Jack Ezon built 2 of the world’s largest luxury travel companies. Most recently, he founded Embark Beyond, a $250M+ business with over 300+ employees that plans unbelievable getaways around the world.
In this episode, Jack opens up about quitting big-law to chase his passion, renting out private islands for $40 MILLION parties, and how he launched a travel business just 6 months before COVID.
Brought to you by Goldburd McCone LLP, the very best that tax law has to offer: https://www.goldburdlaw.com
Check out the Faks Brothers on Momentum: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1m1HCaHe0w4JoZne17EOCK?si=g-w3h6IUSjS_q00CKkIi_g
(0:00) Coming up…(1:56) How do you describe what you do?(2:47) Growing up and struggling in school(4:21) How community service taught Jack fundamental lessons(5:46) Incorporating travel into community service(6:50) Stuck in a big-law career that he hated(7:55) Launching a FAILED tech startup in 1999(11:15) Struggling to network in law school(14:02) Getting into travel consulting after his failed startup(16:42) Becoming a travel agent BY ACCIDENT(18:59) Reputation is everything(19:46) Building a business from $0 to $400 MILLION(21:31) Starting his own travel business 6 months before COVID(22:59) Turning COVID into an opportunity to grow(23:45) Developing relationships with the press(26:24) Sleeping 3 hour nights when growing the business(28:09) Coolest destinations/events ($40M wedding, renting out private islands, private concerts)(29:29) The $200k mistake when trying to expand the business(31:35) Struggling to network at event conferences: “it was humbling”(34:28) Exclusive trips that exploded Embark’s business(35:49) Hanging out with the CEO of Dior and Hermes / incorporating luxury brands into travel(37:41) Clienteling - making people feel special(40:38) Should people follow their passion?(41:27) Qualities noticed in A+ players(42:29) Scaling a service business(44:06) Giving back to the community(45:03) True happiness is not enjoyment, it’s fulfillment: reflecting on community values(48:20) Momentum Moment(49:32) Closing thoughts(50:47) Outro