WASHINGTON, DC – November 26, 2008 – Gratis Internet, a leading global advertising and marketing solutions provider, announced today that its CEO Rob Jewell was recently recognized as one of the top entrepreneurs in the US under 35. As part of this distinction, Jewell recently attended the second annual Summit Series in Riviera Maya, Mexico.
Hosted by Valhalla Partners (www.valhallapartners.com) and Bisnow on Business (www.bisnow.com), the Summit Series is a three day conference/meet-up committed to growing "a community of change-minded Americans." This year's event brought together 65 of the country's most talented young entrepreneurs, philanthropists, authors and leaders. Attendees gathered to foster business relationships, exchange ideas and close deals.
Jewell, a well-known leader in the incentive marketing and social applications industry, joined leaders from Facebook and some of the top applications. Among them was Dave Morin from Facebook, Kamo Asatryan, co-founder of LOLApps, as well as Joe Green, co-founder of Project Agape. "Monetizing social applications is a hot topic, and even though we talk to these guys every week, it really takes a conference like this to allow us to step back and think about how to advance our businesses and the industry as a whole," shared Jewell, whose company runs SocialCash.com, a leading monetization engine on Facebook.
In addition to the opportunity to exchange ideas and address industry questions, guests engaged in a service project with Blake Mycoskie, founder of TOMS Shoes. The attendees participated in a "shoe drop" that provided shoes to 500 children in need near Playa Del Ray. Event host Elliott Bisnow shared that:
"The Summit team couldn't be more proud of its membership, which raised enough money to drill 4 new wells in Ethiopia and not only delivered 500 shoes to children in need, but committed to providing shoes to the Mexican community we visited each year going forward, so that our shoe drop may be sustainable."
A founder of Gratis Internet, Jewell is credited with being one of the early pioneers of the incentive marketing industry. Under Mr. Jewell’s leadership, Gratis Internet achieved a #95 ranking in 2004 and #18 ranking in 2005 on the INC. 500 listing of the fastest growing private companies in the U.S. Mr. Jewell was a finalist for the 2005 Greater Washington Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Mr. Jewell holds a B.A. from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.