Biography 

John Salzinger is a serial entrepreneur and is always looking for a problem to solve utilizing new technologies and new ways of ideating around them. He is a seasoned expert in fintech, efficiencies, sales, product, content, business development and technology.

As Founder and Chief Business Development Officer, John devotes himself to overall strategy, Product ideation, and innovation, maximizing the global distribution of B Corp MPOWERD’s innovative lighting solutions, marketing to various verticals and markets. Together with the principal inventor and one of MPOWERD’s original co-founders, Jason Snyder, he worked hand-in-hand to develop the Luci inflatable solar lantern after an earthquake in 2010 left thousands without power in Haiti. John continues to play a leading role in developing innovative new solar products to positively impact the lives of people everywhere. In only 7 years, he has sold millions of products and created a well-defined brand and formidable global CPG presence.

Having begun his professional career in fashion photography, John worked in the global print market before shifting into television as a News Editor for ABC World Television News. Adapting to changing technologies, John became a Multimedia Producer, writing, editing and producing his own voiceovers for Associated Press Digital. Moving beyond news and into finance, John was instrumental in opening the NYC office for Heartland Payment Systems (NYSE: HPY) and subsequently founded Platinum Processing, an ISO of EVO Merchant Services where he hired and managed a staff of Sales Representatives, Value Added Resellers and supported hundreds of clients Nationwide, processing millions of dollars annually. Just before co-founding MPOWERD, John was a consultant at Clever Rooster and a Director of Sales and Content at social, local, mobile, tech start-up, gopogo. John has founded his second merchant services ISO and is a partner at EPSG where he formed the Card processing "Impact Channel” that focuses on creating greater efficiencies for nonprofits, NGOs and for-purpose organizations based on purpose versus volume.

John is an avid surfer, basketball player, beach bum and yogi. He holds closely his beliefs in true equality between all people and balance in life.

Expertise

Everything John does has an impact component. He is a serial entrepreneur, financial and tech integration systems and efficiencies expert, client relationship/account management, top-performing sales, marketing, product development professional. Proven ability to drive business expansion through aggressive sales initiatives that deliver revenue growth, market share, vertical and channel penetration. Strategic thinker who can plan and implement savings, sales, marketing, product development, and business initiatives to support specific corporate and impact objectives. Particularly strong leadership, relationship management, team building, and general business acumen; verifiable track record of success driving unprecedented revenue and profitability gains within various highly competitive organizations, industries, and markets. Ambitious, aggressive, and intensely focused on bottom-line results.

Experience

For Purpose, Entrepreneur and Consultant specializing in Cleantech and CPG

Serial entrepreneur, triple bottom line, impact specialist and top-performing strategy, sales, marketing, product development and business development professional. Proven ability to drive business expansion through aggressive sales initiatives that deliver revenue growth, market share, and market penetration. Strategic thinker who can plan and implement sales, marketing, product development and business initiatives to support corporate objectives. Particularly strong relationship management, team building, and general business acumen; verifiable track record of success driving unprecedented revenue and profitability gains within highly competitive organizations, industries, and markets. Ambitious, aggressive, and intensely focused on bottom-line results.

Impact | Payments | Fintech | Merchant Services | Tech-stack Integration | Nonprofits | NGOs | Efficiencies | Leadership | Team Building | Sales Cycle Management | Business Development | Client Relations | Account Management | Consulting | Market Analysis | Needs Assessment | Presentations | Sales Forecasting | Strategic Planning | Social Media | eComm | Negotiations | International Business | Vendor Relations | Project Management | Content Management | Logistics | Solar Power | Patents | Retail | Startups | Renewable Energy | Sustainability | B Corps | Triple Botttom Line | Technology | Logistics | Ideation | IP Enforcement | Contracts | Trademarks | Copyrights | Branding | CRM | Marketing | Consumer Products | Product Development | Fundraising | BoD | Public Speaking

Founder, Chief Business Development Officer
MPOWERD Inc.

April 2012 – Present (4 years 3 months)

• Founded MPOWERD Inc.

• Developed and leads overall strategy, branding and marketing and product development

• Expanded family of products to 7 SKUs

• Expanded market to 1,400+ U.S. retailers, 250+ NGO's and 110+ countries

• Created and oversees multiple channels - eComm, U.S. B2B, Global distribution

• Developed multiple sales verticals - Outdoor, Gift, Home, Hardware, Food/Drug, Promotional, Emergency Preparedness, NGO, Government

• Develops critical strategic corporate and impact partnerships

• Was a Board Director, is a shareholder, investor and holds patents on multiple products the company produces

• Led MPOWERD to rapid growth of 2X sales YOY since inception

At MPOWERD, we work hard every day to make clean energy products that are affordable, easy to use and good for the earth. A Certified B Corp founded in the heart of NYC, we like to dream big. Our mission? To empower the lives of the 1.5 billion people living without electricity in low-income countries. That's why we created the inflatable solar Luci in 2012, a light as efficient and durable as it is sleek and versatile. Luci lets you bring a little light wherever you need it, whether you’re traveling off grid, hitting the trails or adding a modern touch to your home. When you shop MPOWERD, your purchase helps us makes a real difference. The more we sell, the more lights we can deliver to people who need them at a price they can actually afford. With over 200 NGO and non-profit relationships in over 90 countries, we’ve brought reliable solar light to some extraordinary places: from the towns of Nepal to the villages of Uganda to the mountains of Peru and beyond. Meet Luci: the little light that does big things. We're always looking to connect with companies who share our values, so go ahead, drop us a line! We'd love to work with you. Visit us at www.mpowerd.com

Relationship Architect
The Clever Rooster Company

2011 – 2012 (1 year)

• Procured New Business

• Pitched new opportunities for innovation and technology consulting services for various clients: NYC TLC, The Elie Wiesel Foundation, globalpost.com, Bill de Blasio Mayoral Campaign

• Developed and presented strategies to clients

The Clever Rooster Company was and innovation and technology consulting firm with access to clients across multiple business sectors including government, Not for Profit, Payments, Advertising. 

Director of Sales, Content North America
gopogo, LLC.

2010 – 2011 (1 year)

• Developed sales strategy and channels for both small businesses and national brands

• Farmed meetings with top 20 Advertising firms in NYC

• Recruited sales team

• Assisted in user acquisition

• Developed monetization strategy

• Developed and managed content generation team

gopogo was a geo-location platform created for recording, sharing and discovering connected experiences.

Relationship Manager
Heartland Payment Systems

July 2003 – December 2009 (6 years 6 months)

• Assisted in opening NYC office

• Garnered new SMB and larger corporate accounts for credit card merchant services

• Account management of existing portfolio

• Processed >$100mm in annual Visa, MasterCard, AMEX, Diners, Discover, JCB and Debit card volume

Heartland Payment Systems is a Global Payments company. Global Payments Inc. (NYSE: GPN) is a leading worldwide provider of payment technology services that delivers innovative solutions driven by customer needs globally. Our technologies, partnerships and employee expertise enable us to provide a broad range of products and services that allow our customers to accept all payment types across a variety of distribution channels in many markets around the world.

Multimedia Producer
Associated Press Digital

1999 – 2002 (3 years)

• Selected critical and newsworthy events for distribution

• Created copy, produced, digitized and edited video and performed voice-over scripts for final packages

• Distributed produced segments to digital clients, i.e. APWire, NewYorkTimes, AOL, Yahoo

• Selected and provided screen-grab content for AP photo

• Notable accomplishment - edited raw footage, wrote copy, performed voice over and released first 9/11 footage for AP Digital to all members

The Associated Press is the essential global news network, delivering accurate, insightful news from every corner of the world, 24 hours a day. Since its founding in 1846, AP has been the first to report many of history’s most important moments, and every day, AP journalists, photographers and videographers file news from the front lines of the world's biggest stories. AP’s reporting, photography, audio and video are published and broadcast by the world’s leading newspapers, TV channels, apps, radio stations, websites and magazines—in fact, over half the world’s population sees AP news content on any given day. As a leader in the field of journalism, AP fights for freedom of the press and the public’s right to know. Its reporters take great risks to file in-depth stories from countries where the press is otherwise restrained, and in the U.S., AP aggressively uses the Freedom of Information Act to advocate for transparency and accountability in government. With more experience reporting and delivering news than any other agency, a well-earned reputation for independence and accuracy, and a fierce commitment to the people’s right to know, AP is the definitive source for trusted news.

Master Controller, Video Editor
ABC WTN News

1996 – 1998 (2 years)

• Oversaw NYC bureau daily technical operations including studio and location shoots

• Scheduled, booked and monitored domestic and international fiber lines and satellite feed paths

• Edited raw video for ABC News - 200+ affiliates, ABC Entertainment, Merrill Lynch and Sports Television News

ABC Worldwide Television News (WTN) purchased United Press International Television News (UPI). Worldwide Television News was a global news agency that was 80 percent owned by ABC News. WTN had offices in 102 cities.

Education

International Center of Photography - Fine Art Photography

Ithaca College - Communications

Hofstra University - Sociology

School for Field Studies - Echolocation