Ed founded Shopatron in 2000, after more than 15 years of experience in retail and manufacturing.Ed has a proven and varied background in both retail operations and in managing growing companies. Ed’s business experience began at age 14, working at his family’s retail furniture store in Akron, Ohio. Ed received his bachelor’s degree in Russian Literature from Stanford University and began his career working in St. Petersburg, Russia in the marketing department of Pirometer JSC, a producer of aviation components. Efforts in Russia led to Ed founding NORVEL, Ltd., a US-based importer of components for the toy and hobby industries. Ed developed the brand name, market-entry strategy and distribution network worldwide for NORVEL.During his time at NORVEL, Ed saw a fundamental disconnect in the e-commerce marketplace, as he found his efforts to sell online put him into a competitive position with his retail partners. Ed leveraged his experience at NORVEL to found FirePoppy in 2000, and developed the model for the flagship product, Shopatron. In 2006 Firepoppy was re-branded as Shopatron. Ed has served as Chairman and CEO since the company’s inception.