PittMoss

Brian Scott is the President and CEO of Pittmoss, a company that creates sustainable, organic soils made from recycled paper and cardboard. He was also founder and CEO of Express Management Group and an adjunct faculty member at Gannon University. Mr Scott began his career as the Chief Information Officer and Director of Acquisitions at Rentway, which went public on the NYSE during his tenure and exited with a sale in 2006. He has served on many for-profit and non-profit boards including Aurochs Brewing, The Flagship Niagara League, and the Innovation Collaborative and was the founder and chairman of Tall Ships Erie. Mr. Scott earned his undergraduate degree from the Pennsylvania State University and his master’s degree in software engineering from Gannon University. He has also been a business mentor with the Erie Technology Incubator and continues to mentor entrepreneurs as an angel investor with BlueTree Allied Angels, one of the most active angel groups in the Mid-Atlantic region of the US.

Dr.Bethke has had an interest in soils since conducting his first soil research in his father’s Greenhouse in western Michigan. With this interest, Dr. Bethke attended Michigan State University served as a student teaching assistant while receiving his bachelor's degree in soil science. He went on to the University of Missouri and received a master's degree focusing on soil fertility and nutrient buffering. Dr. Bethke returned to the family farm that focused on Greenhouse production and vegetable farming. During that time, he conducted a radio show on gardening. After about five years he attended Michigan State University and obtained a doctorate in plant physiology, as well as coordinated the research Greenhouse facility with over 70 researchers. Dr. Bethke then became technical director for Michigan Peat Company, the largest peat company in the United States and he served as research granting coordinator for the Bedding Plant Foundation. After 13 years, Dr. Bethke became a consultant serving Companies and Growers in the greenhouse and growing substrates industry. In 2014, he began working with PittMoss LLC as the technical director working on formulation of growing substrates. The work was performed with a focus on environmental stewardship, recycling products and sustainable materials. Currently his focus is highly dedicated to regenerative agriculture and wise use of resources. He won’t admit it himself, but Dr.Bethke is highly regarded as one of the top 5 soil scientists in his field.

Amber has 20+ years of experience leading the finance departments for companies of all sizes and across various industries. She has an MBA, is a PA attorney and is passionate about helping companies grow and prosper. She began her own firm, Finacctic to help entrepreneurs and business leaders achieve their dreams by providing value-add accounting and finance services critical to managing, analyzing, and growing a business. Amber has been with PittMoss for over six years, as our contract CFO and General Counsel.

With over 10 years of startup management experience, Ashley Mariani is passionate about her role in growing PittMoss. While receiving her MBA and MA in Mass Communications and Journalism, Ashley began her career at the Mayor’s Office for the City of Pittsburgh and then joined a fast-growing SaaS-based software startup, Industry Weapon (acquired by Spectrio). While overseeing their marketing department, Ashley was introduced to PittMoss in 2016 and joined to help launch e-commerce and marketing functions. The role quickly grew, and Ashley is involved in many aspects of the business - supervising marketing, assisting with sales strategy and reporting, process improvement and development to software implementation, employee onboarding, factory tours, community engagement, garden club presentations and more. As the Director of Business Development, Ashley takes her broad experience and leadership skills wherever she is needed to help grow the business.

Mark Goldman has spent his life in the horticulture industry and brings 40+ years of industry experience to PittMoss. Spending 20+ years at Brighton By-Products, a regional horticultural supply company in various marketing and sales capacities, Mr. Goldman’s role grew to becoming Vice President and oversaw the sale of the company during a period of industry acquisition. Mr. Goldman then became VP at Therm-O-Rock where he led and restructured a manufacturing product line producing peat mixes using innovative materials such as rock wool. After being introduced to PittMoss, Mr. Goldman joined the team in 2014 and has led our sales efforts, utilizing his extensive industry experience and network to establish PittMoss as a legitimate alternative to commercial peat use. After all this time, you will still find Mr. Goldman making his way across the country enthusiastically pitching PittMoss to every greenhouse or farm and making sure every potential customer who passes our trade show booth knows about our products. In addition to PittMoss, Mr. Goldman also serves as a strategic advisor to Aquarius Power Co.

The most recent member to join the team, Rich brings over 30 years of experience in process improvement spanning several industries, beginning as a lean application specialist for WESCO distribution to Plant Manager for PH Tech Organization. Rich earned his B.S. in Industrial Management along with his M.B.A and holds a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt Certification. Rich will oversee the growth of PittMoss’ production capabilities and bring his strong track record of organizational management to build out our ever-growing production teams.

Robert is thrilled to join PittMoss as he sees the potential for the material to replace Peat Moss in various trades, benefiting the environment. With a track record of team-building and exceptional customer service, he is confident in PittMoss's future, which he believes is both sustainable and poised to become organically certified. His focus will be on growing the business through relationships with lawn and garden retailers, consumer package providers, and commercial growers, leveraging his current network and expanding partnerships.

Rob was an early team member at PittMoss, growing out of e-commerce and into a sales role to support our wholesale and commercial efforts. Today, Rob has over 5 years of industry sales experience, quickly proving himself as a go-to rep for many of our high-valued accounts. Rob’s knowledge of PittMoss and the unique nature of the industry has provided Rob with an incredible breadth of experience that he brings to our growing sales channels. Rob’s role has also grown to oversee the development of our new sales interns, mentoring them through their first year on-the-ground. Rob earned his MBA after completing his B.S in Information Management Systems and has previous experience as an SEO coordinator for Dicks Sporting Goods.

Donna Pavlis has 39+ years of experience in design and marketing and an MA in Communications. She is owner/chief marketing strategist for SG&D Communications and Side Porch Creative. With her own agency, Donna worked with clients, including the Buncher Company, ALOCOSAN, Allegheny County and Keystone Manufacturing. Donna joined PittMoss close to four years ago in a part-time capacity to help oversee important marketing functions, such as point-of-purchase design, budgeting, trade-show management, PR requests, social media and brand management. Donna also sits on the board of the Sewickley Music Club and Sewickley Cemetery Foundation.