The future of Canada’s marketing industry will be shaped by its youngest talent—the super-worldly, plugged-in, brilliant and creative youth who are already making a name for themselves. Marketing put out the call to the industry to find the top 30 standouts under the age of 30 who have already made their mark on the industry.
From PR to advertising to media and beyond, our 30 Under 30 showcases the smartest, bravest and most creative ones to watch in the business.
Eric Alper, 26
Vice-president, partner at Sid Lee Toronto
Of everyone on our Top 30, Eric Alper might be the one you’re most likely to think “He’s really under 30?” It happens a lot . The bosses at Sid Lee who hired him thought he was older than he really was, as do the clients he impresses.
“When people find out his age, it blows their minds,” says Vito Piazza, a partner at Sid Lee.
Alper has been a force since he entered the industry in 2008. In four short years, his job title has changed from lead strategist to vice-president. He’s moved from Texas to Montreal to Toronto, where he’s now on an executive leadership team. He’s pitched and won multinational accounts, impressing clients with his intelligence and business acumen. And this year, at age 26, Alper made partner: the youngest at Sid Lee since it was founded.
His success story started with Piazza, who earned his MBA from McGill University and mentors business students there. Alper was a student seeking guidance (and a job).
“You could see he was head-and-shoulders above everyone else… He’s really passionate about what he talks about, but also earns the right to talk about just about anything with his width and depth of knowledge. He invests the time to understand a lot of topics.”
After being persistently dogged by the eloquent Texan, Sid Lee hired Alper as an intern on Piazza’s recommendation. Within weeks, his determination put him at conferences and dinner tables with senior global marketers. He never failed to impress. After the head of MGM’s global hotel brands called Sid Lee chairman Bertrand Cesvet, raving about Alper, Cesvet knew he needed to get to know the young thinker better.
“I sat down with Eric and asked when he’d finish his MBA,” Cesvet says. “He was so mature and smart, I thought he was in his late 20s.”
It was only then Cesvet found out Alper was not an MBA student. He was an undergrad. “I couldn’t believe it.”
Cesvet then tapped Alper to help author Conversational Capital, his book outlining the agency’s business philosophy. The relationship grew from there. “When he was 23, together we pitched and won the private label business for Walmart,” Cesvet said. “And he was the one pitching. At 25, he pitched and won Dell global with myself and Philippe [Meunier].”
For more with Eric Alper and the rest of the 30 Under 30, pick up the Sept. 10 issue of Marketing magazine.
