EK3 Co-Founder Prigioniero Leaving Cineplex In April 2018
December 13, 2017 by Dave Haynes
Nick Prigioniero, the longtime head of a company that started as EK3 and became Cineplex Digital Media through acquisition, is stepping down in April.
Prigioniero helped build the London, Ontario startup into one of the more successful digital signage software and solutions providers out there, doing ALL the work on the chain-wide deployment of menuboards for 4,000+ Tim Hortons stores, as well as Royal Bank of Canada, McDonald’s Canada, Dairy Queen and Walmart (again in Canada).
The company has always been on the verge of shadowy in its sales and marketing, and just quietly went about its business bagging some very big deals, mostly in Canada but also bleeding into the U.S.
When it was acquired by the cinema chain Cineplex in April 2013, it was reasonable to wonder how long a strong personality like Prigioniero, coming from a start-up, was going to last in a much bigger, much more corporate environment. But he will have done five years by the time he leaves – something presented as as him retiring.
The press release says Fab Stanghieri, a longstanding Cineplex executive, has been promoted to Executive Vice President and General Manager, Cineplex Digital Media. Stanghieri, himself no shrinking violet, is a leasing and real estate guy but has been on the digital signage/digital media file, as well, for several years, I think pre-dating the EK3 transaction.
The release continues:
Prigioniero was one of the founding partners of EK3, which was acquired by Cineplex in April 2013 and renamed Cineplex Digital Media. Since that time he has been instrumental in integrating CDM into Cineplex’s growing business portfolio as well as spearheading its growth throughout Canada and the United States. Under Mr. Prigioniero’s leadership, CDM has partnered and provided innovative digital merchandising solutions for leading brands like McDonald’s, Tim Hortons, Dairy Queen, A&W, RBC, Scotiabank, Ivanhoé Cambridge, Oxford Properties and Walmart among many, many others.
“On behalf of the entire team at Cineplex, I would like to thank Nick for his contributions and wish him the very best with his retirement. Cineplex Digital Media would not be the industry leader that it is today without his knowledge and expertise at the helm for so many years,” said Dan McGrath, Chief Operating Officer, Cineplex. “Nick and Fab have worked together to drive growth for CDM, so I am confident that the transition will be seamless both internally for the team as well as externally for our clients.”
Part of CDM’s senior leadership team for seven years, Fab Stanghieri was most recently its Senior Vice President, Business Development, Account Services and Marketing and will be transitioning to the role of Executive Vice President, Cineplex and General Manager, Cineplex Digital Media, effective January 1, 2018. Mr. Stanghieri has grown his over 20 year career at Cineplex through various roles ranging from Business Development to Real Estate, including acting as General Manager of Cineplex Digital Solutions prior to it becoming part of CDM.
He and Mr. Prigioniero will work closely together until April 1, 2018, to ensure a seamless transition. The multi-award winning team at CDM will continue its focus on the successful roll-out of existing client programs, as well as a number of other exciting client projects that are currently underway.
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