Jake Rosenberg, The CoveteurThe Coveteur isn't just a luxury lifestyle destination—it's the luxury lifestyle destination.
Scrolling through the website's pages is like more like strolling through Bergdorf Goodman, with gobs of designer goods and lust-worthy accessories adorning each and every pristine spread. And with beauty, health and food also woven into the high fashion fold, The Coveteur is basically the luxe lover's bible.
This week, we caught up with The Coveteur's co-founder, creative director and photographer, Jake Rosenberg, on everything from the site's inception to his very favorite celebrities to photograph (cough, Oprah Winfrey). Now read on to hear from Jake himself!
What was your first job?
My first real job was working at Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC) in Toronto. I worked on the sales floor selling tents and sleeping bags. I have a huge passion for the outdoors—I would go hiking and paddling as much as possible and MEC was always my favorite store to buy my gear. I worked there for two years throughout college. I was like a kid in a candy store.
How did you get started in your career?
I used to want to shoot for companies like Northface and Patagonia but when I tried to mix my love for the backcountry with work, it started to take away from what I loved about the escape. There was one photographer in Toronto who truly inspired me. His work, his sense of light, the way he told stories through his photographs—his name is Chris Nicholls. I cold emailed him one day and got the opportunity to work under him for a short time. This was how I made my way into the fashion and celebrity world. During the time I assisted and learned from him, I started to shoot as much as possible on my own. I worked on a look book shoot with my current business partner (Stephanie Mark). It was the first time I had ever met her. We started the The Coveteur the next day and five years later, we are here.
What is a typical day like for you?
My day-to-day is never the same. I am on the road generally 25 days out of the month—shoot every day and try to manage my office work at night. Sometimes I have up to five shoots a day. I get to meet the most interesting people all over the world—I am truly fortunate. When I am back at the office, I work with the teams, brainstorming, evaluating, and working on lots of post-production for all my shoots. We are always trying to push the site forward, so I spend a lot of my time on design work and research to decide where to take the site and the brand next. I love using Dropbox with my team to make sure everything is organized and up to date as file management is huge for us since we deal in such high volumes of video and photo content. Evenings at home are spent with friends and family—LOTS of home cooked meals since when I am on the road so often and eat out most of the time.
Tell us about your office décor. When did you last give your office a makeover?
We have had a few offices over the years, from my living room to a small floor of a house to our current office, which I love. My personal office inside The Coveteur is wall-to-wall inspiration. I have always made it a point to surround myself with things that keep me inspired. I have a huge wall of tear sheets that I am constantly updating. Other walls I keep for art: large paintings, silkscreens, photographs. I also have a love for coffee table books—my office has stacks and stacks of them—everything from Herb Ritts to Ansel Adams. I always keep a few personal items around; a gift from my grandfather, my paddle and a picture of my family.
What's the best part about your job?
Three things: meeting new people every day who inspire me to push myself, travelling the world and working with a team that supports me and believes in the same vision.
Tell us more about your role at The Coveteur—how did the concept for the site first come about?
My role here is Creative Director and Photographer. I studied Industrial Design and this is where my passion for branding and storytelling came about. I attending the Ontario College of Art and Design, a highly conceptual school, which taught me to look at things a little differently. I play a large role in managing all the design and branding that goes into the site, as well as oversee general creative output. I also spend the majority of my time on the road creating content and managing content. I have to get all the content back to the office when I am away for several months at a time and Dropbox has been a huge part of making sure that happens quickly and safely. I shoot almost every single day.
The Coveteur started as just a project that was for fun. Street style was such a huge thing, but we really wanted to know where these people got ready; why the influential people in fashion wore what they did; what were their spaces like? It started in fashion because that's where we had a few contacts, but now it has grown into a luxury lifestyle media company. The day we launched, the site crashed and we just kept at it. We pushed as hard as we could until it very quickly because our full time jobs.
Who have been your favorite celebrities to photograph, and why?
I have had the pleasure of working with so many inspiring and talented people around the world so this question is always hard for me to answer.
In year one, I shot Hugh Hefner. That was quite the experience.
I loved working with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. Yes, she is beyond gorgeous and amazing to photograph, but it was her creative side that really took it to the next level. She got so involved with the shoot, she was excited to be part of what we were building and make her shoot awesome, which I loved. She has a great eye that she definitely added to our shoot, as well as just being an awesome person in general.
I recently had the pleasure of shooting Oprah Winfrey. I never thought that I would have the opportunity of working with her. Her professionalism, her 'get it done and get it done right' attitude...I mean, it was Oprah! It was really listening to hear speak about her experiences and perspective on life that I admired most—she truly is a divine woman.
Who are some of your career heroes?
Richard Alvedon, Andy Warhol, Peter Lindbergh, Raymond Mier, Raymond Loewy; but the list could go on for days.
What is the best piece of advice you've ever received?
"Do what you love."— My father.
Finish the sentences below:
Today for lunch I had… Greek salad with chicken.
The first website I log onto every day is… The Coveteur.
My favorite Instagram to follow is… @NatGeo.
If I wasn't doing this job, I would… travel the world with a small backpack.
My favorite place to visit is… My parents' house.
List five things that are on your desk right now… Jambox, stack of Lacie rugged 1tb drives, Love Magazine, Macbook Pro, disposable camera.
My last big shopping splurge was… three new pairs of Common Projects.