Brad Handler (born July 19, 1967) is an American
entrepreneur
Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...
and
attorney best known for his success in the
destination club
The concept of a destination club was introduced in 1998, when Rob McGrath, a veteran of the luxury timeshare development business, launched Private Retreats. Since then, more than 30 companies have launched clubs targeting affluent families that w ...
industry and his role as the first in-house attorney at
eBay
eBay Inc. ( ) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that facilitates consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer sales through its website. eBay was founded by Pierre Omidyar in 1995 and became a ...
. He is a founder and chairman of Inspirato, a private, luxury destination club. In 2002, along with his brother
Brent Handler, he founded Exclusive Resorts, where he served as chairman, CEO and vice-chairman. He served as eBay's in-house attorney from 1997 to 2001. He is based in
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto (; Spanish language, Spanish for "tall stick") is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a Sequoia sempervirens, coastal redwood tree kno ...
.
Personal life and education
Handler was born July 19, 1967 in
Denver, Colorado
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
, the son of Suzanne and Norton Handler. He has one sibling, younger brother
Brent Handler. He attended
Thomas Jefferson High School (Denver)
Thomas Jefferson High School is a secondary school located in the Southmoor Park neighborhood, on the southeast side of Denver, Colorado, United States. It is operated under the Denver Public Schools. The school teams are the Spartans. The schoo ...
, where he played tennis and competed on the debate team, and graduated in 1985. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from the College of Arts & Sciences at the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
and a Bachelor of Science degree in
Economics
Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...
from The
Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania ( ; also known as Wharton Business School, the Wharton School, Penn Wharton, and Wharton) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a Private university, private Ivy League rese ...
in 1989. In 1995, he earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law, where he served as the managing editor of the Virginia Law Review from 1994 to 1995. In 2000, Handler helped establish the University of Virginia School of Law's Law and Technology Initiative Fund in support of research, scholarship and entrepreneurial activity.
Early career
From 1989 to 1990, Handler worked as a consultant for
American Management Systems
American Management Systems (previous NASDAQ symbol: AMSY) was a high technology and management consulting firm, founded in 1970 by a group of five former United States Department of Defense, Defense Department officials who had worked under Rober ...
. From 1990 to 1992, Handler worked as a technical review specialist at
Apple Inc.
Apple Inc. is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, United States. Apple is the largest technology company by revenue (totaling in 2021) and, as of June 2022, is the world's biggest company ...
After graduating from law school, he worked for two years as an associate at
Cooley Godward LLP.
eBay
In October 1997, Handler joined
eBay
eBay Inc. ( ) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that facilitates consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer sales through its website. eBay was founded by Pierre Omidyar in 1995 and became a ...
after being recruited to run their business development group but convincing them they needed an in-house attorney. As eBay's first in-house lawyer, Handler was responsible for eBay's user agreement, privacy policy and eBay's government relations group. He was also instrumental in the establishment of the eBay Foundation in 1998, creating the first framework for allocating pre-IPO shares into a company foundation. Handler left his full-time position at eBay in December 2001, but continued as a consultant for another 18 months.
Exclusive Resorts
In 2002, Handler and his brother Brent, along with Tom Filippini, founded destination club Exclusive Resorts after coming up with the idea while sitting on the beach together in Hawaii. Brad Handler served as the company's chairman, CEO and vice-chairman between 2002 and 2009, a period of great innovation and growth that led to Exclusive Resorts becoming the recognized industry leader. In 2004, the Handler brothers sold majority ownership of Exclusive Resorts to Steve Case. By the end of 2009, Exclusive Resorts claimed over 3,250 members, nearly 400 homes, and delivered nearly 100,000 completed vacations. Brad Handler stepped down from his role on the Exclusive Resorts’ board of directors in 2011.
Inspirato
In January 2011, Brent and Brad Handler re-entered the destination club marketplace with the launch of Denver-based Inspirato, along with co-founders Martin Pucher and Brian Corbett.
Brad Handler is the company's chairman. In a departure from the traditional destination club model, Inspirato engages in long-term leases rather than buying their homes, greatly reducing the club's investment costs and allowing for lower membership fees.
Under the Handlers’ leadership, Inspirato experienced early success and interest from the venture capital community. The company raised $65 million from venture capital firms including
Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers
Kleiner Perkins, formerly Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB), is an American venture capital firm which specializes in investing in incubation, early stage and growth companies. Since its founding in 1972, the firm has backed entrepreneurs ...
and Institutional Venture Partners.
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
magazine named Inspirato one of "America’s Most Promising Companies" in November 2011 and
Robb Report
The ''Robb Report'' is an American, English-language, luxury-lifestyle magazine featuring products, including automobiles, aviation, boating, real estate and watches. Founded in 1976, it is currently owned by Penske Media Corporation. It also dist ...
included the club in its "Best of the Best 2012" list. On May 16, 2012, 16 months after opening, Inspirato announced it had acquired nearly 2,000 club members. The company has also been active philanthropically, helping raise over $1.5 million, as of August 2012, for nonprofit organizations, schools and hospitals across the country by providing vacation homes for auction at fundraising events.
Other
In addition to his entrepreneurial pursuits, Handler is a lecturer at
Stanford Law School
Stanford Law School (Stanford Law or SLS) is the law school of Stanford University, a private research university near Palo Alto, California. Established in 1893, it is regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world. Stanford La ...
and the
University of Virginia School of Law
The University of Virginia School of Law (Virginia Law or UVA Law) is the law school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson as part of his "academical v ...
. He is a board member of
New Moon
In astronomy, the new moon is the first lunar phase, when the Moon and Sun have the same ecliptic longitude. At this phase, the lunar disk is not visible to the naked eye, except when it is silhouetted against the Sun during a solar eclipse.
...
Girls magazine. He is also an active angel investor and is credited with numerous patents. Handler is a contributor to
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
.com.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Handler, Brad
American lawyers
21st-century American businesspeople
1967 births
Living people