Model Hanne Gaby and Esteban Cortazar for the Exito lookbook
Photographed by Jaime Rubiano, courtesy of Interview Magazine

By Kimberly Reyes (@CommDuCoeur)

What were you doing when you were 13?

While some of us were learning how to skateboard, getting braces, or hanging up posters of our favorite boy band, Esteban Cortazar was on a mission that took him to New York Fashion Week and put him right in front of American designer Todd Oldham and Bloomingdale’s (now deceased) Director of Fashion Kal Ruttenstein.  What unfolded in the years that followed was the promising career of one of the industry’s youngest and most talented creatives. Read More--> and most talented creatives.

By Kimberly Reyes (@CommDuCoeur)

Back before Bogota became known as “The Athens of South America,” it was…well, The Athens of South America.

Bogota was a rich cultural and commercial center long before the Spanish conquistador Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada even arrived.  The Muisca Confederation, one of the biggest and best organized confederations of tribes in South America, inhabited what was then known as Bacatá, meaning “planted fields.” Read More-->;

By Kimberly Reyes (@CommDuCoeur)

When Presidential nominee Juan Manuel Santos swept the election last Sunday, June 20^th, the landslide victory meant more to the Colombian people than just a new President: it marked the largest voter turnout in Colombian history, and demonstrated the overwhelming power of social media to unite people towards achieving a common goal. Read More-->.

By Kimberly Reyes (@CommDuCoeur)

Northern California’s Silicon Valley is the beating heart of our industry.  Ever since Stanford University planted its high-tech seeds in the San Francisco Bay area at the beginning of the last century, we saw a fast and furious growth in technological innovation that forever changed the way we live.

And while innovation has since spread its roots to other parts of the country and even the world, the spirit of Silicon Valley carries on, with the passion and ambition that only comes from dedicated computer nerds and friends with deep pockets.  Here are our top five Silicon Valley ones to watch. Read More-->.

By Sven Larsen (@zemoga)

Does your boss think social media is equivalent to time wasting? That used to be the attitude of a lot of big companies. Corporations would block popular sites like MySpace and Facebook, assuming that their employees were using these cutting edge connectivity tools to play Mafia Wars or share photos with their friends.

But in the last year or so, we’ve seen a change in that kind of thinking. Maybe it’s the seemingly unstoppable wave of Facebook expansion. Or maybe it’s the fact that many of these naysayers are now using social media themselves. But the view of social media in the executive audience has been transformed from “distracting nuisance” to “productivity tool”. Read More-->.

By the Zemoga Team (@Zemoga)

As technologists and innovators, we’re all about the future. And when we see a threat to that future, we’re compelled to take action. That’s why we’ve teamed up with the folks at the TED Prize FOUNDATION to help out JAMIE OLIVER’S FOOD REVOLUTION. For those Read More-->.

This post kicks off Zemoga’s week-long guide to helping industry giants go digital.  We’ll be looking at case studies of who’s done it right, as well as provide guidance for those who are struggling with the transition.

By Kimberly Reyes (@CommDuCoeur)

The Ashley playlist.  The Stephanie playlist.  The Katie playlist.  The Jason playlist.  If you’ve ever seen my iPod, you’ll find these and a whole host of characters, each marking a significant event or memory, each as vivid and accurate as any video or picture of their namesake.

For me, a playlist isn’t just a list of songs I like.  They’re mixtapes I’ve made for friends, songs that blared from at epic college parties, tools to help me focus and concentrate, setlists from memorable concerts.  I have about eighty of them, dating back as far as middle school. I would labor over them for hours, sometimes days.  I needed to create the right mood, the transitions needed to be perfect, the songs needed to be timeless and brimming with meaning. Read More-->.

Above: Bowers-Wilkins’ Zeppelin Speakers

This post continues Gadget Week, our tribute to innovative technology, with a closer look at the relationship between design and function.

By Kimberly Reyes (@CommDuCoeur)

Here at Zemoga, we appreciate great design.  We’re inspired by everything around us–the colors, shapes, and textures that invigorate our senses.  Great design has a power that goes beyond just looks; it elicits a deep, visceral emotion that motivates us to imagine and to create. Read More-->.

This post is part of a week-long series on gadgets: the technological developments that are innovative in function and design, and continue to make us consider the possibilities.

By Kimberly Reyes (@CommDuCoeur)

It’s 1984.  You’re in footed pajamas.  A strange noise comes from your parents’ bedroom closet.  On the coffee table lie a shoebox, a paper towel tube, some Read More-->.

This post is part of a week-long series on how different industries can leverage social media to connect with their customers.

By Briana Campbell (@MsMatchGirl)

America is a car country and we Americans feel a strong connection between our cars and the identity that they give us. A car is not just a way to get from one place to another, it’s a status symbol. Our cars tell the world who we are. We’re not just keeping up with the Joneses, we’re outdoing them, letting our individuality shine through how our cars represent us. Read More-->.