Darren Huston | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Darren R. Huston (1966-01-03)3 January 1966 (age 59) Hope, British Columbia, Canada |
| Alma mater | Trent University University of British Columbia Harvard Business School |
| Occupation(s) | Founder and CEO of BlackPines Capital Partners |
Darren R. Huston (born 3 January 1966) is a Canadian businessman. He is the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of BlackPines Capital Partners.[1] Huston was previously president and CEO ofPriceline andBooking.com.
Darren R. Huston was born on 3 January 1966 inHope, British Columbia, Canada. He completed his high school education at theUnited World College of the Adriatic in Italy,[2] received aBS in economics fromTrent University, anMA in economics from theUniversity of British Columbia, and anMBA from theHarvard Business School.[3]
From 1990 to 1992, Huston was an environmental policy adviser for the Canadian government. From 1994 to 1998 he held an executive position withMcKinsey & Company. From 1998 to 2003, he was a senior vice president atStarbucks. During his time with the company, he introducedWi-Fi in physical stores and the development of the Starbucks Card payment system.[4]
He joinedMicrosoft in 2003 and was corporate vice president for the United States until 2005 when he became president and CEO ofMicrosoft Japan. From 2008 to 2011, Huston was corporate vice president of global operations, responsible for its consumer and online business.[5]
He joined Booking.com as CEO in September 2011, and dually became CEO of its parent company Priceline Group in January 2014.[6] He resigned in April 2016 following an investigation into a relationship with an employee.[7][8] During his tenure, the company tripled its number of room nights booked and increased its employee base to more than 15,000 people.[9]
In May 2016, Huston formed BlackPines Global Advisors, N.V. By January 2017, Huston was appointed executive chairman ofAllegro and established a consultancy relationship with BlackPines Capital. He was appointed chairman ofMagento. By June 2017, BlackPines Capital Partners, Inc. was reincorporated in Canada.[10][11]