Three Decades of Iconic Brand Building

With a career spanning three decades at the intersection of story and play, John has spent his life figuring out what makes people tick, click, and collect. As the former VP of Design and Development at Hasbro, John was the creative mind behind the master toy lines for global icons like Star Wars, Marvel, and Jurassic Park, even helping steer Star Wars to its biggest sales year in history. From the executive halls of Hasbro and Mattel to the front lines of DTC brands like Little Passports, John’s career has been defined by one thing: perfecting the art of the “must-have.”

Can We Get a Vibe Check on the First Aid Aisle?

The idea for World of Hurt came from a depressing stroll down the first aid aisle of a convenience store, where John noticed a sea of “beige, bland, and babyish” products — a total mismatch for the active, high-energy lives of teens and tweens. Realizing that the industry hadn’t had a vibe check since the 1950s, he decided to take a detour from toys and start making first aid products that don’t suck. He teamed up with Jeff Labovitz and a crew of Gen Z creators to build a brand that treats young consumers with the respect (and the aesthetic) they actually deserve.

The Future Is Loud and Unapologetic

John leads with a “culture-first” philosophy, blending creative grit with sharp strategy. He’s a magna cum laude FIT designer with a Dartmouth / Thunderbird / Boston College business brain, which means he can pivot from a branding meeting to a new product sketch without missing a beat. Today, his goal is simple: scaling World of Hurt while ensuring that it stays as loud, bold, and unapologetic as the generation it’s designed for.