Jump to content

Draft:George Karmas (Georgios Karamatsoukas)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

George Karmas (Georgios Karamatsoukas)

[edit]

Born: 1989, Thessaloniki, Greece Nationality: Greek-American Occupation: Entrepreneur, Digital Media Expert, Founder & CEO of B4Battle

Biography

[edit]

George Karmas (born Georgios Karamatsoukas) is a Greek-American entrepreneur and digital media expert. He is the founder and CEO of B4Battle, a global media company focused on providing live media training, resources, and digital infrastructure for businesses and creators.

Karmas was born in Thessaloniki, Greece, in 1989. He grew up in a family of business owners and successful artists. His father, Emmanouil Karamatsoukas, is a mechanical engineer and car enthusiast, and his mother, Eleni Rakintzi, was the owner of a successful advertising media company. His brother, John, is a developer and artist currently based in the UK, while his sister, Irene, is a singer and cultural history expert. The collective influence of his family shaped Karmas’s professional and creative drive from an early age.

Karmas attended a Music High School and was awarded a scholarship for drums and percussion at Berklee College of Music, but he chose to pursue business, marketing, and graphic design instead. He went on to study Fine Art and Graphic Design, with a minor in Art History, at West Chester University of Pennsylvania, where he further developed his technical and creative skills. At 18, he completed his army service in Greece, after which he spent five years working at Zita Medical Publications as a graphic designer.

In 2013, Karmas moved to the United States at the age of 24. With limited English skills, he took on side jobs, including pizza delivery, restaurant work, and flipping yard sale items online. Eventually, he secured a position at Hellenic News of America, a prominent Greek-American newspaper, where he managed the technical aspects and designed the newspaper and website. During this time, Karmas worked closely with the newspaper's founder, Paul Kotrotsios.

Karmas also worked with his uncle, Mihalis Rakinzis, a well-known Greek artist, for over 15 years. He managed the technical elements of Mihalis's live performances, including sound and audio engineering, and continued to perform with him. In collaboration with Minos-EMI, Karmas released the song Sxoleia Telos under the artist name Elvin.

In 2015, Karmas joined Walnut St. Labs in West Chester, Pennsylvania, where he led web development and digital strategies for enterprise clients as Director of Engineering. This role set the foundation for his later entrepreneurial ventures. In 2016, he co-founded cliqer.io with his brother, John Karamatsoukas, a platform serving major clients such as Adobe, Amazon, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, and Oracle.

From 2022 to 2024, Karmas collaborated with Ant Live Agency in Romania, where he focused on branding and technical operations as CTO for the TikTok-focused agency.

In 2024, Karmas founded B4Battle, a media company offering training and digital infrastructure for live media operations. B4Battle operates in multiple regions, including the US, Canada, Australia, UK, EU, CCA, Philippines, and Taiwan, and holds legal contracts with TikTok. The company supports creators and businesses through a vast network of professionals.

Karmas is also an experienced Twitch live streamer, applying his extensive knowledge of the live media space to help other creators succeed. He lives between Philadelphia and Athens, Greece, and frequently travels for work. He is married to Antigoni Elefanti, and they have two children, Apollon Emmanouil and Dioni Paraskevi. Karmas honors the memory of his late uncle, Nicholas Karamatsoukas, founder of Original Philly Cheesesteak co. who passed away in October 2024, and was a major influence on his entrepreneurial journey.

Timeline

[edit]
  • 1989: Born in Thessaloniki, Greece.
  • 2007-2008: Completed army service in Greece.
  • 2008-2013: Worked at Zita Medical Publications as a graphic designer.
  • 2013: Moved to the United States at the age of 24, supporting himself with side hustles before landing a job at Hellenic News of America.
  • 2014-2015: Built the branding and website for Hellenic News of America, working with founder Paul Kotrotsios.
  • 2016: Co-founded cliqer.io, providing digital solutions to major clients like Adobe, Amazon, Microsoft, and Oracle.
  • 2016-2024: Director of Engineering at Walnut St. Labs, leading enterprise-level projects and automations for high-profile clients.
  • 2022-2024: Collaborated with Ant Live Agency, focusing on branding and technical operations for TikTok creators as CTO.
  • 2024: Founded B4Battle, a global media company providing live media training and management for businesses and creators, and signed legal contracts with TikTok to operate across multiple regions globally.
  • Present: CEO of B4Battle | Digital Media Expert.

References

[edit]
  • "In Memoriam: Nicholas I. Karamatsoukas". Archons. Retrieved October 2024. [1]
  • "Mihalis Rakinzis". Wikipedia (Greek). Retrieved October 2024. [2]
  • "About Us". Hellenic News of America. Retrieved October 2024. [3]
  • "Sxoleia Telos". YouTube. Retrieved October 2024. [4]
  • "B4Battle - Media Company". B4Battle. Retrieved October 2024. [5]
  • "Walnut St. Labs". Official Website. Retrieved October 2024. [6]
  • "About Us". Cliqer.io. Retrieved October 2024. [7]
  • "West Chester University of Pennsylvania". Wikipedia. Retrieved October 2024. West Chester University

References

[edit]