# Gabriel Shaoolian

> Gabriel Shaoolian is the founder and CEO of Digital Silk, a digital agency focused on brand strategy, custom websites and marketing. He previously founded Blue Fountain Media, acquired by Pactera in 2016, and founded DesignRush. He is also listed as CEO and founder of hospitality careers platform OysterLink and writes about digital strategy, customer experience and building companies.

- **Role:** Founder and CEO at Digital Silk
- **Organizations:** Digital Silk, Blue Fountain Media, DesignRush, OysterLink, Zeborg
- **Education:** New York University
- **Known for:** Founded Blue Fountain Media and built it into an agency described as having more than 200 team members when its acquisition was announced in 2016., Founded Digital Silk in 2019., Founded DesignRush, whose project marketplace launched in April 2019.

## Career timeline

- **1998-2000** — Head of interactive design at Zeborg, according to the 2018 Wharton podcast introduction.
- **2001** — Described working from an apartment with a laptop in his August 2026 account of his entrepreneurial beginnings.
- **2016** — Pactera announced its acquisition of Blue Fountain Media on January 13.
- **2018** — Published a January 31 first-person account of building DesignRush from scratch.
- **2019** — Founded Digital Silk; discussed the new agency in the January 2020 Climb interview.
- **2026** — Listed as CEO and founder of both Digital Silk and OysterLink on current public company and author pages.

## Achievements

- Founded Blue Fountain Media and built it into an agency described as having more than 200 team members when its acquisition was announced in 2016.
- Founded Digital Silk in 2019.
- Founded DesignRush, whose project marketplace launched in April 2019.
- Listed as CEO and founder of OysterLink alongside co-founder and general manager Milos Eric.
- Published business and marketing commentary in Entrepreneur and Forbes.

## Latest updates

- **2026-08** — Discussed strategy before design, recruitment, music and ongoing website improvement in a Connectively interview published August 12.
- **2026-03** — Discussed hiring, leadership accountability and maintaining standards during growth in an Authority Magazine interview published March 26.

## Links

- Website: https://www.digitalsilk.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrielshaoolian

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/gabriel-shaoolian
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-27