the print and digital magazines, social and influencer strategy, as well as Aston Martin partnership content, for Hilton’s luxury hotel brands Waldorf Astoria and Conrad. In addition to connecting brands with entertainment opportunities through his brand consultancy, Content Inspired, Marc launched Travel Inspired to curate great travel storytelling. The site became one of the fastest-growing new travel sites in 2019. His articles have also appeared in The Chicago Tribune, Boston Herald, Toronto Sun, Miami Herald, Arizona Republic, Albuquerque Journal and Fade In magazine. Passionate about film, TV, travel, design, hotels, cars and airlines, Marc doesn’t have children but he probably should. He has visited all 12 Disney theme parks around the world. Twice. Marc’s also attended 10 WrestleManias, 17 Comic-Cons in San Diego, and piloted the Fujifilm blimp. Marc is a graduate of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. He grew up in Germany as an Army Brat and now lives in D.C., with his husband, Dale, and dog, Whiskey.

Yasmine Mustafa is a social entrepreneur and the CEO of ROAR. Fueled by a passion to leverage technology for good, she leads the ROAR team in their mission to cultivate safer workplaces and empowered communities. Dedicated to fostering inclusive opportunities in business and education, Yasmine draws upon her own experiences as an immigrant and woman in tech to create a platform for conversation and igniting change. In addition to ROAR, Yasmine launched the Philadelphia chapter of Girl Develop It (a non-profit providing affordable opportunities for women to learn software development) and serves on the board of Coded by Kids (a non-profit providing free tech education to inner-city youth). Her role as a leader and advocate has been recognized by the BBC, CNBC’s Upstart 100, Philadelphia Magazine, Philadelphia Business Journal, Technical.ly Philly, and the City of Philadelphia, among others. She is a 2x TedX speaker with a roster of speaking credits that also include SXSW and CES. Prior to launching ROAR, Yasmine founded and sold her first company to a prominent content marketing firm in Silicon Valley. She graduated summa cum laude from Temple University with a Business Management Degree.

Dr. Kimberly McGlonn is an advocate for justice & environmentalism, advocacy that informs her approach to leadership in the fashion industry. As Founder & CEO of the manufacturing start-up & BCorp, Grant Blvd, she oversees the creative direction & growth strategy of the brand. Ultimately, Grant Blvd’s mission is to construct stylish, sustainably sourced fashion by reducing waste to landfills and by creating living wage jobs for women, particularly those who are formerly incarcerated. Outside of these roles, Kimberly disrupts by guiding other social entrepreneurs in discovering their purpose, via her digital community, “Build It Boldly” and her podcast, "School for Disrupters". Her 18 years of experience as a teacher of world literature (colonialism) & marginalization in the American story and her ongoing service as a Councilwoman in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, have all shaped her insights into social & environmental justice. Her work is rooted in leveraging her talents and insights in order to promote conscious consumption and to innovate sustainable strategies. Kimberly has spent her career working at the intersection of private sector, government, and non-profits, aligning them in order to achieve both sustainability and social impact aims. Of her diverse skills, Kimberly is a most experienced creative strategist, brand manager, and curator of radically inclusive teams. Her work has been funded by Beyonce & featured by Fast Company, Inc Magazine, WWD, and Shondaland

Sonya Haffey is the Principal of V Starr and has led the firm since 2009.  When she joined the company, Sonya used her extensive experience from previous roles, as founder of her own design firm, to transition V Starr from being exclusively residential to including a strong commercial basis. Sonya works with the team, on keeping V Starr running as a well-oiled machine. The team brings together their strengths to create impactful designs such as those at V Starr’s first hospitality project, the Intercontinental Hotel in Miami. Sonya has a signature whimsical outlook and passionate energy, an approach that shines through in the firm’s projects , including the Spa at PGA National Resort in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, the West Half Lounge overlooking Nationals Park in Washington, DC, a lounge at Chicago’s Midtown Athletic Club flagship, and the V Suite at the adjoining Hotel at Midtown in Chicago in addition to a growing hospitality portfolio with full hotel projects and a host of multi-family properties.   Recently, Sonya worked with her team to create V Starr’s first product collaboration with Wolf-Gordon, The Muse Collection. Sonya attended Florida State University and, after graduating, studied interior design abroad in places such as London, Paris, Milan and Glasgow. She was licensed two years after entering the design world proving her passion for the field and desire to become a serious professional. Sonya’s specialties are business development and relationships.   She has a natural talent for space planning that has been proven during her years of experience.

A renowned graffiti and fine artist, Vincent has parlayed his knowledge of street culture and traditional illustration techniques into the field of graphic arts, marketing and brand development. He is the Founder and Creative Director of Revolver New York, a full-service branding agency, and has worked with hospitality, residential and lifestyle brands such as Marriott International, Hilton Worldwide, Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, and more.

As FINE’s founder and Executive Creative Director, Ken servse as creative visionary, strategist, consultant, and confidant to our clients, developing and growing award-winning brands. FINE is a brand agency for the digital age. They plan, create, and evolve the core brand expressions that define and differentiate companies today. From positioning and strategy, through identity and sophisticated digital destinations, FINE develops experiences with the brand gravity to pull customers in and make them feel like sticking around.

Ms. Nunley is an experienced world traveler and has spent more than 20 years in the technology industry. She's held leadership positions in Strategy, Product Management, Revenue Management and Online Distribution with many of the leading global hotel software providers like Micros Systems (Oracle Hospitality) and Sabre Hospitality. At Salesforce she lends her industry expertise to help deliver the next generation of hospitality solutions and strategies to the global community and remains excited to step into the next decade of Hospitality Customer Engagement.

Kevin Osterhaus is an operator’s operator. After serving in operations leadership roles at Bunkhouse, Sixty Hotels, Standard, and Ennismore, he became President of Graduate Hotels in November 2021.  Graduate Hotels has experienced rapid growth over the past three years, expanding from 13 hotels to 32 properties, and recently launched Graduate Homes, its foray into managed short-term rentals.