Columbus is set to take center stage as the host of the 2025 Forbes Under 30 Summit — one of the world’s premier gatherings of young innovators and changemakers. In this episode, Boxer and Sarah sit down with Brett Cohen, Executive Director of Production and Partner Experience at Forbes, to talk about what this year's event will be like, what the Summit means for the city, and how Forbes is bringing its global platform to life right here in Central, Ohio. From immersive experiences and headline speakers to long-term community impact, Brett shares what to expect when the nation’s brightest young leaders gather in Columbus this fall.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Yes Columbus, an Experienced Columbus podcast keeps you in the
know of what's happening in the Art City Columbus, home
of the three time MLS Cup champions, the number five
Beer city, a top ten culinary destination with the largest
concentration of fashion professionals.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
In the US.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Join iHeartMedia's Boxer, Sarah Towns, Experience Columbus's chief marketing and
innovation officer, and their guests for an inside look at
a destination that invites visitors and locals alike to explore.
By the end of each podcast, you'll be asking yourself,
can all this really exist in one city? Yes Columbus.
(00:40):
Welcome back to Yes Columbus and Experienced Columbus Podcasts.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
I'm with one of the.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
Co hosts, Boxer, along with Sarah Towns. Sarah, good to
see you again, and I'm really excited about our guests
this week.
Speaker 3 (00:52):
Good to see you too, Boxer. I am excited too.
But as you know, each episode we shine a spotlight
on a people in moment shaping the future of our city,
and today's guest is bringing one of the biggest events
in the country right here to Columbus.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
That's right, you know.
Speaker 1 (01:07):
Before we dive into today's conversation, let's start with our
headliner segment, where we highlight a recent accolade or exciting
moment for Columbus. Big news if you haven't heard, Columbus
was just named one of the top meeting destinations in
North America by Sea Event. I didn't even know they
track something like that.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
They absolutely do. It's a really important accolady.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
Wow, so yeah, so's it's a leading meetings and events
technology provider. This recognition obviously puts Us even more on
the map as a premier city for hosting events of
all kinds, from major conventions to sporting events.
Speaker 3 (01:44):
And speaking of major events, the Forbes Under thirty Summit,
one of the most anticipated gatherings for rising entrepreneurs, innovators,
and change makers, is coming to Columbus this September. This
multi day event brings together thousand of bold thinkers from
around the world, and Columbus will be the center of
it all. It's a major moment for our city and
(02:07):
speaks volumes about how Columbus is being seen on the
national stage as a vibrant hub for creativity, innovation, and opportunity.
And today we're joined by someone who has been instrumental
in bringing this event to life.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
That's right, let's jump right into it our behind the
Buzz segment. Let's welcome Brett Cohen, Executive director of Production
and Partner Experience at Forbes. Brett, Welcome to Yes Columbus.
Welcome to Columbus.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
Thank you, thank you both for having me. So happy
to be here.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
Thank you so much for being here. We are so excited.
So for our listeners who may not be familiar with
Forbes Under thirty with the summit, give us the big picture,
what is it and what makes it such a one
of a kind experience?
Speaker 2 (02:50):
The Forbes Under Thirty Summit is truly a one of
a kind experience. As you may know, the Forbes thirty
Under thirty list comes out every year, so we have
thirty lists across twenty categories, so plus co founders, so
you have about six hundred people or so that are
making this list every year. These are people who we
Forbes have identified as the game changers, the people who
(03:12):
are on the precipice of greatness, young leaders who are
really just rocking it right now. We identify those people
every year. We of course have a huge track record
for identifying some of the next big CEOs, the next
big tech leaders, the next big innovators. So each year
we release the list in December, and each fall culminates
with this massive four day experience where we have incredible programming,
(03:37):
a list speakers, We bring a lot of our listers
back to join us on stage for conversations to talk
about what they're doing, world class networking, and just amazing events,
parties and activations all throughout the city so that no
reason to not be there. Exactly. Sounds like a party
to me, you know.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
So, Brett, you know you've had this summit in Cleveland
and Cincinnati, and look, I'm biased. I mean I pretty
much know why you're here, and you're doing this in Columbus.
But why did Forbes decide, well, we need to hit
Columbus next.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Well, we always like to bring the event to places
where there's a lot of activity, where there's things happening,
And I think it's safe to say that Ohio really
fits that bill. Unexpected in a lot of ways. There
are so many businesses opening up here, there's companies opening
up new manufacturing headquarters, there's a lot of tech and
innovation happening here. It really is the crown jewel of
(04:32):
the Midwest right now. And we are a media entity,
we're not looking to do the obvious. We want to
shine the spotlight where it's needed. So if there's action
happening in Ohio, there's action happening in Columbus. US bringing
the event really turns the spotlight there. So that's why
we're here, that's why we're doing what we're doing, and
we're bringing the absolute best of Columbus to our event
(04:53):
this fall.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
Oh my gosh, and we're going to quote you crown
jewel of the Midwest.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (04:59):
Here, we're so excited for all the energy this event
will bring to the city. Can you share a sneak
peek of what's coming to Columbus in September, anything about speakers, activations,
or other surprises.
Speaker 2 (05:10):
Yeah, we do try to mix the event up every year,
and of course we release who our speakers are in
the month's leading up. I'm excited to announce that we've
just secured Vivek Ramaswami is going.
Speaker 1 (05:21):
To be oh gos running for governor, running for governor
of Ohio, So of course he's a big part of
the conversation here right now.
Speaker 2 (05:31):
So We're going to have him on stage four. What
I think will be a great conversation. Alison Ellsworth, the
founder of Poppy Soda who's also a former thirty Under
thirty listers, she'll be joining us on stage for a conversation.
She just sold Poppy to Pepsi for just under two
billion dollars.
Speaker 3 (05:49):
I saw that unbelievable and we are huge Poppy fans in.
Speaker 2 (05:54):
My guess, Probiotics Soda it's great, it's great. So that
is that, of course, is doing really well. We have
Sonny Lee, the Olympic gold medalist, the three time Olympic
gold medalist, is going to be joining us, and really
so much more. We've only announced just a small fraction
of our programming, but as far as some of the
experiences go, we're going to be at Betel Grand this
(06:15):
year is our main venue. Beautiful. We're going to be
hosting our city crawl, including a pickleball exhibition.
Speaker 1 (06:20):
Oh wow, So where do you even begin when you
start to think about Columbus, the music, the food, you know,
the innovation, where does it begin? How do you begin?
Where do you start?
Speaker 2 (06:33):
Well, it's a unique challenge every year. You know, this
is a summit where we've previously done three year stints
in one city, and what we've done in Ohio is
really three different cities. We did Cleveland in twenty twenty three,
Cincinnati last year, and this year twenty twenty five are
rounding it out in Columbus. So it requires a lot
of research, which honestly, we have a lot of fun doing.
(06:54):
We come out to Columbus a bunch. We meet with
amazing partners like Experience Columbus and Jobs Ohio who really
help us to find the best that the city has
to offer. Find what's cool, what's new, what we want
to highlight through our experiences, where we should do events,
where we should highlight I mean, that's really the way
to do it. It all comes down to trust and collaboration.
(07:16):
So we rely a lot on our local partners, and
you know, we do our own research along the way,
and it always culminates in you know, our experience through
the lens of the city delivered to our audience. So
a little different every year, but we look into all
of these things, every detail, and you get.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
Paid for it.
Speaker 3 (07:35):
You have the best job.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Oh my gosh, that certainly is one of my favorite parts.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
Well, so Brett. Speaking of that, you've helped lead some
of the most well known Forbes events globally, from thirty
to fifty in Abu Dhabi to the Future of Work summits.
How has your approach to producing meaningful, high impact events
evolved over time?
Speaker 2 (07:56):
That's a great question. I think you just have to
always be in touch with what people are wanting out
of events, and that changes a lot over time. I
think that really hit us in the face with COVID
when we really had to adapt to a virtual environment.
Where can we still reach people? How can we still
do what we do in that environment? And I think
a lot of the learnings from that period of time
(08:17):
really carried over into our return to live events. We're
now live streaming with broadcast quality productions for all of
our shows. We have a lot of interactive and AI
powered networking features for our events so that people can
really get the most out of their time. If you're
going to invest four days coming to the Under thirty Summit,
we are going to use technology as well as creative
(08:38):
thinking to make that time as worthwhile as possible. We
want you to have fun, we want you to meet people,
We want you to learn and grow so keeping in
mind evolving attention spans who people are paying attention to.
Sometimes we'll have a new musical guests for our music
festival that I've never heard their name, but they're really
big en up and coming. You come to the under
(08:59):
thirty Summit to find those people to say you knew
them when that's awesome.
Speaker 3 (09:04):
Now it's called the under thirty Summit. Yes, but we
I'm sure we'll get this question. You can be over
thirty and still participate and get a lot out of this,
and it's not just for the thirty audience.
Speaker 2 (09:17):
Correct. That's probably the most common question we get because
the age is in the name of the event, So
I think it's totally fair. No, this event is for everyone.
I think so many people can benefit from this. If
you're over thirty, if you're over forty, whatever that may be.
I think there's something to be learned from our content,
from our speakers, and from our experience. So, uh, don't
(09:39):
let that number fool you. You're not blocked, you're not banned.
Speaker 3 (09:42):
Box are you and I are still invited?
Speaker 2 (09:43):
Oh my gosh, you have no idea what I was.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
Thinking of Major Fomo if we were not at this event.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
Before this, I'm like, Wow, I'm a loser. I'll never
I won't belong in this.
Speaker 2 (09:53):
Hopefully we'll have you both at the summit.
Speaker 3 (09:55):
This absolutely planning on being there.
Speaker 1 (09:57):
Oh that's great. Hey, let's talk about legacy. What do
you hope people will say about Forbes under thirty, the
Summitt Columbus years from now.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
Well, I hope they look back on it positively. I
have ran into people who live in Detroit who remember
when our summit was there, summit's that I produced myself,
and I've asked them, you know, do people reflect back
on it positively? And they say absolutely, I remember when
you guys had all your signage up and you were
doing this and you were doing that, and they know
(10:27):
what the Forbes brand brings. We are a global brand
for entrepreneurial capitalism. I think when we come in we
shine the spotlight on local leaders with our local lists,
and we really we make our city our home for
that year in every way, not just doing the event.
It is a year round experience. So as far as
the legacy we want to leave, we want to, you know,
(10:50):
hopefully engage some college students and give them opportunities to
advance what their next step is give them ideas, give
them the tools to reach those next steps in their
career and achieving their goals. We also have our Service
Day activities where we partner with local organizations and give
back through mentorship. So think if we go and meet
with college students or high school students, whatever, that may
(11:12):
be a pitch competition in front of our Forbes List editors,
we're giving back to the community by showing them people
who are actually in their age group who have accomplished
something which shows them you can do this too. This
is achievable for you. You're not talking to someone thirty or
forty years older than you that's had this grand career.
This is someone who's in your age bracket who's doing
(11:35):
amazing things. And I think there's no better inspiration than
that to show that all of this is attainable. And also,
anything that you want to do, you don't have to
go to Los Angeles, New York, Miami to do it.
You could do it right here in Ohio. Love is
a lot of these people are doing it too, So
that's all part of our message is giving people the
(11:55):
tools to do what they need to do and inspiring
them to take that next step well, and you.
Speaker 3 (12:00):
Make it really affordable too for that kind of entry level,
that college student that may want to attend. I know
companies can sponsor some of their employees as well. Tell
us a little bit about how people can find out
more information if they're really interested in attending.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
Absolutely, and we'll give you guys a link to tickets
to post with the podcast. Of course, so anyone listening
to the show will offer a special discount if you
want to attend the summit. But of course, you know
you could go to Forbes dot com and go to
our event page for the Under thirty Summit. We're always
making announcements on speakers that are coming up. You know,
if you follow Forbes on our socials at Forbes, at
(12:36):
Forbes under thirty, on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, you know we're
all over the place. We have a massive presence on LinkedIn.
I would say follow along to there to see all
the cool and exciting announcements leading up to this fall.
Follow us, and you know, get your tickets to this now.
It will sell out, you know, especially as we announce
(12:56):
more speakers. Again, you want to plug yourself in, and
we allow people to download the app early, so that
you could begin networking with other people who are going
to be at the event. You can meet them before
you even you know, even touched down at the airport here,
you know, which is all part of the experience. So
I would tell people go to Forbes dot com, follow
(13:17):
us on social learn about the summit, look at past years,
and and keep in mind what you want to get
out of this. Are you there to meet people? Are
you there to learn? Are you there to see a
specific speaker? It could be one, it could be it
could be all the above, but this really is the
place to do it. That's why we're AD Week's best
event for professional Development. We win awards every year because
(13:40):
we put this event together very thoughtfully and carefully, and
we make it fun in the process. So I encourage
anyone who's even remotely interested check this out. It is
worth your time. We work on this all year and
make it better and better, and I think what's in
store for this year and Columbus is not to be missed.
Speaker 1 (13:58):
Right, I'm not gonna lie I'm pretty because you are
the first person I have met and talked to from Forbes,
So I'm kind of geeking out right now. I'm not
gonna lie. But you know, also I can feel your
passion when you when you talk about this summit, for example,
and I can tell that this work is more than
just events. What is it about what you do that
(14:19):
is driving you every single day?
Speaker 2 (14:21):
Yeah, I mean that's a great question. I think for
me personally, you know, the mindset that I've always had
and the mindset that I've sort of learned from my mentors,
is to strive for excellence in everything that you're doing.
And this event in particular, and in my career, events
are hard to do as it is to strive for
(14:43):
excellence and to to sort of meet that difference between
good and great and going that extra mile. That's how
I approach almost everything that I do. I say almost
because I'm not really good with laundry, so I think
my wife would call me out if I said everything.
But certainly when it comes to my work, I'm very
passionate about it. I have an amazing team that works
(15:05):
with me on this. They keep me going, I keep
them going, and we pour our hearts and souls into this.
Sort of the payoff that we work towards is that
culmination of seeing people walk in on Sunday for that
first time seeing people walk into an event and sort
of just pressing play. All of the planning that we've
been doing for the year, all the thought that we've
(15:25):
put into this, and I mean we're involved with every
single detail from the graphic design to the staging, to
what the badges look like, to what stickers we're going
to put on them to mean this, to when the
staff is going to come in and clean up, to
turn the room over. Yeah, we're involved with all of that.
Seeing it happen and seeing all of those really thousands
(15:47):
of things happening. There is a massive satisfaction to that
and getting the feedback that we get on this and
really just creating an amazing four days for anyone who
chooses to spend their time with us. So I love
doing it. I'm going to continue to do it. And
you know, again, this event is difficult as it is,
(16:08):
but to level it up every year that is even
more of a challenge.
Speaker 1 (16:11):
So much it sounds like so much fun behind the scenes.
But are there even for you, mister positive passionate, Are
there stresses?
Speaker 2 (16:22):
Absolutely? Yeah, Absolutely, there's stresses every day. And I think
what makes small things more stressful is just because of
how much we care about making this a success. But
at the end of the day, you know, when there's
trust between the team and there's a feeling of collaboration
and there's no finger pointing, there's just a solutions oriented
(16:44):
mindset and a team of people who love what they're
doing and just want to do a great job, you
can smooth those things over very easily. You know, we don't.
There's really not a lot of drama at all, if any.
We have a great operation behind the scenes, and I
think what's pretty rare is you know, Forbes being a
legacy media brand, We're unusual in that people stay at
(17:07):
Forbes a really long time, so we've more or less
from programming to production, to design to everything. We've had
relatively the same team working on this event for the
past four or five years, so we build on that
every year we have momentum. There's a real partnership there
that also keeps me going. Yeah, because these people, you
(17:29):
spend more time talking to them and working with them
than you do your own family. So I'm very passionate
about the work. I would say I'm even more passionate
about the people and what we do together. We are
greater than the sum of our parts. And I think
there's no better example of that in our work than
this event because of what a massive undertaking it is.
Speaker 3 (17:51):
Well, and we've had the opportunity to connect with some
of your team and they are all equally as passionate,
so I can see that, and it's so fun to
meet you and learn more about your leadership, philosophy and
how this event comes comes to take place in our city.
And so it's start September twenty eighth, right, so there's
still time to get tickets, but to your point, hurry
(18:13):
because they will sell out.
Speaker 2 (18:14):
So they will.
Speaker 3 (18:15):
We're excited to share more as those announcements come out.
So Brett, it's time in our podcast for our rapid
fire questions Columbus.
Speaker 1 (18:24):
Addition, Bump bump bum, And we.
Speaker 3 (18:27):
Know that you you know, you have familiarity with Columbus.
You've had some great experiences, so this might be a test,
so you tell us if you you know, need to
need to pivot or have questions about that.
Speaker 2 (18:38):
All right, here we go.
Speaker 1 (18:40):
Columbus is a city of neighborhoods. Brett, you probably already
know this. Which one are you most excited to explore?
Speaker 2 (18:46):
You know German village. I've never oh, you got to
get over there, have not been there yet. I've done
a lot in the times that i've been here so far,
and I've been blessed for that. That's one area I
have in touch so that next.
Speaker 3 (19:00):
You will love it. Yes, what's one thing you've heard
about Columbus that you're curious to check out for yourself?
Speaker 2 (19:07):
Ooh, I think just like anywhere, I'm a foodie, just
exploring more of the food scene. Really, there's never going
to be a time where I say that it's enough.
It's enough already. I want to explore the food scene again.
Part of why I want to go to the German
villages to try some of the amazing, like legendary restaurants
that are here. So yeah, that's awesome.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
If you needy, Recos, let us know.
Speaker 2 (19:31):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
And Brett, speaking of food tru or Falls, you've already
googled best places to eat in Columbus.
Speaker 2 (19:37):
No, false, I use chat Chipeta.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
Well played, Brett, We'll play.
Speaker 2 (19:44):
Yes, yes, yes, I think they've taken over at least
eighty percent of my my search volume has gone to
AI now so yes, the process was the same. I
just did it a little differently and its recommendations have
been fantastic.
Speaker 3 (19:58):
Oh good, I love to hear that. So did chat
GPT give you any must try dishes or local spots?
Speaker 2 (20:06):
You know it did it definitely told me to check
out North Market, which luckily I already have and I'm
excited to say we're actually going to be taking over
North Market for the sum at this fall.
Speaker 1 (20:16):
Oh cool.
Speaker 2 (20:17):
Yeah, it's one of the big recommendations. So instead of
bringing in lunch, we always like to bring some local flare.
So you know, we're doing it a little bit differently.
We're sending everyone from the convention Center over to North
Market and uh, we're taking it over. All the vendors,
all the stands, everyone's going to get to try, whether
it's dumplings or lobster rolls. There's amazing food there. And
(20:38):
as a New York foodie and someone who loves the
food halls of New York, North Market is like a
home away from home for me, so it was the
perfect place to do that.
Speaker 3 (20:46):
Well, and also original home of Jenny's Splendid ice Creams.
That's where she got started to get deserved too.
Speaker 2 (20:52):
By the way, Jenny Britain will be speaking at the
sum at the Yong.
Speaker 3 (20:55):
We love Jenny.
Speaker 2 (20:56):
I forgot that we got Jenny. Yeah, I love that.
Speaker 1 (21:00):
That's brilliant, Brett, that really is Okay, finish this sentence.
By the end of the Forbes Under thirty Summit.
Speaker 2 (21:07):
I hope to I hope to have really done this
city justice. I hope to have shown off the best
of it through our events and experiences. And I hope
to have had all four thousand people coming in for
this have left having a great time and leaving with
something more than they came with. And that's its simple
(21:30):
as that. We love that.
Speaker 3 (21:32):
Now we're moving into a segment we usually call Columbus Classics,
where we highlight tried and true local favorites. We know
you've been here before, and you'll be spending even more
time here leading up to the Forbes Summit, we thought
we'd flip it a bit and ask, is there a
classic Columbus experience you've heard about that you're excited to
try something classic to our city.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
Well, a classic experience that I've certainly had the pleasure
of having is that we got to go to the
Blue Jackets game last time we were here, so fine,
we were graciously invited to go on the boomboni. There's zamboni.
That was cool because growing up on Long Island, being
an Islanders I, boy, did I give it away with
the accident? Long time?
Speaker 1 (22:13):
We love your accent, you know.
Speaker 2 (22:17):
Going to hundreds of Islanders' games, I've never been on
the ice, and I'm here one time and we get
to do that, and you know, it was twenty seconds,
but I'll never forget that. It was amazing and the
energy of the fans here is really unmatched.
Speaker 1 (22:30):
Did you get to experience the cannon the cannon when
you were here?
Speaker 2 (22:33):
Yes, it actually caught me off guard a little bit.
Speaker 3 (22:35):
We hear that all the time.
Speaker 2 (22:37):
Poor it was just to the left of us, and
I did not know that that was happening, So, boy,
did we experience it.
Speaker 1 (22:44):
I had to ask that our final segment, Brett will
usually ask guess what they're saying yes to in Columbus,
And obviously, for you, what are you most looking forward
to saying yes to during your time at least in
the city for the summit.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
I want to say yes to By coming to Columbus,
I think I'm saying yes to everything that the city
has to offer. You know, we're doing our event that
we know how to do really well, but doing it
here needs to be needs to be done very carefully.
So what we're saying is we're saying yes to all
of the local businesses that we're working with and supporting
(23:18):
with the event. We're saying yes to our amazing hotel
partners that are gonna, you know, house our four thousand
attendees for this experience. We're saying yes to all of
the incredible activities and experiences that we're going to have
throughout the city. Whether it's going to OSU Stadium, or
playing pickleball at Pickle and Chill, or our bar crawl
(23:40):
or going to the Key. We're activating the city. So
when you say yes to a city, you're saying yes
to all that it brings to the table and all
that it has to offer. So I think it's it's yes,
yes across the board. We're saying to everything that Columbus
has in store for us. That's everything from culinary to
just again, incredible hospital here, incredible restaurants. There's so much
(24:03):
happening here. There's such an energy. I believe it's the
fastest growing city.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
It is in the us.
Speaker 2 (24:08):
That's right us, So I mean you could feel that
when you're here, you really can. So we're saying yes
to all that comes with that, and hopefully we do
ajusice this.
Speaker 3 (24:18):
Mon oh I think you will.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
Brett.
Speaker 3 (24:19):
We are so excited. Thank you so much for joining us.
The Forbes Under thirty Summit is such a powerful platform
and we're thrilled to welcome it and you and your
team to Columbus.
Speaker 1 (24:31):
Thank you both so much for having me, absolutely and
Brett of course. To learn more and get your tickets
for the twenty twenty five Forbes Under thirty Summit in Columbus,
just go to Forbes dot com slash under thirty Summit,
that's under three zero Summit and for more great ways
to experience our awesome city, follow Experience Columbus on social
and had to experience Columbus dot com. Thank you for
(24:53):
listening to Yes Columbus and we'll see you next time.
Speaker 2 (24:56):
Thanks Brett, thank you, thanks for having me.
Speaker 1 (24:58):
That's a wrap on this week episode of Yes Columbus
and Experienced Columbus podcast. Tune in next week as we
take you on a tour of what's new, what's hot,
and what makes Columbus, a city on the rise.
Yes Columbus, an Experienced Columbus podcast keeps you in the
know of what's happening in the Art City Columbus, home
of the three time MLS Cup champions, the number five
Beer city, a top ten culinary destination with the largest
concentration of fashion professionals.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
In the US.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Join iHeartMedia's Boxer, Sarah Towns, Experience Columbus's chief marketing and
innovation officer, and their guests for an inside look at
a destination that invites visitors and locals alike to explore.
By the end of each podcast, you'll be asking yourself,
can all this really exist in one city? Yes Columbus.
(00:40):
Welcome back to Yes Columbus and Experienced Columbus Podcasts.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
I'm with one of the.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
Co hosts, Boxer, along with Sarah Towns. Sarah, good to
see you again, and I'm really excited about our guests
this week.
Speaker 3 (00:52):
Good to see you too, Boxer. I am excited too.
But as you know, each episode we shine a spotlight
on a people in moment shaping the future of our city,
and today's guest is bringing one of the biggest events
in the country right here to Columbus.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
That's right, you know.
Speaker 1 (01:07):
Before we dive into today's conversation, let's start with our
headliner segment, where we highlight a recent accolade or exciting
moment for Columbus. Big news if you haven't heard, Columbus
was just named one of the top meeting destinations in
North America by Sea Event. I didn't even know they
track something like that.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
They absolutely do. It's a really important accolady.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
Wow, so yeah, so's it's a leading meetings and events
technology provider. This recognition obviously puts Us even more on
the map as a premier city for hosting events of
all kinds, from major conventions to sporting events.
Speaker 3 (01:44):
And speaking of major events, the Forbes Under thirty Summit,
one of the most anticipated gatherings for rising entrepreneurs, innovators,
and change makers, is coming to Columbus this September. This
multi day event brings together thousand of bold thinkers from
around the world, and Columbus will be the center of
it all. It's a major moment for our city and
(02:07):
speaks volumes about how Columbus is being seen on the
national stage as a vibrant hub for creativity, innovation, and opportunity.
And today we're joined by someone who has been instrumental
in bringing this event to life.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
That's right, let's jump right into it our behind the
Buzz segment. Let's welcome Brett Cohen, Executive director of Production
and Partner Experience at Forbes. Brett, Welcome to Yes Columbus.
Welcome to Columbus.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
Thank you, thank you both for having me. So happy
to be here.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
Thank you so much for being here. We are so excited.
So for our listeners who may not be familiar with
Forbes Under thirty with the summit, give us the big picture,
what is it and what makes it such a one
of a kind experience?
Speaker 2 (02:50):
The Forbes Under Thirty Summit is truly a one of
a kind experience. As you may know, the Forbes thirty
Under thirty list comes out every year, so we have
thirty lists across twenty categories, so plus co founders, so
you have about six hundred people or so that are
making this list every year. These are people who we
Forbes have identified as the game changers, the people who
(03:12):
are on the precipice of greatness, young leaders who are
really just rocking it right now. We identify those people
every year. We of course have a huge track record
for identifying some of the next big CEOs, the next
big tech leaders, the next big innovators. So each year
we release the list in December, and each fall culminates
with this massive four day experience where we have incredible programming,
(03:37):
a list speakers, We bring a lot of our listers
back to join us on stage for conversations to talk
about what they're doing, world class networking, and just amazing events,
parties and activations all throughout the city so that no
reason to not be there. Exactly. Sounds like a party
to me, you know.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
So, Brett, you know you've had this summit in Cleveland
and Cincinnati, and look, I'm biased. I mean I pretty
much know why you're here, and you're doing this in Columbus.
But why did Forbes decide, well, we need to hit
Columbus next.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Well, we always like to bring the event to places
where there's a lot of activity, where there's things happening,
And I think it's safe to say that Ohio really
fits that bill. Unexpected in a lot of ways. There
are so many businesses opening up here, there's companies opening
up new manufacturing headquarters, there's a lot of tech and
innovation happening here. It really is the crown jewel of
(04:32):
the Midwest right now. And we are a media entity,
we're not looking to do the obvious. We want to
shine the spotlight where it's needed. So if there's action
happening in Ohio, there's action happening in Columbus. US bringing
the event really turns the spotlight there. So that's why
we're here, that's why we're doing what we're doing, and
we're bringing the absolute best of Columbus to our event
(04:53):
this fall.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
Oh my gosh, and we're going to quote you crown
jewel of the Midwest.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (04:59):
Here, we're so excited for all the energy this event
will bring to the city. Can you share a sneak
peek of what's coming to Columbus in September, anything about speakers, activations,
or other surprises.
Speaker 2 (05:10):
Yeah, we do try to mix the event up every year,
and of course we release who our speakers are in
the month's leading up. I'm excited to announce that we've
just secured Vivek Ramaswami is going.
Speaker 1 (05:21):
To be oh gos running for governor, running for governor
of Ohio, So of course he's a big part of
the conversation here right now.
Speaker 2 (05:31):
So We're going to have him on stage four. What
I think will be a great conversation. Alison Ellsworth, the
founder of Poppy Soda who's also a former thirty Under
thirty listers, she'll be joining us on stage for a conversation.
She just sold Poppy to Pepsi for just under two
billion dollars.
Speaker 3 (05:49):
I saw that unbelievable and we are huge Poppy fans in.
Speaker 2 (05:54):
My guess, Probiotics Soda it's great, it's great. So that
is that, of course, is doing really well. We have
Sonny Lee, the Olympic gold medalist, the three time Olympic
gold medalist, is going to be joining us, and really
so much more. We've only announced just a small fraction
of our programming, but as far as some of the
experiences go, we're going to be at Betel Grand this
(06:15):
year is our main venue. Beautiful. We're going to be
hosting our city crawl, including a pickleball exhibition.
Speaker 1 (06:20):
Oh wow, So where do you even begin when you
start to think about Columbus, the music, the food, you know,
the innovation, where does it begin? How do you begin?
Where do you start?
Speaker 2 (06:33):
Well, it's a unique challenge every year. You know, this
is a summit where we've previously done three year stints
in one city, and what we've done in Ohio is
really three different cities. We did Cleveland in twenty twenty three,
Cincinnati last year, and this year twenty twenty five are
rounding it out in Columbus. So it requires a lot
of research, which honestly, we have a lot of fun doing.
(06:54):
We come out to Columbus a bunch. We meet with
amazing partners like Experience Columbus and Jobs Ohio who really
help us to find the best that the city has
to offer. Find what's cool, what's new, what we want
to highlight through our experiences, where we should do events,
where we should highlight I mean, that's really the way
to do it. It all comes down to trust and collaboration.
(07:16):
So we rely a lot on our local partners, and
you know, we do our own research along the way,
and it always culminates in you know, our experience through
the lens of the city delivered to our audience. So
a little different every year, but we look into all
of these things, every detail, and you get.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
Paid for it.
Speaker 3 (07:35):
You have the best job.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Oh my gosh, that certainly is one of my favorite parts.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
Well, so Brett. Speaking of that, you've helped lead some
of the most well known Forbes events globally, from thirty
to fifty in Abu Dhabi to the Future of Work summits.
How has your approach to producing meaningful, high impact events
evolved over time?
Speaker 2 (07:56):
That's a great question. I think you just have to
always be in touch with what people are wanting out
of events, and that changes a lot over time. I
think that really hit us in the face with COVID
when we really had to adapt to a virtual environment.
Where can we still reach people? How can we still
do what we do in that environment? And I think
a lot of the learnings from that period of time
(08:17):
really carried over into our return to live events. We're
now live streaming with broadcast quality productions for all of
our shows. We have a lot of interactive and AI
powered networking features for our events so that people can
really get the most out of their time. If you're
going to invest four days coming to the Under thirty Summit,
we are going to use technology as well as creative
(08:38):
thinking to make that time as worthwhile as possible. We
want you to have fun, we want you to meet people,
We want you to learn and grow so keeping in
mind evolving attention spans who people are paying attention to.
Sometimes we'll have a new musical guests for our music
festival that I've never heard their name, but they're really
big en up and coming. You come to the under
(08:59):
thirty Summit to find those people to say you knew
them when that's awesome.
Speaker 3 (09:04):
Now it's called the under thirty Summit. Yes, but we
I'm sure we'll get this question. You can be over
thirty and still participate and get a lot out of this,
and it's not just for the thirty audience.
Speaker 2 (09:17):
Correct. That's probably the most common question we get because
the age is in the name of the event, So
I think it's totally fair. No, this event is for everyone.
I think so many people can benefit from this. If
you're over thirty, if you're over forty, whatever that may be.
I think there's something to be learned from our content,
from our speakers, and from our experience. So, uh, don't
(09:39):
let that number fool you. You're not blocked, you're not banned.
Speaker 3 (09:42):
Box are you and I are still invited?
Speaker 2 (09:43):
Oh my gosh, you have no idea what I was.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
Thinking of Major Fomo if we were not at this event.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
Before this, I'm like, Wow, I'm a loser. I'll never
I won't belong in this.
Speaker 2 (09:53):
Hopefully we'll have you both at the summit.
Speaker 3 (09:55):
This absolutely planning on being there.
Speaker 1 (09:57):
Oh that's great. Hey, let's talk about legacy. What do
you hope people will say about Forbes under thirty, the
Summitt Columbus years from now.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
Well, I hope they look back on it positively. I
have ran into people who live in Detroit who remember
when our summit was there, summit's that I produced myself,
and I've asked them, you know, do people reflect back
on it positively? And they say absolutely, I remember when
you guys had all your signage up and you were
doing this and you were doing that, and they know
(10:27):
what the Forbes brand brings. We are a global brand
for entrepreneurial capitalism. I think when we come in we
shine the spotlight on local leaders with our local lists,
and we really we make our city our home for
that year in every way, not just doing the event.
It is a year round experience. So as far as
the legacy we want to leave, we want to, you know,
(10:50):
hopefully engage some college students and give them opportunities to
advance what their next step is give them ideas, give
them the tools to reach those next steps in their
career and achieving their goals. We also have our Service
Day activities where we partner with local organizations and give
back through mentorship. So think if we go and meet
with college students or high school students, whatever, that may
(11:12):
be a pitch competition in front of our Forbes List editors,
we're giving back to the community by showing them people
who are actually in their age group who have accomplished
something which shows them you can do this too. This
is achievable for you. You're not talking to someone thirty or
forty years older than you that's had this grand career.
This is someone who's in your age bracket who's doing
(11:35):
amazing things. And I think there's no better inspiration than
that to show that all of this is attainable. And also,
anything that you want to do, you don't have to
go to Los Angeles, New York, Miami to do it.
You could do it right here in Ohio. Love is
a lot of these people are doing it too, So
that's all part of our message is giving people the
(11:55):
tools to do what they need to do and inspiring
them to take that next step well, and you.
Speaker 3 (12:00):
Make it really affordable too for that kind of entry level,
that college student that may want to attend. I know
companies can sponsor some of their employees as well. Tell
us a little bit about how people can find out
more information if they're really interested in attending.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
Absolutely, and we'll give you guys a link to tickets
to post with the podcast. Of course, so anyone listening
to the show will offer a special discount if you
want to attend the summit. But of course, you know
you could go to Forbes dot com and go to
our event page for the Under thirty Summit. We're always
making announcements on speakers that are coming up. You know,
if you follow Forbes on our socials at Forbes, at
(12:36):
Forbes under thirty, on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, you know we're
all over the place. We have a massive presence on LinkedIn.
I would say follow along to there to see all
the cool and exciting announcements leading up to this fall.
Follow us, and you know, get your tickets to this now.
It will sell out, you know, especially as we announce
(12:56):
more speakers. Again, you want to plug yourself in, and
we allow people to download the app early, so that
you could begin networking with other people who are going
to be at the event. You can meet them before
you even you know, even touched down at the airport here,
you know, which is all part of the experience. So
I would tell people go to Forbes dot com, follow
(13:17):
us on social learn about the summit, look at past years,
and and keep in mind what you want to get
out of this. Are you there to meet people? Are
you there to learn? Are you there to see a
specific speaker? It could be one, it could be it
could be all the above, but this really is the
place to do it. That's why we're AD Week's best
event for professional Development. We win awards every year because
(13:40):
we put this event together very thoughtfully and carefully, and
we make it fun in the process. So I encourage
anyone who's even remotely interested check this out. It is
worth your time. We work on this all year and
make it better and better, and I think what's in
store for this year and Columbus is not to be missed.
Speaker 1 (13:58):
Right, I'm not gonna lie I'm pretty because you are
the first person I have met and talked to from Forbes,
So I'm kind of geeking out right now. I'm not
gonna lie. But you know, also I can feel your
passion when you when you talk about this summit, for example,
and I can tell that this work is more than
just events. What is it about what you do that
(14:19):
is driving you every single day?
Speaker 2 (14:21):
Yeah, I mean that's a great question. I think for
me personally, you know, the mindset that I've always had
and the mindset that I've sort of learned from my mentors,
is to strive for excellence in everything that you're doing.
And this event in particular, and in my career, events
are hard to do as it is to strive for
(14:43):
excellence and to to sort of meet that difference between
good and great and going that extra mile. That's how
I approach almost everything that I do. I say almost
because I'm not really good with laundry, so I think
my wife would call me out if I said everything.
But certainly when it comes to my work, I'm very
passionate about it. I have an amazing team that works
(15:05):
with me on this. They keep me going, I keep
them going, and we pour our hearts and souls into this.
Sort of the payoff that we work towards is that
culmination of seeing people walk in on Sunday for that
first time seeing people walk into an event and sort
of just pressing play. All of the planning that we've
been doing for the year, all the thought that we've
(15:25):
put into this, and I mean we're involved with every
single detail from the graphic design to the staging, to
what the badges look like, to what stickers we're going
to put on them to mean this, to when the
staff is going to come in and clean up, to
turn the room over. Yeah, we're involved with all of that.
Seeing it happen and seeing all of those really thousands
(15:47):
of things happening. There is a massive satisfaction to that
and getting the feedback that we get on this and
really just creating an amazing four days for anyone who
chooses to spend their time with us. So I love
doing it. I'm going to continue to do it. And
you know, again, this event is difficult as it is,
(16:08):
but to level it up every year that is even
more of a challenge.
Speaker 1 (16:11):
So much it sounds like so much fun behind the scenes.
But are there even for you, mister positive passionate, Are
there stresses?
Speaker 2 (16:22):
Absolutely? Yeah, Absolutely, there's stresses every day. And I think
what makes small things more stressful is just because of
how much we care about making this a success. But
at the end of the day, you know, when there's
trust between the team and there's a feeling of collaboration
and there's no finger pointing, there's just a solutions oriented
(16:44):
mindset and a team of people who love what they're
doing and just want to do a great job, you
can smooth those things over very easily. You know, we don't.
There's really not a lot of drama at all, if any.
We have a great operation behind the scenes, and I
think what's pretty rare is you know, Forbes being a
legacy media brand, We're unusual in that people stay at
(17:07):
Forbes a really long time, so we've more or less
from programming to production, to design to everything. We've had
relatively the same team working on this event for the
past four or five years, so we build on that
every year we have momentum. There's a real partnership there
that also keeps me going. Yeah, because these people, you
(17:29):
spend more time talking to them and working with them
than you do your own family. So I'm very passionate
about the work. I would say I'm even more passionate
about the people and what we do together. We are
greater than the sum of our parts. And I think
there's no better example of that in our work than
this event because of what a massive undertaking it is.
Speaker 3 (17:51):
Well, and we've had the opportunity to connect with some
of your team and they are all equally as passionate,
so I can see that, and it's so fun to
meet you and learn more about your leadership, philosophy and
how this event comes comes to take place in our city.
And so it's start September twenty eighth, right, so there's
still time to get tickets, but to your point, hurry
(18:13):
because they will sell out.
Speaker 2 (18:14):
So they will.
Speaker 3 (18:15):
We're excited to share more as those announcements come out.
So Brett, it's time in our podcast for our rapid
fire questions Columbus.
Speaker 1 (18:24):
Addition, Bump bump bum, And we.
Speaker 3 (18:27):
Know that you you know, you have familiarity with Columbus.
You've had some great experiences, so this might be a test,
so you tell us if you you know, need to
need to pivot or have questions about that.
Speaker 2 (18:38):
All right, here we go.
Speaker 1 (18:40):
Columbus is a city of neighborhoods. Brett, you probably already
know this. Which one are you most excited to explore?
Speaker 2 (18:46):
You know German village. I've never oh, you got to
get over there, have not been there yet. I've done
a lot in the times that i've been here so far,
and I've been blessed for that. That's one area I
have in touch so that next.
Speaker 3 (19:00):
You will love it. Yes, what's one thing you've heard
about Columbus that you're curious to check out for yourself?
Speaker 2 (19:07):
Ooh, I think just like anywhere, I'm a foodie, just
exploring more of the food scene. Really, there's never going
to be a time where I say that it's enough.
It's enough already. I want to explore the food scene again.
Part of why I want to go to the German
villages to try some of the amazing, like legendary restaurants
that are here. So yeah, that's awesome.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
If you needy, Recos, let us know.
Speaker 2 (19:31):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
And Brett, speaking of food tru or Falls, you've already
googled best places to eat in Columbus.
Speaker 2 (19:37):
No, false, I use chat Chipeta.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
Well played, Brett, We'll play.
Speaker 2 (19:44):
Yes, yes, yes, I think they've taken over at least
eighty percent of my my search volume has gone to
AI now so yes, the process was the same. I
just did it a little differently and its recommendations have
been fantastic.
Speaker 3 (19:58):
Oh good, I love to hear that. So did chat
GPT give you any must try dishes or local spots?
Speaker 2 (20:06):
You know it did it definitely told me to check
out North Market, which luckily I already have and I'm
excited to say we're actually going to be taking over
North Market for the sum at this fall.
Speaker 1 (20:16):
Oh cool.
Speaker 2 (20:17):
Yeah, it's one of the big recommendations. So instead of
bringing in lunch, we always like to bring some local flare.
So you know, we're doing it a little bit differently.
We're sending everyone from the convention Center over to North
Market and uh, we're taking it over. All the vendors,
all the stands, everyone's going to get to try, whether
it's dumplings or lobster rolls. There's amazing food there. And
(20:38):
as a New York foodie and someone who loves the
food halls of New York, North Market is like a
home away from home for me, so it was the
perfect place to do that.
Speaker 3 (20:46):
Well, and also original home of Jenny's Splendid ice Creams.
That's where she got started to get deserved too.
Speaker 2 (20:52):
By the way, Jenny Britain will be speaking at the
sum at the Yong.
Speaker 3 (20:55):
We love Jenny.
Speaker 2 (20:56):
I forgot that we got Jenny. Yeah, I love that.
Speaker 1 (21:00):
That's brilliant, Brett, that really is Okay, finish this sentence.
By the end of the Forbes Under thirty Summit.
Speaker 2 (21:07):
I hope to I hope to have really done this
city justice. I hope to have shown off the best
of it through our events and experiences. And I hope
to have had all four thousand people coming in for
this have left having a great time and leaving with
something more than they came with. And that's its simple
(21:30):
as that. We love that.
Speaker 3 (21:32):
Now we're moving into a segment we usually call Columbus Classics,
where we highlight tried and true local favorites. We know
you've been here before, and you'll be spending even more
time here leading up to the Forbes Summit, we thought
we'd flip it a bit and ask, is there a
classic Columbus experience you've heard about that you're excited to
try something classic to our city.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
Well, a classic experience that I've certainly had the pleasure
of having is that we got to go to the
Blue Jackets game last time we were here, so fine,
we were graciously invited to go on the boomboni. There's zamboni.
That was cool because growing up on Long Island, being
an Islanders I, boy, did I give it away with
the accident? Long time?
Speaker 1 (22:13):
We love your accent, you know.
Speaker 2 (22:17):
Going to hundreds of Islanders' games, I've never been on
the ice, and I'm here one time and we get
to do that, and you know, it was twenty seconds,
but I'll never forget that. It was amazing and the
energy of the fans here is really unmatched.
Speaker 1 (22:30):
Did you get to experience the cannon the cannon when
you were here?
Speaker 2 (22:33):
Yes, it actually caught me off guard a little bit.
Speaker 3 (22:35):
We hear that all the time.
Speaker 2 (22:37):
Poor it was just to the left of us, and
I did not know that that was happening, So, boy,
did we experience it.
Speaker 1 (22:44):
I had to ask that our final segment, Brett will
usually ask guess what they're saying yes to in Columbus,
And obviously, for you, what are you most looking forward
to saying yes to during your time at least in
the city for the summit.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
I want to say yes to By coming to Columbus,
I think I'm saying yes to everything that the city
has to offer. You know, we're doing our event that
we know how to do really well, but doing it
here needs to be needs to be done very carefully.
So what we're saying is we're saying yes to all
of the local businesses that we're working with and supporting
(23:18):
with the event. We're saying yes to our amazing hotel
partners that are gonna, you know, house our four thousand
attendees for this experience. We're saying yes to all of
the incredible activities and experiences that we're going to have
throughout the city. Whether it's going to OSU Stadium, or
playing pickleball at Pickle and Chill, or our bar crawl
(23:40):
or going to the Key. We're activating the city. So
when you say yes to a city, you're saying yes
to all that it brings to the table and all
that it has to offer. So I think it's it's yes,
yes across the board. We're saying to everything that Columbus
has in store for us. That's everything from culinary to
just again, incredible hospital here, incredible restaurants. There's so much
(24:03):
happening here. There's such an energy. I believe it's the
fastest growing city.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
It is in the us.
Speaker 2 (24:08):
That's right us, So I mean you could feel that
when you're here, you really can. So we're saying yes
to all that comes with that, and hopefully we do
ajusice this.
Speaker 3 (24:18):
Mon oh I think you will.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
Brett.
Speaker 3 (24:19):
We are so excited. Thank you so much for joining us.
The Forbes Under thirty Summit is such a powerful platform
and we're thrilled to welcome it and you and your
team to Columbus.
Speaker 1 (24:31):
Thank you both so much for having me, absolutely and
Brett of course. To learn more and get your tickets
for the twenty twenty five Forbes Under thirty Summit in Columbus,
just go to Forbes dot com slash under thirty Summit,
that's under three zero Summit and for more great ways
to experience our awesome city, follow Experience Columbus on social
and had to experience Columbus dot com. Thank you for
(24:53):
listening to Yes Columbus and we'll see you next time.
Speaker 2 (24:56):
Thanks Brett, thank you, thanks for having me.
Speaker 1 (24:58):
That's a wrap on this week episode of Yes Columbus
and Experienced Columbus podcast. Tune in next week as we
take you on a tour of what's new, what's hot,
and what makes Columbus, a city on the rise.
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