Jerome M. Smolar,
President and Chief Executive Officer
Jerry Smolar
has been President and Chief Executive Officer of Chameleon Chairs LLC
since April 2008. In addition, he is the majority shareholder
of the Company. Mr. Smolar began his career at Arthur Andersen
& Co. as a certified public accountant. During his eight year
tenure with that company, he held a series of positions with increasing
management responsibilities. In 1978, he joined Safeco Title Insurance
Company as Vice President and Controller. In 1980, he was promoted
to Chief Financial Officer and was appointed to the company's Board
of Directors in 1981. At that time, Safeco was the nation's
third largest title insurance company. In 1987, Safeco Title was
sold to Chicago Title Insurance Company and Mr. Smolar played an integral
role in the successful merger of Safeco into Chicago Title. After
leaving Safeco, Mr. Smolar served as the Chief Financial Officer for
two publicly traded companies, PIP Printing, Inc. and Image Entertainment,
Inc.
For twelve
years prior to joining Chameleon Chair, Mr. Smolar served as President
and Chief Executive Officer of Nations Holding Group, a holding company
for several title insurance related subsidiaries, including United Title
Company and United Capital Title Insurance Company. Under his
leadership, Nations Holding Group grew from a small company with annual
revenues of approximately $12 million to a regional company with approximately
$140 million in revenues.
In September
2002, Nations Holding Group merged with Capital Title Group, Inc. a
Phoenix-based, publicly traded title company. In September 2006,
along with Capital Title Group, Inc., Nations Holding Group was sold
to LandAmerica Financial Group, Inc., a Fortune 500 company. Mr.
Smolar played a key role in facilitating the transition and integration
of the NHG family of companies into LandAmerica until joining Chameleon
Chair.
Jerry's educational
background includes a BA in Economics as well as a Masters of Business
Administration from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA)
in 1971 and 1978, respectively. He is also licensed as a Certified
Public Accountant (CPA) in California since 1973.
Behshad Shokouhi,
AIA, CCIDC,Designer
Mr. Shokouhi
arrived in America at age 18 after attending boarding school in England.
He received a Bachelor's Degree of Architecture from the University
of Tennessee and a Master's Degree from the University of Southern
California. He is a licensed architect with twenty-five years experience
and is the designer of the Chameleon Chair product line.
Prior to opening
the firm of Arcus Aetus, Mr. Shokouhi worked for Skidmore, Owings and
Merrill, in both Chicago and Los Angeles. He also spent two years doing
hands-on construction management. With a portfolio of many notable buildings
in this country and abroad, he has garnered a reputation for outstanding
architectural and design work.
An interest
in furniture arose from Mr. Shokouhi's involvement in interior design.
"Looking for furniture made me realize that there really wasn't
much choice," says Shokouhi. "It was either traditional or modern
with very little in-between." Thus, he began creating furniture and
has since been featured in Leslie Pena's book, Furniture 2000, his
work described as "among the best of Twentieth Century furniture."
In architecture
as in furniture, Mr. Shokouhi applies the same concept of versatility
and adaptability to extend the life and usefulness of his designs. With
an economy of means his design work, particularly his choice of materials,
reflects a strong belief and effort to preserve the environment.
Barbara Starler,
Vice President
Barbara joins
the firm following a thirty year career in education. Her skills in
personal relations and administration are a few of the many assets she
brings to our marketing and advertising efforts. Her main purpose is
to build the Chameleon name and expand the recognition of our trendsetting
and innovative product.
Since her arrival
at the company, the Chameleon Chair Collection has been
featured in such prestigious publications including: Los Angeles Magazine,
People, Special Events, BiZBash, Inside Weddings, Grace Ormonde Wedding
Style Magazine, Ceremony Magazine, Your Wedding Day, and San Diego Style
Weddings, and has been seen in a growing number of television shows
and motion pictures.
Teri Rudin (1953-2018),
Co-Founder
Teri's talent and imagination at creating extraordinary parties for her son led to the opening of Reigning Parties, a party planning business. Her company's distinctive stylized centerpieces and stage props constructed from foam board, foam rubber, wood, glitter, sequins, and hand-painted fabrics were familiar to those with discerning taste.
It was Teri's work for one of the principals of Regal Rents that led to her employment with the prestigious rental company. Charged with product development, Teri created an upscale linen department and embellished their tabletops with bold new china patterns, glassware and flatware.
She was instrumental in bringing about new choices to shape the growth of their chair and barstool inventory and gave the Chiavari Chair a refreshing faux finish. Regal Rents gained a strong company branding at the Special Events Industry and American Rental Association shows with her award-winning booth designs. Teri had been invovlved with Chamelon since 2005 and passed away in 2018, and she was always committed to keeping the Chameleon Chair Collection the item that every distinguished party and event should demand. Her extensive collection of chair covers remain a significant asset to the company's offerings.