Spotlight On A Reader - Tyler Dikman
This week’s profile is of a young, successful web entrepreneur who is rumored to be the youngest invited black cardholder ever. Tyler Dikman has been an entrepreneur since a young age and it has paid off for him in a big way. If you want more info other than the interview below, here is a cool video of Tyler on “The Big Idea”. Thanks again to Tyler for taking the time to do the interview, best of luck with the launch of Redux.
What is your name: Tyler Dikman
How old are you: 23
Where are you from: Originally from Tampa, Florida
Where do you live now: Presently living in San Francisco. However, I am in Tampa, Florida quite often as well.
Describe what you do for a living and how long you’ve done it: At the present time I have two primary jobs: VP - Business Strategy and Operations for Redux (www.redux.com), a venture backed website focused on people discovery (1 Year), and CEO for CoolTronics (www.cooltronics.com), a complete technology solution provider for small businesses and consumers (8 Years).
How long have you been a Centurion card member: I first received my card in January of 2002 at the age of 17.
Are you happy with the card, if so what are your favorite aspects: Overall, American Express is by far the best credit card company out there. The next part of my overall satisfaction has to do with it being a direct comparison with the AMEX Platinum card, as that would be the card I’d move to if I decided not to continue my Centurion membership. When I was at the $1000/yr annual fee, I was extremely happy with the card and service received. The best benefit was the SPG Platinum status, however, since that is now gone, I’d say the best benefit is the buy one get one free Mandarin Oriental certificates. I am a very frequent traveler, so having the priority pass access is a nice additional perk, as well as the elite status on Delta, US Air, and Continental. While my primary carrier is United (I’m a 1K), I do travel on US Air on occasion and get upgraded every time as a result of the Platinum status Centurion provides. Customer service is phenomenal and the travel service is usually above average. I used to have an amazing travel counselor at Centurion that has now moved to being the head of the dispute resolution department for travel, so now I just float between agents. With the rate hike to $2500/yr and the SPG status gone, the reasons to drop the card are increasing while the reasons to keep it have unfortunately been decreasing.
Roughly, how much do you spend per month/year: I’d say I put a few hundred thousand on the Centurion card each year, as the majority of my spending is put on my SPG Amex. However, all of my AMEX cards are linked, so Centurion customer service applies for all of my cards.
Have you ever been treated differently because you have it: All the time. Typically it is at non-fancy places like Home Depot, Costco, the post office, burger joints, etc. Also, people will sometimes ask me if I am famous because I am so young and have the card.
Do you ever use it to buy small stuff just to show it off, be honest: Definitely. Sometimes I’ll use it because friends of mine will request me to do so. Other times, I may have gotten some snooty attitude from someone because of my age and then I’ll pull it out. One time I went to use it in an automated parking machine to pay a $2.50 fee and it got stuck…ended up being a 30 minute ordeal to have the garage attendant remove it. TSA made a big fuss about it one time when it set off the metal detectors.
What is the largest ticket item you have purchased with it: Technology equipment. I’ve placed orders for several hundred thousand dollars at a time and have never received a call from AMEX “verifying” that I am trying to place such a large purchase on the card. Anything $10K+ means I’ll get a call from Chase if it goes on my United Visa Card.
What is your most expensive month if you remember: I’ll leave this one blank…definitely in the 6 figures.
Have you used the concierge service, if so what for, and have you used it for anything ridiculous: There are some amazing concierges I’ve worked with, and some that are pretty mediocre. In the San Francisco area, I’ve found that the Centurion card doesn’t do much in the way of priority reservations at top notch restaurants anymore. One odd request was that I wanted to send a thank you gift to my favorite travel counselor at AMEX. I didn’t have her office address, nor did I really know of her likes/dislikes. I had my concierge find this info, and get her a surprise gift.
Last year, I had a trip to Singapore where I had a day to myself. I didn’t want to do anything touristy, but I wanted the inside perspective of things to do/places in which to dine/etc. Since I knew my concierge had his fiancĂ© living there, I requested that he speak with her to get some specific recommendations, and then have him plan an agenda for me for the day.
Any last words: People want what they can’t have. The Centurion Card is no exception. As long as AMEX is able to keep the card exclusive, continue to provide excellent customer service, and step up the travel perks a bit, then I’ll continue my loyalty with my most admired credit card company.
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Great interview! Tyler’s an interesting guy.