How Tastemade Became The Mobile Food Network

Tastemade brings food and travel information and entertainment to the mobile generation. The video network produces award winning programming about exciting people, places and food that can be viewed from any mobile device. The highly available programming is easy to connect with. Currently, Tastemade reaches 88 million people globally via smartphone, home computers or any other internet device.

Tastemade.com’s slogan is “connecting the world through video” and that is what the company does. For those interested in food networks, the site is ideal. Not only is there programming on ways to prepare a wide variety of foods, the network also provides entertaining travel shows where “Tastemakers” explore the world to provide users with a sense of new cultures, hidden gems and cuisine throughout the world.

A wide variety of programming is offered through Tastemade that attracts millions of “foodies” to explore different culinary options. The site includes videos demonstrating how to make a variety of foods. This includes seasonal food, pasta, beef, chicken, desserts, healthy options, vegetarian options and much more. The site features online culinary classes with topics including party hosting, gluten free foods, condiments, cocktail crafting, jam, pies, homemade pasta, Italian, Mexican and much more. The draw of Tastemade is not limited to the obvious videos demonstrating the preparation of various food, but it may be the entertaining programs where Tastemakers take viewers on global adventures exploring different types of cuisine, culture and exploring the culinary options in your own backyard.

Tastemakers

Tastemade calls its Tastemakers “influential trendsetters”. These chefs consist of trained professionals, home chefs, adventure seekers and world travelers. The Tastemakers provide great stories, cultural education, local flavors and hidden gems throughout the world. Current Tastemade video program Tastemakers include Frankie Celenza, Emmy Cho, Julie Nolke, Guy Turland, Marcus Meacham, Laura Miller, Lazarus Lynch, Katie Quinn and Erwin Heusaff.

Programming

A variety of exciting videos can be viewed on tastemade.com. Some of the most popular include The Perennial Plate, Day of Gluttony, The Tale of Kitto Katto, All the Pizza, One For the Road, Food Court, and All Nighter. Programming includes Grill Iron which is perfect viewing in preparation of your next football tailgating party. Vega Brothers explore vegetarian cuisine. Raw.Vegan.Not Gross gives an provides an interesting take on the popularity of the raw food movement. Hilah’s Texas Kitchen and Coastal are entertaining shows about United States regional cuisine. Day Tripping – Sydney and A Brit & A Broad are just two of Tastemade’s video shows that explore international food and culture.

Founding

Tastemade, Inc. was founded in June 2012 by three men with great experience in online programming who understood the need to reach the mobile generation. Let’s face it, our lives are always on the go. We need easy mobile access to the media. For those interested in food and travel, Tastemade provides the perfect venue not only to learn but also for entertaining programs that give us the information we crave.

The global company is headquartered in Santa Monica, California. The founders of Tastemade, Inc. include Larry Fitzgibbion, Joe Perez and Steven Kydd. Each brings his experience with online entertainment and education to the company.

Larry Fitzgibbon

As the company’s Media Technology Executive and Advisor, Fitzgibbon continues to help expand the company. Fitzgibbon received his BA in Communications from St. Louis University. His successful career includes the position of Vice President at Intertainer. His work in this video-on-demand internet company helped him gain experience building internet media companies.

Fitzgibbon worked for Demand Media in studio and web property operations, business development, and monetization. He was key to the company’s successful public launch in 2010. Under his guidance, Demand Media grew from a $5 million company to a $150 million company with over 140 million visitors. Fitzgibbon helped Demand Media launch award winning social and mobile media including eHow, Type F, Cracked.com, and LIVESTRONG.com.

Joe Perez

Joe Perez is Tastemade, Inc’s Engineering Advisor and Internet Product Executive. Perez graduated with a degree in Business and Marketing from the University of San Diego and brings 17 years of experience to the company. Perez worked as an executive in Silicone Valley for a variety of gaming and tech start up companies including TENI, Pogo.com, Excite@Home, and Pulse Entertainment.

Perez went on to the position of Senior Vice President of Network and Operations at InterMix Media whose parent company is MySpace. Perez then co-founded The Daily Plate, a diet and fitness app that was acquired by Demand Media for its LIVESTRONG.com site. My Plate’s calorie tracker app grew fast and became one of the most popular apps launched by iTunes in 2007. Aside from Joe Perez’s work with Tastemade, he serves on the advisory board of the USC Center for Body Computing Digital Health.

Steven Kydd

Steven Kidd is an Executive and Advisor for Tastemade, Inc. His 20 years of media and technology and his experience as working in international business have helped to make Tastemade, Inc. the best mobile food network available with global success. Kydd graduated with a Business Administration Degree from the University of Maine and studied at Ecole Superieure des Affaires in Grenoble, France. He began his career as a project manager for Macro International, a boutique market research and consultant company. It was with through company that he worked in Poland and Russia. Kydd went on to work in the position of Vice President for several internet businesses. These included 20th Century Fox International where Kydd was VP of International Marketing, eTour, Inc. in Atlanta, and Yahoo! where Kydd was VP of Business Development and Strategy. Prior to co-founding Tastemade, Inc., Kydd was in the position of Executive Vice President of Demand Studios. Demand Media became a leading producer of original internet content under Kydd’s direction.

Growth

Since its founding just 4 years ago, Tastemade, Inc. has grown successfully into a global company. Within 2 years of its founding, the company received $25 million in Series C funding led by Scripps Network Interactive and Liberty Media Company bringing it a total of $40 millions in funds. The following year, Tastemade, Inc. received Series D funding led by Goldman Sachs with other vendors to reach $80 million in funding.

Tastemade, Inc. has successfully employed video programming that is unique, entertaining and educational. In a world that ties us to easy, accessible, mobile media, Tastemade has created the perfect entertainment niche for food and travel lovers. Its wide variety of interesting cultural and food experiences is easily appealing to the viewer. The fact that the company has been able to create and expand its programming and that it is easily accessible to the mobile generation speaks volumes of Tastemade’s vision. Clearly, Tastemade has become The Mobile Food Network.