Photo: Mover and Shaker: Henry Cardenas with local Chicago celebrity Robin Robinson of Fox Chicago at CMN’s 5th Anniversary Celebration. The event was held in November 2008 at the CMN chief executive's nightclub, Republic.
It seems as though the American Airlines Elite status customers get some amazing perks, including waived baggage fees, priority check-in and boarding privileges. But the airlines probably haven’t really fathomed how to reward Henry Cardenas, a man who has recently hit the 7 million-mark in frequent flyer miles with American alone. Milestone you say? Ironically, the milestone is not the mileage itself, but rather the origin from which it derived—30 years of international jet-setting to produce high-profile concerts featuring the hottest Latin artists while orchestrating massive Hispanic event marketing campaigns for corporate giants like Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company and Anheuser-Busch. The candid and energy-fueled CMN boss runs the gamut of his start in the business and how he broke down barriers to help Hispanic live entertainment reach new heights. – By Juel Grange
JG: You have just reached an important milestone in your career: 30 years – and going. What has been the driving force behind your successful entrepreneurial career?
HC: I guess the drive is the constant challenge in this industry. The last four or five years have been challenging, not only for me, but for the entire organization as well. The music business – both on the artist and sponsor side – has really changed in the last 10 years. The new landscape has changed so much that you have to be more selective and analytical in the way you approach new deals. It keeps us on our toes.
JG: I’d like to take a step back and get a bit of the history. Take me to the beginning of it all. Where did you grow up?
HC: I spent my childhood and the first 17 years of my life in my native Cali, Colombia. Then in 1972, my family moved to Chicago, and I’ve been here ever since. I received my Bachelors at Northeastern University and my MBA at Governors State University.
JG: What were some of your aspirations early on?
HC: It’s kind of funny because my college major was accounting, but somehow I ended up in marketing. I always loved music. I loved marketing, and I loved selling ideas. I produced my first event—a series of disco parties at NIU – in 1979. I knew then this was my forte.
JG: The entire world has seen the rapid growth of Latin artists and Latin entertainment in general. What, in your opinion, has been the reason behind this phenomenon?
HC: I think Latin entertainment has been there all along, but I think the scale went from 1 to 10 during the Ricky Martin era, in the late ‘90’s. That’s when we crossed over. He opened many doors for artists as well as promoters and that’s when Corporate America started looking a lot more closely into the Hispanic market. It really was a breakthrough for the entire Latin entertainment industry.
JG: You’ve had several shows that have sold out this year. With the inflation rate of ticket concert prices basically doubling in the last decade, how do you manage to keep your company afloat despite the current recession?
HC: It’s a matter of being selective. CMN doesn’t produce events just for the fun of it, even though they are certainly fun to produce [laughing]. Music fans demand excellent shows. Not B shows, not C shows. They’re looking for A plus shows, and that’s what we aim to provide. We may not be offering a large number of shows, as in entire tours, but instead we are producing four or five shows in the major markets. It’s more about quality, not quantity.
JG: You founded CMN in 2003 as a Hispanic event marketing and sponsorship firm, with Latin music as one of your main platforms. This has worked well for companies looking to reach this powerful market. Can you expand on the benefits that companies receive through initiatives such as last year’s Baila Con Bud Light or the current mobile marketing tour, Planeta Wrigley?
HC: The benefits, especially in this critical economy, are that these are programs where consumers can actually connect with the brand. There is an emotional connection that takes place between the brand and the consumer, and that makes it special. It’s experiential, and it’s different from just placing ads in newspapers. Ninety percent of our event marketing programs are on-site. We go to the supermarkets, drug stores and nightclubs and reach out to the consumers. The program has to be tangible and it has to make sense. We want customers to ‘see’ and ‘feel’ the brand.
JG: Planeta Wrigley has been enormously successful since it launched. This is the second major mobile marketing effort your team designs from the ground up. Why is mobile marketing such an effective marketing strategy for Hispanics?
HC: Again, it’s about connecting with the consumers. We’re taking Planeta Wrigley to the biggest Hispanic festivals, where there can be as many as 70,000 or 80,000 people, and they are not going to overlook this huge complex. There’s a stage, live music, prizes, domes where people can try the different flavored gum at oxygen bars or play video games. It’s very experiential, and that’s why it’s been so successful, but there aren’t many companies that are willing to spend that type of money to execute a program as complete as this one.
JG: What makes CMN unique in relation to other event marketing agencies?
HC: The biggest difference is that we are the most experienced one when it comes to Hispanic marketing. We know this market well. We understand it. We’re also fortunate to have great, long-term working relationships with companies such as Anheuser-Busch, American Airlines, Coca-Cola and MillerCoors, all of with whom I have worked for over three decades. Obviously, there is a sense of trust, and it’s important to deliver what you promise.
JG: Can you think of any business propositions that may have come your way in the past but that you rejected and, in hindsight, wish you had not?
HC: Not really. If it’s an excellent proposition, we won’t pass on it. We give ourselves a challenge and go after it.
JG: From 2003 -2008, CMN grew a substantial 52%, and last year you were even named to Crain’s Chicago Business’ “Fastest Growing Companies” in Chicago. What aided that rapid growth?
HC: The company basically has two divisions. One is the touring department, which is the music side, and the other is the event marketing department, and that’s really where we’ve seen the most growth. We have more clients and we’re developing new programs at the same time. We are creating ideas that our clients can truly own.
JG: You’ve recently joined forces with Billboard to produce the Billboard Latin Music Series, which kicks off in 2010. How would you classify this accomplishment in the stream of successes? Has this broken any boundaries for the company?
HC: Absolutely. Billboard is a very conservative company, and for CMN to be able to work with them at this level is very exciting. I think it’s going to be a great marriage. Both companies are involved in the music industry, but we each have our specialties. We’re all looking forward to seeing this program develop.
JG: Touch upon your Off-Broadway production, “Celia: The Life and Music of Celia Cruz.” What was your initial attraction to create “Celia?”
HC: Well, I worked with Celia for many, many years. She was an extraordinarily gifted artist, a true legend. I can’t think of another Latin music figure that has impacted people as much as Celia. The musical is a tribute to her. We’ve taken the musical to different places and people everywhere are touched by her incredible story and music.
JG: Will we see “Celia” on tour in the U.S. in the near future?
HC: Yes, hopefully. We just finished our engagement at the Adrienne Arsht Center in Miami and next month the show will be in Puerto Rico. Hopefully after that, it will go to South America. I am optimistic that we will go on tour in the states in the early part of 2010.
JG: Given the nature of this business and your constant travel, is it difficult to detach yourself from work and does it ever take its toll?
HC: We travel quite a bit, for sure, but we also take time off. When I take too much time off, I don’t get detached, I get more attached! It’s like a disease. At times I’ll take a couple of weeks off, but by the 12th day or so, I’m ready to go back to the challenge. There are so many things happening in the market, all the time. I don’t like to be out of the ball game for a long period of time. But when I do manage to get away, I like to spend time in my house in the Dominican Republic. When we go on vacation, we’ll see different concerts going on, dances, and festivals and we just walk past them and go as far away as possible! [Laughing]. I like golfing, fishing, playing soccer and being with the family.
JG: What lies ahead for CMN, and where do you see yourself in the next 10 years?
HC: I see CMN growing in the event marketing side and getting away from touring. The goal now is to grow in the event marketing and sports marketing sectors. As for myself, I’ll probably be doing the same thing, but maybe taking a little more time off.
JG: Do you ever consider your legacy in the business?
HC: My philosophy is that whatever you promise, you deliver and that’s how we survive in this business. So if you leave that legacy of being honest and deliver, that’s success to me. It’s not about the bank account. It’s about who you are as a person and as a professional.
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