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Michael Bruno (entrepreneur)

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Michael Bruno is an American entrepreneur and the founder of 1stdibs.[1] He is also the founder of the home design app Housepad,[2] Tuxedo Hudson Company[3] and Tuxedo Hudson Realty,[4] and Art-Design-Carta.[5]

Early life and education

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Michael Bruno was the fourth of six children. He was born and raised in Larchmont, New York.[6] He is a former competitive swimmer and Junior Olympics winner.[1]

Bruno studied business at San Diego State University and later moved to San Francisco, California, where he worked as a real estate broker.[7]

Career

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During the dot-com boom of the 1990s, Bruno worked as a real estate agent for Sotheby's real-estate division in San Francisco.[8][9] Bruno says he was inspired to get his real estate license at age 19 after reading Napoleon Hill's 1937 self-improvement book Think and Grow Rich.[10]

In 2001, after moving to Paris, France, Bruno created 1stdibs.com, an online luxury marketplace for antiques, jewellery, and fine art.[11] He said the idea for the company came to him while visiting the Clignancourt flea market in Paris.[12]

In 2011, Bruno accepted a $60 million investment from venture capital firm, Benchmark, and stepped down from his role as CEO of 1stdibs but stayed on as chief creative officer.[13]

In 2012, Bruno bought a 12,000-square-foot mansion in Tuxedo Park, New York. The mansion was designed in the early 1900s by John Russell Pope. Bruno also owns a historic park adjacent to the Tuxedo Park property. The 55-acre park was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, the landscape architect who designed Central Park in New York City.[14] The Tuxedo Park home was featured in a July 2015 photo tour in design magazine Elle Décor.[10]

In 2015, Bruno launched an interior design app called HousePad, a digital household management tool that allows homeowners to communicate with family, guests, interior designers, and staff.[15]

In 2016, Bruno launched Design Carta, a private marketplace for art and design professionals.[16] He also founded Tuxedo Hudson Realty, a commercial and residential real estate company,[4] and Blue Barn, an organic farmstand, that same year.[17][18]

Awards

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In May 2012, New York-based charity organization Lighthouse International honored Bruno and fashion designer Carolina Herrera for being "fashion visionaries."[19] Bruno was also a recipient of the 2012 "Innovators" award from the Sir John Sloane Museum Foundation.[20]

In October 2014, Bruno was the recipient of design and decorating magazine Traditional Home's first Trailblazer Award.[7]

Personal life

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Bruno is a collector of historic properties and has been purchasing and restoring historic homes and properties since the 1990s.[21] He says his passion for historic preservation began with the purchase of a 1920s-era villa designed by William Templeton Johnson.[2] Bruno owns several additional historic properties in and around Tuxedo Park, including Loomis Laboratory, a stone castle built in 1901.[4] The Loomis Laboratory building serves as headquarters for Bruno's Housepad app.[4] Bruno and his partner Alexander Jakowec purchased a 14,000 square-foot mansion on Coopers Neck Lane in Southampton, New York in 2015.[22] The mansion was built in the early 20th century by American architect and urban planner Grosvenor Atterbury.[22]

Bruno lives with his partner Alexander Jakowec, a former antiques dealer.[11]

References

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  1. ^ a b Hay, R. Couri. “1stdibs Founder Michael Bruno Focuses on Stewardship.” Hamptons Magazine. [dead link]
  2. ^ a b King, Barbara. “First Buy What You Love.” Robb Report. n.d.
  3. ^ "Incan Ruins Inspired this Modern Furniture Collection". Galerie. 2016-10-27. Retrieved 2018-12-29.
  4. ^ a b c d Mitchell, Heidi “This fat cat is creating his own Hudson Valley kingdom” New York Post. January 28, 2016.
  5. ^ Waddoups, Ryan (2017-01-09). "Michael Bruno Launches Trade-Exclusive Marketplace Art-Design-Carta". Interior Design. Retrieved 2018-12-29.
  6. ^ Tilton, Sarah (21 April 2013). "1stdibs Founder Takes a Collector's Approach to Property - WSJ". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 7 May 2016. Retrieved 2018-12-29.
  7. ^ a b Christian, Rebecca and Loos, Ted “Traditional Home 25th Anniversary Award Recipients” Traditional Homes [dead link]
  8. ^ Tang, Dennis. (December 15, 2010) "10 essentials: Michael Bruno." GQ.
  9. ^ Murphy, K. (2007, Month 1)
  10. ^ a b Barbour, Celia. (July 16, 2015) "House Tour: An Internet Mogul's Georgian-Style Manse Is a Dream Come True" HOUSE TOUR: AN INTERNET MOGUL'S GEORGIAN-STYLE MANSE IS A DREAM COME TRUE” Elle Décor.
  11. ^ a b Rosman K. (2014, February 13) "The Treasures of 1stdibs's Michael Bruno." The Wall Street Journal.
  12. ^ Cooperman, Jackie. (November 20, 2010). “The Art of the Deal”. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved August 21, 2023.
  13. ^ Arnst, Catherine “1stdibs Raises $42 Million in Series B Round” Xconomy [dead link]
  14. ^ “First Digs: Michael Bruno's Tuxedo Park Mansion” The Wall Street Journal.
  15. ^ "Michael Bruno Launches Housepad App". Architecture Digest. May 31, 2015. Retrieved May 31, 2015.
  16. ^ Olson, Katy B. (October 19, 2016). "After a hiatus, Michael Bruno returns to the antiques world". Business of Home. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  17. ^ "Sloatsburg Farmstand Offers Taste Of What's To Come". Retrieved 2016-09-09.
  18. ^ Gould, Jennifer (2016-08-22). "Mogul sees organic farm as first step to reviving lost towns". New York Post. Retrieved 2016-09-09.
  19. ^ WWD Staff “Out of Sight” WWD
  20. ^ Woo, Ken. (July 4, 2012) “Michael Bruno, founder of 1stdibs.com”. Another Mag. Retrieved August 21, 2023.
  21. ^ Tilton, Sarah. (April 21, 2013). “A Collector's Approach to Property.” The Wall Street Journal.
  22. ^ a b Watson, Dawn. (August 5, 2015). “A Trip Down Memory Lanes”. Cottages and Gardens. Retrieved August 21, 2023.
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