HotSocket Names Proteam's Kipust to Board

New York City-based HotSocket Inc., a Web-based direct response marketing company, said that Alan Kipust of Proteam.com (formerly Genesis Direct) has joined its board of advisors.

Kipust is the vice president of operations at the catalog retailer.

“Alan is a fantastic addition to the HotSocket board,” said Dev Bhatia, president of HotSocket. “He brings with him a wealth of knowledge about two worlds we must understand to succeed: catalog retailing and Web-based consumer sales. With his success at managing the growth and transition strategy at Genesis Direct and Proteam, coupled with his knowledge of online retailing, he’ll be one of our most valued advisors.”

Formerly Genesis Direct, a database-driven catalog retailer with more than 15,000 products, Proteam recently announced a major strategic repositioning of its business and is now a Web-based retailer specializing in the marketing and sales of sports and sports related products to both fans and participants.

HotSocket offers products directly to consumers in dedicated banner campaigns, and then tracks performance at dynamically generated sites for each product that it sells. The company’s proprietary technology platform allows it to learn from every consumer interaction, and to track, test, and improve its sales “on the fly.”