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Ken Stein
President at Kensington Company & Affiliates
Professional Background
Ken Stein is a prominent figure in the world of business development and entrepreneurship, known for his unwavering commitment to integrity and excellence. Prior to establishing The Kensington Company, Ken dedicated 18 successful years to operating a series of drug stores and home health care businesses on Long Island. His entrepreneurial journey took a significant turn in 1995 when he successfully sold his business to Revco Drug Stores, which was recognized as the second-largest drugstore chain in the United States at that time. Under his management, one of Ken's stores achieved remarkable success, ranking as the third highest in sales volume out of an impressive total of 2,500 stores. This exceptional accomplishment was made possible by significantly expanding the store size and providing unparalleled customer service in a highly competitive landscape.
After selling his business, Ken focused on his passion for helping others achieve their business goals through The Kensington Company. The Kensington Company specializes in various aspects of business transactions, including Mergers & Acquisitions, Franchise Sales, Franchisor Development, and Business Valuation. Through these divisions, Ken has cultivated an environment where aspiring business owners can thrive as he guides them in making informed decisions and strategies for successful ownership.
Education and Achievements
Ken Stein's educational background includes studying for a Bachelor of Science degree in Pharmacy at St. John's University, where he gained a solid foundation in the principles of business and healthcare. This academic experience uniquely positioned him to navigate the complexities of the pharmacy industry and later apply that knowledge to his various enterprises.
His tenure as an owner and operator in the pharmaceutical sector provided Ken with firsthand insights into business operations and management. Following his transition from operating retail pharmacies to focusing on Mergers & Acquisitions, Ken has conducted an impressive number of seminars that shed light on effective business exit strategies. These seminars have engaged audiences ranging from small groups of 10 to larger crowds exceeding 500 participants. His expertise has been sought after by a diverse array of entities, including professional organizations, entrepreneurial groups, outplacement centers, accountants, financial planners, and municipalities such as Nassau County Business Development. Ken's ability to convey complex concepts in digestible formats has made him a respected speaker in the field.
Achievements
Through The Kensington Company, Ken has built a reputable platform that enhances the lives of countless entrepreneurs. Under his leadership, the company has gained recognition for its proficiency in Mergers & Acquisitions, navigating the complexities of selling established businesses across various sectors from Main Street enterprises to Mid-Market companies. Ken's expertise in negotiation, business valuation, and strategic planning has fostered successful transitions for many business owners.
Ken has also made a mark in franchising, guiding businesses through Franchise Sales and Franchisor Development. His keen understanding of market dynamics allows him to assist clients in maximizing their potential within the franchise landscape. By providing targeted solutions, The Kensington Company has helped many aspiring franchisees realize their dreams of business ownership.
In his previous ventures, Ken held multiple significant roles, including President-Owner at Winstar Entertainment, DJ Cards, SaveMore Drugs, Cunningham Home Health Care, and Cunningham Pharmacy. He was also Vice President-Owner at South Bay Pharmacy. Each of these roles has contributed to his extensive knowledge and understanding of business operations, enhancing his consultancy approach at The Kensington Company.
In summary, Ken Stein embodies the essence of entrepreneurship, marking his journey with integrity, expertise, and a committed approach to helping others achieve their business aspirations. With a solid educational foundation and a wealth of experience in the pharmaceutical and business sectors, he remains a pillar in the entrepreneurial community, creating pathways for future leaders in business.
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Clay works by automatically bringing together your contacts from various sources like email, calendar, address book, iOS Contacts, LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp, and iMessage. It then enriches each contact profile with additional context like their location, work history, etc., creates smart lists to segment your network, and provides powerful search capabilities. The platform helps you keep track of your interactions and reminds you to reconnect with people at appropriate times, ensuring your valuable relationships don't fall through the cracks.
Clay offers several powerful features including:
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Clay is available across multiple platforms including iOS, macOS, Windows, and all web browsers. Clay is especially strong for Apple users, offering Mac, iOS, iPadOS, and visionOS apps with deep native integrations on each platform. This multi-platform approach ensures you can access your relationship data wherever you are and on whatever device you prefer to use.
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Clay offers many advantages over other personal CRMs. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Clay is designed to help you organize contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. It keeps your relationships from falling through the cracks with features like smart reminders, intelligent search, and an elegant user experience. Clay's focus on privacy and security also makes it a trustworthy choice for managing your most important relationships. Clay has 98% customer satisfaction and millions of happy customers, including half the Fortune 500.
Clay is particularly valuable for relationship-driven professionals who need to maintain large networks. The app is popular among many industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. Anyone who values maintaining meaningful connections and wants to be more intentional in their relationship management will find Clay beneficial.
Clay offers competitive pricing in the personal CRM market. Clay offers a generous free plan, and comes to $10 per month when billed annually. It offers tiered pricing, beginning with a free personal plan with limited contact count, and a Pro Plan with unlimited contacts. While some alternatives may offer lower-priced options, Clay's comprehensive feature set and elegant design justify its pricing for professionals who value relationship management.
Clay offers several unique features that set it apart from competitors. Clay focuses on aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of a user's network, consolidating data from various sources. Its Nexus AI feature is particularly innovative, allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network. Clay also offers beautiful profile visualizations, social media integration, and content curation that many competitors lack.
Yes. Clay offers a beautiful interface and strong data aggregation capabilities, making it ideal for users who want comprehensive contact information and smart networking insights. Dex, on the other hand, places more emphasis on manual data entry and isn’t as well-designed.
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Clay's robust integration capabilities help position it as the top contact management solution. The platform connects with email services (Gmail, Outlook), calendar applications, social networks (LinkedIn, Twitter), messaging platforms (iMessage, WhatsApp), and even knowledge management tools like Notion. Clay has expanded its integrations catalog to include Zapier and Make.com support, allowing connections to thousands of other apps. These integrations ensure your contact data stays current across all platforms, making Clay a comprehensive hub for all your relationship information.
Clay's AI capabilities are at the forefront of personal CRM innovation. Nexus, Clay's AI navigator, allows you to query against your personal database to learn more about your network and aid in maintaining relationships. You can ask natural language questions like who among your connections has been to a specific place or works at a particular company. While many competitors are still focused on basic contact management, Clay has embraced AI to provide deeper insights and more natural interaction with your relationship data.
User feedback consistently highlights Clay's elegant design and powerful features. Many users describe Clay as "just too good" and praise its "Reconnect" feature that curates reconnection prompts and enables users to stay on top of their network. Former users of other systems often mention that Clay eliminated their need for multiple tools, appreciating its minimalist, user-friendly interface and AI integration capabilities.