The Founder

Stu Birger, CEO of Innowave Marketing Group

Stu Birger served as Chief Executive Officer of Cascade Promotion Corporation since founding the Company in 1994.   Cascade’s client roster included such prestigious names as Marriott, Wells Fargo, Cisco Systems and Caesars Entertainment.  Mr. Birger is a business services entrepreneur with expertise in organizational development, client acquisition, supplier relationships, financial management, strategic supply chain solutions and specialty retail initiatives. Mr. Birger worked closely with a team of investment bankers and attorneys through the successful acquisition of The Company in June 2008 by Maritz Corporation of Missouri, the largest provider of integrated incentive, reward, travel, and research programs in the marketplace. Following the acquisition, Mr. Birger was Senior Vice President of Business Development for Maritz for three years.

Prior to founding Cascade, Mr. Birger founded and operated Promotional Support Group (PSG) from 1991 through 1993.    Based in Massachusetts, PSG was a promotion and Distribution Company created to warehouse and distribute electronics and brand name product lines to end users and resellers in the Northeast incentive market.  PSG sold these services utilizing conceptual promotion strategies, return on investment analysis, and creative services. PSG successfully served a wide range of clients including Pepsi, Reebok, Allied Signal, and CVS Pharmacy.  After founding Cascade in California in 1994, Mr. Birger led the acquisition of PSG and an affiliate company in 1998, and merged the operations under a unified business development plan.

Mr. Birger has been a member of the Incentive Marketing Association, Incentive Manufacturers & Representative Alliance (IMRA), and the Global Incentive Council.  He has served on the board of directors of IMRA and was Chairman of the IMRA Education Committee.  He is an eight time recipient of the Incentive Magazine's Manufacturer's Representative of the Year Reward and three time recipient of the IMRA Gold Key Award for the most successful promotion in the United States.

Mr. Birger is a member of the Silicon Valley Alliance of CEO’s and is an active participant in the Angel Investment community in Silicon Valley including working as an advisor at Inspovation Ventures.

Mr. Birger holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Tufts University and has completed training at the National Summit on Lean Six Sigma for Service and Transactional Environments in the Process Improvement field of study. He and his wife live in the bay area and have a twelve year old daughter and ten year old son.