Episode 47: Harold Hughes | Bandwagon CEO & Founder
Episode 47: Harold Hughes | Bandwagon CEO & Founder
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Rich Take On Sports
Show Notes:
- Rich Spotlight: Harold Hughes
- Parents are Jamaican immigrants and he was born in NYC and moved to Columbia, SC before entering kindergarten
- He feels blessed to have been able to play sports which allowed him to connect with other kids
- Spent a year in Jamaica before entering school in Columbia, SC and struggled with the transition back into America because of his accent and how he felt kids viewed him as dumb because they couldn’t understand him
- Education became very important to him and he thought his path would eventually lead to being a lawyer after attending Clemson University
- His career aspirations changed after working as a courier for a law firm and then receiving an offer to work at ScanSource in Greenville, SC
- After receiving his MBA from Clemson while working it was then that he started to realize that he wanted to find something to marry his two passions of connecting with people and sports
- He eventually started Bandwagon, a fan-t0-fan ticket marketplace, after being fired from a job unexpectedly and took the leap into entrepreneurship
- Continuing his education and knowledge as he’s currently pursuing a graduate certificate in Entrepreneurship & Innovation from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business
- Was motivated by people saying that you can’t do something but even more so to prove people right because they believed in him
- Bandwagon is now being transformed into more than a sports tech company offering a fan-to-fan ticket marketplace but now into a stadium identity data management company using block-chain technology
- Lessons learned from sports involves the understanding to always be ready when your name is called and the importance of being a contributor to the entire whole (team)
- Words of Wisdom from Harold Hughes: “We all need to focus on collaboration and being transparent so you can get people to the table to hear your ideas and being comfortable to go in a different path and taking a risk.”
Social Media:
To Follow Rich Take On Sports on Twitter: @richtakesports
To Follow Harold Hughes on Twitter: @OneBandwagonFan
To Follow Bandwagon on Twitter: @BandwagonTix
To Follow Harold Hughes on Instagram: @haroldph
To Follow Bandwagon on Instagram: @bandwagonfanclub
To Find More Information about Bandwagon: bandwagonfanclub
Featured Image Photo Credit: Harold Hughes
About the author, Richmond Weaver
Richmond, a graduate of Clemson University has been involved with sports for most of his life and developed a passion for basketball and sports at an early age. He currently lives in Greenville, SC with his wife Karen, founder of Upstate Esthetics and their three kids.