TWF’S TEAM TUESDAYS ON TUMBLR.
Meet James Walker, our kick ass CTO.
How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
Walkah: Reasonable. Patient. Kind.
How do you think others would describe you in 3 words?
Walkah: Serial troublemaker. Nerd.
What are your go-to blogs for fashion & tech news info?
Walkah: For tech: Read Write Web, The Next Web, and The Changelog. For fashion? Um. Third Wave Fashion!
Pick one: music, food, or movies. Always music. If you could listen to one artist forever, who would it be?
Walkah: Most people who know me, know I’ve had a serious man-crush on Mike Doughty for almost 20 years (I’m the top Google hit for “mike doughty fan boy”). I love pretty much everything he’s ever done. That said, with last week’s tragic passing of Adam “MCA” Yauch, I feel compelled to mention the Beastie Boys. As someone wise once said, it’s never not the right time for the Beastie Boys. Really, though, life with just one artist? No thanks.
What do you love most about working with Third Wave Fashion?
Walkah: It’s a fun, new experience for me. I know little to nothing about the fashion industry, so I’m learning new things. Truth is, though, it’s the first time I’ve ever worked with a company where I was the only guy. It’s fun to see gender imbalance from the other direction ;-)
Who’s your business crush?
Walkah: I have always loved and admired indie/solo developers. It takes so much to build a product or company on your own and I’m always amazed by people who manage to do it. Though he recently formed a company, for a long time it was Buster Benson, who seems to find a way to turn things he finds personally interesting into engaging products that other people use.
What’s your favorite startup right now, and why?
Walkah: I don’t know if they qualify, but I really admire what The OpenPhoto Project is doing right now. Photo sharing is obviously a hot topic (kind of has been since Flickr launched), but I respect the fact that OpenPhoto is competing with pure open source software and giving users ultimate control over where their photos are stored.
Oh, and in Canada we say “favourite”.
Who inspires you—whether in business or in life?
Walkah: There is a long list of people I respect, admire, and try to emulate—but if you’re talking pure inspiration, I’d have to say my kids. They provide so much purpose and meaning in my life. They keep me in line, keep me motivated and, while it may be cliché, I learn way more from them than they learn from me.
Where do you see yourself in 7 years?
Walkah: I’ll be travelling the world on the Third Wave corporate jet, of course! If for some reason that doesn’t work out, I really don’t have a backup plan.
