Jess Loren

Jess Loren (born Jessica Loren Popov, February 15, 1985) is an American Entrepreneur, Speaker and Author. She is also the founder of ChiTownDeals, which was acquired by Tippr.com in May 2009.

Early life and career

Loren was born in Chicago, Illinois, and graduated from Schaumburg High School in Schaumburg Illinois, class of 2003. Attending high school, Loren became her local chapters Junior Achievement President to which she attributes her early education as an entrepreneur. She also frequently collaborates with former classmate and writer, Justin DiSandro.

While attending Indiana University Bloomington, and further on to Loyola University Chicago, with studies in Advertising and Public Relations, she began working on her first startup, ChiTown Deals, which was later acquired by Tippr.com in May 2009.

Currently, she operates Kambio Group, a digital marketing technology and events company that assists businesses with Ed Swiderski, while also speaking at digital media and technology conferences throughout the country. In 2012, Loren co-wrote “Pinterest for Business: How to Pin Your Company to the Top of the Hottest Social Media Network” with Ed Swiderski.

Pinterest for Business

In 2012, Loren teamed with Swiderski to write a book about Pinterest and its business applications for Pearson Publishing. The book received minor accolades, and spent some time on Best of Business Books list.

ChiTown Deals

ChiTown Deals was a direct competitor in the deal-of-the-day group coupon marketplace pioneered by Groupon. The site featured discounted gift certificates usable at local Chicago companies. Before being purchased by Martin Tobias of Tippr, ChiTown Deals differentiated themselves by offering a 1-2 minute video accompanied with each deal to showcase the business’ ambiance and visual details.

Nonprofit

In the summer of 2012 Loren joined a selection committee for Project Impact, a competition that provides $100,000, management support, and networking opportunities to early stage nonprofits that are using an innovative model to improve the lives of low-income Chicagoans. Project Impact is run by A Better Chicago which is a venture philanthropy fund for the Chicago metropolitan area.