A High-tech Corner Store.

• Author: ANDERSEN, KRISTIN
• Position: Brief Article

Neil Sexton may be busily developing a web-based storefront for his latest company, but that doesn't mean he thinks the Internet is the end of warm fuzzy service as we know it." If anything he's trying to blend high-tech and "hightouch" Or maybe, he's trying to recreate the feel of his grandfather's grocery store, but online. Either way, tech is just a starting point.

The 41-year-old CEO bailed from corporate life three years ago and landed in Trinidad, where he started Colorado Card & Curiosities, a greeting card wholesale business and retail gallery in historic downtown. Formerly senior VP of direct marketing for Chicago-based Successories and a 20-year veteran of the greeting card biz, Sexton had to wait out a noncompete agreement before launching his newest venture, CorporateGreetings.com, a business-to-business direct marketer of greeting cards and other customizable products. He also owns Sexton's Markets, a direct marketing consultancy named after his grandfather's store.

Sexton said he's targeting markets he feels Successories under-served, particularly women in business. (The best that "testosterone-filled room" could do for women was to slap a pink border on something, he noted.) He also aims for an industry-high average order rate (closer to $500 per order vs. Successories' $150 to $175).

An investor, board member and good friend is web guru Andy Patrick, creator of Apple.com and Patagonia.com, among other high-profile...