Francesco Clark is founder and CEO of Clark’s Botanicals, based in Bronxville, New York. At age 24, he became paralyzed from the neck down after a swimming pool accident. Some physicians thought he would never move or breathe without assistance again. But with great effort over several years, Mr. Clark made strong progress and, given his physical-therapy experiences, developed an award-winning line of skin-care products that became Clark’s Botanicals, now sold in Europe, Asia, and the United States. We met with Mr. Clark in New York to discuss coming back from tragedy, what it takes to fight against overwhelming odds, and entrepreneurship as an option for people with disabilities and special challenges.
Kaizen: Where did you grow up?
Clark: I grew up in Italy — in Bologna — for seven years and then we moved to New York. Since sixth grade, I grew up just outside of New York City in Westchester.
Kaizen: When you were a teenager, what were you thinking your likely career would be?
Clark: My original career path was to be become a diplomat. So I went to Baltimore and studied at Johns Hopkins. I double majored in International Relations and Romance Languages. I liked that because it gave me kind of a wide funnel, a wide array of options to go into. I took the Foreign Service Exam and I passed, and it gave me the option in going into that aspect, or business, or law. But in reality, I didn’t really know what I wanted; I was just curious. I love learning and I’m still just as curious as I was before about that. And then I just kind of started working after I graduated.
In our latest issue ofKaizen we feature an interview with Francesco Clark, founder and CEO of Clark’s Botanicals. At age 24, he became paralyzed from the neck down after a swimming pool accident. Some physicians thought he would never move or breathe without assistance again. But with great effort over several years, Mr. Clark made strong progress and, given his physical-therapy experiences, developed an award-winning line of skin-care products that became Clark’s Botanicals, now sold in Europe, Asia, and the United States.
Also featured in Kaizen are: student essay contest winners Nicole Schnack, Jake Maliszewski, and William Newkirk; High School Entrepreneur Day, Professor Jules Gleicher’s new course, and guest speaker Dr. Al Gini.
A PDF version of Kaizen is available here. We will soon post separately the full interview with Mr.Francesco Clark.
If you would like to receive a complimentary issue of the print version of Kaizen, please email your name and postal address to CEE [at] Rockford.edu.
This year’s Global Entrepreneurship Week will take place from November 14 – 20. Last year, over 400,000 Americans participated in all 50 states. GEW promotes innovation, creativity, job creation, and economic growth through a variety of activities, which include: a competition to find the 50 most promising startups worldwide; a clean technology competition; a competition to win a free yearlong trip around the world; and Startup Weekend, a networking event focused on creating new startups.
Chief Executive surveyed 550 CEOs, asking them to rank each state in the U.S. based on taxation and regulations, workforce quality, and living environment.
Rockford College students can see the new Atlas Shrugged movie on Saturday, May 7 at 7:15 PM for free, courtesy of the Center for Ethics and Entrepreneurship. We are only covering the tickets, not concessions or transportation.
A Kauffman Foundation report, “The Grass is Indeed Greener in India and China for Returnee Entrepreneurs,” concludes that Indian and Chinese students in America are more likely to return home to pursue their career goals as those economies improve. “Most returnees now say the entrepreneurial advantages are better in their home countries, where they can benefit from lower operating costs, heightened professional recognition, greater access to local markets and a better quality of life than they could attain in the United States,” the report states. While this “reverse brain drain” will impact entrepreneurship in America, as many entrepreneurs are Chinese and Indian immigrants, most returnees still maintain their American contacts, which could create more international business opportunities.
McGill Original Films, a local video production company, created a short video about the recent Extreme Entrepreneurship event at Rock Valley College. CEE’s Executive Director, Dr. Stephen Hicks, was on a discussion panel at the event, and makes an appearance in the video below.
In a humorous and inspiring piece in The Wall Street Journal, Scott Adams (creator of the popular Dilbert comic strip) writes that most college students should learn the skills needed to run a business, which will prepare them for post-graduate life. Mr. Adams touches on several of his clever entrepreneurial ideas as a student that allowed him to master “the strange art of transforming nothing into something,” and he gives some excellent advice to burgeoning entrepreneurs.
Jack Stack is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of SRC Holdings Corporation, an award-winning, employee-owned organization based in Springfield, Missouri. Springfield Remanufacturing Corporation and its 22 subsidiaries provide a wide range of products and services, including engine remanufacturing, packing and distribution, business consulting and banking. SRC employs 1,600 people and generates annual revenues of about $400 million.
Kaizen: Where did you grow up?
Stack: I was born in Chicago in 1948. My father bought a house in Elmhurst, Illinois, and I lived in Elmhurst from the time that I was about three years old to about 30. Then I was transferred to Springfield, Missouri, where I’ve spent the last 31 years of my life.
Kaizen: It sounds like you were a wild card as a youth—you were kicked out of college and seminary and fired from a job at General Motors?
Francesco Clark is founder and CEO of Clark’s Botanicals, based in Bronxville, New York. At age 24, he became paralyzed from the neck down after a swimming pool accident. Some physicians thought he would never move or breathe without assistance again. But with great effort over several years, Mr. Clark made strong progress and, given his physical-therapy experiences, developed an award-winning line of skin-care products that became Clark’s Botanicals, now sold in Europe, Asia, and the United States. We met with Mr. Clark in New York to discuss coming back from tragedy, what it takes to fight against overwhelming odds, and entrepreneurship as an option for people with disabilities and special challenges. 
