A.J. Steigman
Steigman in 2012
Born
Allen Steigman

(1985-06-23) June 23, 1985
Orlando, Florida
Alma materEmory University (BBA)
Wharton School (MBA)
Occupation(s)Investment banker, entrepreneur
OrganizationSteignet
TitleFounder

Allen "A. J." Steigman (born June 23, 1985) is an American entrepreneur, chess player, and former investment banker. Steigman is currently CEO of Steignet.com.[1]

Biography

Steigman was born in Orlando, Florida, and grew up in Coral Springs, Florida. He attended University School of Nova Southeastern University for high school.[2] In high school, Steigman contracted lyme disease and took a year off from school. He credits chess with helping his mind recover from the disease.[2] Steigman went on to win in the 2002 US Junior Open one year after being diagnosed.[3]

Steigman attended Emory University's Goizueta Business School. He was awarded the Goodrich C. White academic scholarship and was involved in student government as well as the development of Emory's award-winning chess program.[4] He was known for playing simultaneous exhibitions involving as many as 40 individuals.[5] He also attained a Master of Business Administration degree from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and graduated with a triple major with honors.[1]

Steigman has been an advocate of chess. He was a donor to the World Chess Hall of Fame and Sidney Samole Museum in Miami, Florida.[6] He was also involved in a community service program where he played inmates in high security prisons.[7]

Chess career

A.J. Steigman learned chess at the age of 4, and played in his first tournament at age 5. He was coached by Bill Cornwall, a nationally known chess teacher and award-winning columnist.[8] Steigman has numerous chess accomplishments such as: being ranked #1 in the U.S. for his age group for 8 years in a row (1993–2001), being awarded the title of Chess Master at age 13,[9] being the first Floridian ever to make the All-America Chess Team of which he was a member for 8 years.[9][10] Steigman won the 2002 U.S. Junior Open Championship and turned down a full scholarship to The University of Texas to attend Emory University.[11]

Steigman was selected by the United States Chess Federation to represent the U.S. in international competitions. He represented the U.S. in the World Youth Championships in Sao Lourenco, Brazil (1995); Cannes, France (1997); and Oropesa del Mar, Spain (1999).[10][12][13][14] Steigman's highest international performance was tying for 12th in the world in Cannes, France. He and Irina Krush of New York were the highest-scoring members of the 11-person U.S. team.[15] Several years later, he traveled to the Pan-American Championships in Argentina (2001).[15]

Career

After college, Steigman worked as an investment banker for Merrill Lynch in New York City before deciding to become an entrepreneur.[16] He opened a sneaker store at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, FL and established one of the top Nike Tier 0 accounts in the U.S.[17] In 2010 he founded Soletron, a digital platform catering to streetwear consumers and sneakerheads, designed to facilitate a more direct interaction between consumers and independent brands. Steigman first came up with the concept for the company when he realized that accessory designers attempting to match out exclusive sneakers had difficulty in getting distribution in brick and mortar stores due to the retailers' limited square footage.[18][17] Investors in Soletron included New York Angels, Easton Capital, and super angel Jim Estill of Canrock Ventures.[19][20] Soletron ranked in the top 99.7% of all sites worldwide on internet traffic.[18] The company's Advisory Board consisted of: Bruce Chizen (Former CEO of Adobe Systems), Santonio Holmes, Tom Austin (Founder of AND1), John Friedman, and Bob Rice (Founder of Tangent Capital and Bloomberg Contributor).[19]

In July 2012, Steigman challenged Billionaire Peter Thiel to a $1mm chess match for an investment in Soletron. Steigman wanted to convey to fellow entrepreneurs to look for unconventional fundraising tactics in tough economic climates.[21][22] Steigman proposed that if he won, Thiel would invest in Soletron's Series A financing, while if he lost, then Thiel would win a stake in the company.[23] Both Thiel and Steigman are lifetime chess masters.[24][25] The proposed event by Steigman received international syndication.[26][27][28][29]

Soletron was acquired in July 2014 by the world's largest global streetwear retailer Karmaloop, for an undisclosed amount.[30][31][32][33][34]

In 2017, Steigman founded PropTech company Steignet.com while attending Wharton School of Business.[35] The company was accepted into the 2017 VIP-X accelerator program and attracted initial seed funding from investors including Alan Potamkin, Chris Mundy, and the family of Stanley Middleman.[36] In May 2022 The Wall Street Journal reported that in the state of Georgia, the Steignet technology platform had closed over $86MM in residential property transactions on behalf of clients in the previous year.[37] The Atlanta Realtor Association named Steigman the #1 top producing residential real estate broker in Atlanta for 2021.[38]

References

  1. 1 2 Steigman, A.J. (April 1, 2018). "This Wharton Entrepreneur's Startup will disrupt the U.S. real estate industry". The Wharton Journal. Archived from the original on April 4, 2018. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
  2. 1 2 Nolin, Robert (January 12, 2003). "All the Right Moves". Sun Sentinel. Archived from the original on September 15, 2016. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
  3. ↑ "The 2002 US Junior Open". dallaschess.com.
  4. ↑ "Freshmen elected to SGA, Council; 7 reps chosen from 19 candidates". Emory Bubble.
  5. ↑ "Chess team ranked 12th in hemisphere". Emory Wheel.
  6. ↑ "Past Brick Donors". World Chess Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 14, 2012.
  7. ↑ "True Chess Match: Prisoners vs. Students". NBC Sports. Archived from the original on June 15, 2012. Retrieved June 14, 2012.
  8. ↑ "5-Year-Old's Playtime Begins on Chessboard". Sun Sentinel.
  9. 1 2 "The Master". Emory Wheel.
  10. 1 2 "Young Master's Gambit". Sun Sentinel.
  11. ↑ "Three South Floridians Claim Tourney Wins". Sun Sentinel.
  12. ↑ "Chess Prodigy Awaits Big Move". Orlando Sentinel.
  13. ↑ "Nova Southeastern University NSU Academic Highlights - May 19, 2000" (PDF). Nova.edu.
  14. ↑ Peters, Jack (November 5, 1995). "Chess: International News". Los Angeles Times.
  15. 1 2 "South Floridians in Youth Championship". Sun Sentinel.
  16. ↑ Hindman, Nate C. (January 13, 2012). "Wall Street Bankers Quitting to Start their Own Business". HuffPost.
  17. 1 2 "Soletron Ceo on Sneakerhead Trading Platform". Bloomberg TV.
  18. 1 2 "How These Former Merril Lynch Bankers Got Some Big Investors For Their Startup". Business Insider. Archived from the original on February 10, 2012.
  19. 1 2 "Soletron targets $60 billion streetwear market". Reuters. December 23, 2011.
  20. ↑ "Canrock Ventures". Canrock Ventures.
  21. ↑ "South Florida entrepreneur challenges PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel to million-dollar game of chess". Miami Herald.
  22. ↑ "Tech entrepreneur challenges PayPal cofounder to $1 million chess match, considers permanent move to Philly". Technically Philly. Archived from the original on July 26, 2012. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
  23. ↑ "EXCLUSIVE: Entrepreneur Challenges Peter Thiel To Million Dollar Chess Game". Business Insider.
  24. ↑ "Entrepreneur challenges Peter Thiel to $1M chess game". ChessVibes. Archived from the original on July 22, 2012. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
  25. ↑ "Paypal Co-founder Peter Thiel's $1 Million Chess Challenge". Chess.com. July 19, 2012.
  26. ↑ "Un emprendedor apuesta un millón al ajedrez con el fundador de PayPal". ABC Spain. June 5, 2022.
  27. ↑ "Financer sa start-up en gagnant aux échecs contre Peter Thiel". Web & Tech. Archived from the original on July 31, 2012. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
  28. ↑ "Новости из Нью-Йорка. Принесут ли шахматы 1 млн. Soletron?". b2bzona. Archived from the original on July 31, 2012. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
  29. ↑ "Una apuesta de un millón entre emprendedores". El Club De Los Baneados. Archived from the original on July 30, 2012.
  30. ↑ "Karmaloop buys VC-backed Soletron". Reuters PE HUB. Archived from the original on August 14, 2014. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
  31. ↑ "E-retailer Karmaloop acquires blog and content publisher Soletron". Internet Retailer. Archived from the original on August 14, 2014.
  32. ↑ "Karmaloop, Inc., Acquires Soletron to Create Verge Culture Epicenter". PR Web.
  33. ↑ "Karmaloop buys Broward-based Soletron". Miami Herald.
  34. ↑ "Streetwear E-Retailer Karmaloop Acquires Content Publisher Soletron". BostInno.
  35. ↑ Durham, Taylor. "How a Chess Champion Excels at Entrepreneurship". Wharton Magazine. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
  36. ↑ "How a Chess Champion and Wharton Grad Excels at Entrepreneurship". The Wharton School. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  37. ↑ Journal, Will Parker | Photographs by Bryan Cereijo for The Wall Street (May 17, 2022). "Atlanta's No. 1 Broker Bought Homes for Big Investors From 600 Miles Away". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
  38. ↑ Towey, Hannah. "A 36-year-old chess prodigy built a software to speedily buy homes from afar for big investors, beating out everyday buyers. Now he's Atlanta's top broker". Business Insider. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
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