Booker, a former HSBC executive, started last week.
Perry Chen, who is 35 and Kickstarter's chief executive, started thinking about the idea in 2002.
Not the seed money that his father, a successful insurance executive, started him with.
The company has appointed respected fashion-industry veteran Paula Schneider as chief executive starting on 5 January.
A new chief executive starts next summer which brings the risk of expectations being lowered.
($34) HIGHLIGHT Lexy Funk, co-founder and chief executive, started out with her partner making messenger bags from recycled billboards.
Kassam, a former entertainment industry executive, started his company in 2004, but didn't come to Silicon Valley until 2010.
At Sparkling Pointe, Leonardo Manno, the tasting house coordinator and wholesale account executive, started Foodie Sundays this summer, with local chefs preparing appetizers for the tastings.
Mario Labbé, a frequent-flying Canadian record-company executive, started having problems at airports shortly after Sept. 11, 2001, with lengthy delays at checkpoints and mysterious questions about Japan.
Mr. Cain, a former pizza executive, started a few months ago by telling a reporter that he would not be comfortable with a Muslim in his cabinet.
