Chris Mills (Hitcents)

Chris Mills

President and Co-Founder of Hitcents
Born (1982-10-16) October 16, 1982
Bowling Green, Kentucky, U.S.
Employer Hitcents
Title President and Co-Founder
Website http://www.hitcents.com

Chris Mills is the president and co-founder of Hitcents, a technology-based creative agency in Bowling Green, Kentucky specializing in web design, application development and mobile games. Mills currently manages the Hitcents offices in the United States and China.

Biography

Early years

Chris, with the help of his twin brother Clinton Mills, started Hitcents in 1999 as high school students in Bowling Green, Kentucky.[1] The business was founded as an online marketing firm but quickly expanded its services in other areas of technology.[2] In 2001, at the age of 19, Chris and his twin brother were awarded Young Entrepreneurs of the Year for the state of Kentucky. With the guidance of Chris, in 2007 Hitcents was ranked 191 among the 500 fastest growing companies in the United States by Inc. Magazine.[3]

Throughout his tenure at Hitcents, Chris has had detailed technological involvement in several industries including Manufacturing (MRP/ERP), Distribution and Supply Chain Management (SCM), Accounting/Financial software, Self-Service technologies including hardware automation, and Health Insurance Actuarial software.

Hitcents, app development, and Draw a Stickman

Chris has led the creation of numerous apps through Hitcents. One of the projects that Chris is most known for is his work on the global hit Draw a Stickman, which has won 5 Webby awards[4][5] and has been played over 100 million times since its game was launched in 2011. Draw a Stickman has become a global brand with several different iterations.

Hitcents and expansion into the Chinese market

In early 2013, Mills spearheaded the opening of Hitcents' first international office in Shanghai, China as a Wholly Foreign-Owned Enterprise (WFOE). The office was created to employ local talent and focus on culturalizing mobile games and apps for a quickly growing mobile market.

Speaking engagements

Chris Mills speaks at the Global Mobile Game Congress in Beijing, China

Chris has been a guest speaker at numerous industry events, including Microsoft Channel 9, the Global Mobile Game Congress,[6] Casual Connect Asia 2014,[7] and most recently the Pocket Gamer Mobile Mixer at the World Wide Developers Conference in San Francisco, California.

Hitcents Park Plaza and MR Group

Chris, Clinton, and Ed Mills led a real-estate investment in downtown Bowling Green through their business Mills Reality Group, developing a $25 million, 106,000 square foot four story mixed-use wrap.[8]

In 2014, Hitcents Park Plaza opened five new restaurants on the 1st floor of the complex.[9] Tres Molinos,[10] Brick & Basil,[11] Pagoda,[12] Mariah's,[13] and 6-4-3[14] offer a variety of nosh.

Hitcents Park Plaza houses the headquarters of Hitcents, which is located on the top floor of the building. 60 of the company's 80 employees are located at the company's headquarters.[15] There are plans to create a 48-unit housing development along Hitcents Park Plaza's east side.[16]

The Hitcents Park Plaza went under negotiations for transfer of the interests of Mills Family Realty, LLC related to the project on January 6, 2015.[17]

At the end of February 2015 a $2.4 million lein was levied against Hitcents Park Plaza for unpaid services related to its construction.[18]

References

  1. "Entrepreneurs choose Western for studies, business". Bowling Green Daily News. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
  2. "Hitcents.com To Create High-Tech Jobs". WKU News. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  3. "BG's Hitcents ranked among fastest-growing companies in nation". Bowling Green Daily News. Bowling Green Daily News. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  4. "Hitcents' Stickman wins Webby Awards". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  5. "Best Use of Animation or Motion Graphics". The Webby Awards. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  6. "Hitcents President Chris Mills Presents at CGDC". Dream It Real - Hitcents Blog. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  7. "Chris Mills Presents at Casual Connect Asia, May 2014". Youtube. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  8. "Hitcents employees set up shop in wrap". Bowling Green Daily News. August 2, 2013. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  9. "New restaurants opening in city". Bowling Green Daily News. May 13, 2014. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  10. "Tres Molinos". Hitcents Park Plaza: Tres Molinos. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
  11. "Brick & Basil". Hitcents Park Plaza: Brick & Basil. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
  12. "Pagoda". Hitcents Park Plaza: Pagoda. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
  13. "Mariah's". Hitcents Park Plaza: Mariah's. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
  14. "6-4-3". Hitcents Park Plaza: 6-4-3. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
  15. Schneider, Keith. "A University's Partnership Reshapes Bowling Green, Ky.". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
  16. Schneider, Keith. "A University's Partnership Reshapes Bowling Green, Ky.". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
  17. Brandenburg, Katie. "Commission approves garage wrap negotiations". Bowling Green Daily News. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  18. "County Attorney says Mills Family Realty lease agreement in default". Bowling Green Daily News. Retrieved 9 March 2015.
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