As one of the company’s original vendors, I guess that makes me fairly qualified to write the first blog entry as we launch the new Submedia worldwide website. I have been there since the beginning after all. Or at least shortly after its founders made it out of their parent’s garage with the first prototype.I have told the story of Submedia a hundred times yet every time I see a display, I get butterflies in my stomach. Born in the midst of the dot-com craze, when all of Wall Street’s bulls were on the internet, and not much else was noticed, Submedia managed to rise above the clutter.

As a pr person working his way up the corporate ladder at a famous New York agency, I got some career mileage out of being Submedia’s rep. It was always a fairly easy sell as long as I managed to get the idea across effectively.

“So, you’re telling me that they project images on the wall?”

“No, there are no moving parts. Imagine a flipbook yet the train provides the motion.”

“Ah, I think I get it.”

That conversation resulted in my first feature story in The Wall Street Journal thank you very much. Front page of the Marketplace section I might ad. That was a good week for me and it started a windfall of news coverage for Submedia that continues to this very day.

All seemed to be moving along swimmingly until the market started to change—Heading towards a “correction” as it was called. Then, on what was to be possible the most important press conference of my career, the unthinkable became reality. With Coke touting their Dasani bottled water brand, we were all geared up to launch the first Submedia display on Atlanta’s MARTA system at a press conference scheduled for 10:30am, September 11^th, 2001. You know the rest already.

Suddenly, dot-coms went the way of the do-do bird, belts were tightened, people were laid off and VC stood for very close to no money for anything. While I was thankful to have remained at my job, the events cost me my favorite client.

But look at this. Nearly six years later and we’re back at it. Mercata dot who? Pets dot who? All of them gone. Yet the coolest product with the least amount of technology during that period is still here. Yes, it took rocket science engineering to make it happen, but that’s about it for fancy moving parts.

The point is the pitch I made on that first phone call in 2001 to The Wall Street Journal was as true and valid then as it is today. Turning dark tunnels into revenue for transit systems while tickling passengers with ads that they actually pay attention to.

Present day, a winning strategy has helped Submedia grow from one office in Manhattan to XX partner offices around the world. We (like how I say we) now have over 37 displays, 15 cities, 9 countries, 3 continents. The ideas have most recently risen above ground to the sidewalks and, trust me, there are many more variations to come.

And I’m back too. Been back for a while to continue spreading the good news of Submedia and its advertising and transit partners. However, most the time, Submedia just makes me look good—but don’t tell them I said that. I’m just really glad to have been a part of it from the beginning.