Industry Innovators 2024: Jacob Towe

Photo: Eric KelleyJacob Towe is the creative director and CEO of Jacob Co Creative, a lighting company that specializes in fully off-grid wireless lighting design. He's based in the U.S. and travels worldwide, and serves as the lighting partner for the popular Engage! Summits. 

How he got his start: "I started my career 25 years ago as a sound engineer and artist. I started doing events when my wife challenged me at a party and said, 'I think you could do this better.' So, I tried my hand at events with a different approach of creativity, and always asking if there was another way to do things.

This led us to many exciting opportunities. We got our first big break when being asked to do The Knot Gala and projection map the entire front of the New York Public Library with moving graphics, something that had never been done there before. This pushed us into the luxury world of events quickly with our out-of-the-box thinking in our lighting design."

What sets his company apart: "We say there are two things our company pushes for at every event we do: 1) A small footprint with a big impact, and 2) The best part is no part; the best process is no process."

What innovation means to him: "Innovation is not always about the new. For me, it’s about getting to the root of an idea and asking, 'What is possible?' Innovators find all the ways not to do a thing so they can find the one way to do it best.

On any given day I come up with two to five new ideas for our company. This level of inspiration and innovation comes from a habit of rising early and dedicating myself to learning and reading about great leaders and artists from history. Learning about their relentless push for growth in their personal and professional life inspires me to push myself and my company to new innovative heights daily."

"By lighting the events with such clarity and warmth, the images that came from that week of events are some of the very best we have seen in recent memory," says Towe.Photo: Eric KelleyMemorable moments: "One event recently that stands out was the Engage! Summit in Montenegro. There was purposefully very little decor and a minimalist version of entertainment to draw the attendees into the conversation without distraction and, of course, highlight the beautiful location. But what this did was leave room for us to make a real statement with just lighting. By lighting the events with such clarity and warmth, the images that came from that week of events are some of the very best we have seen in recent memory. The emotion and real joy of the event came out through the colors and reactions on peoples' faces.

To me that’s true innovation; it is when all you have is the very simplest form of your art and you can raise it to the highest level, then you have truly created a lasting impact."

His biggest hope for the event industry: "We are always pushing for a fresh take on events from an artistic design eye and not a rinse-and-repeat mentality. Our hope is that the creatives in the industry will put down their phones, dig deep into their artistry, and create something that will last for the next generation."

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