From High School Hustle to UTA Acquisition

As the co-founders of JUV Consulting, Shaina Zafar and Ziad Ahmed describe themselves as “Gen Z pioneers-turned-entrepreneurs,” leveraging their unique insights to bridge generational gaps in the corporate world. Founded in 2016, JUV Consulting recently joined forces with United Talent Agency (UTA) to form Next Gen, a Practice of UTA Entertainment Marketing. “We co-founded JUV to ensure diverse young voices are heard and valued in shaping culture,” Ziad Ahmed explains. In this Q&A, Shaina and Ziad discuss their journey, the partnership with UTA, and their vision for the future of marketing.

Wellth: What's your superpower (as individuals)?

Shaina: The one thing I have been blessed to do is connect the people I love with each other. Agnostic to industry, age, identity, we are so lucky to know so many amazing people and bringing them together is the best thing we have been able to do.

Ziad: My superpower lies in my passion for advocacy, community, and creativity. These passions were ignited in my youth, driving me to focus on student advocacy work. This ultimately led me to start JUV Consulting as a teenager, which has now evolved into UTA’s Next Gen Practice.

Wellth: How did this help you grow JUV?

Shaina: After starting JUV in 2016, we had built an amazing network of 20+ full-time employees, 100+ independent contractors, and a community of brand executives, founders, creators, and Gen Z thought leaders! We were thinking about our next era of growth and what I would like to scale the company. Being a part of UTA allows us to be at the epicenter of culture, commerce, and community with access to entertainment, media, talent, creators, publishing, marketing, and so much more—all in one place! We wanted to be at a place that really understood what it meant to be future-facing and being a part of UTA Marketing allows us to continue our work in the spirit of always being ahead of the curve, entrepreneurial, and agile.

Wellth: What does the UTA acquisition mean in the context of the mission you set out to achieve?

Shaina: We started this company with the belief that having more diverse young people at decision-making tables allows for better business and generally, a better world. It has been a blessing and privilege to learn from the younger Gen Zers on our teams that interact daily with big brands and forge real relationships with brand executives. We know that Gen Zers set the trends that are adopted by other generations. The larger ecosystem at UTA allows us to continue to allow Gen Z in the rooms that matter. We get to share our opinions, ideas, and campaigns as Gen Z voices, bringing in our clients to UTA’s multifaceted workplace, and thoughtfully helping brands stay culturally relevant. Our ethos has always been to allow Gen Z to be equal partners in the ideas we have and the campaigns we build; UTA Marketing allows us to scale that work beyond our imagination.

Ziad: I never thought that starting a company as a junior in high school would lead to this being my full-time job, would lead to employing employees with children, would lead to being acquired by one of the most influential companies in the world – but here we are. It’s been a winding, surreal road, but my God am I grateful for all of it.

Wellth: Tell us about your new roles. What will your focus be?

Shaina: JUV Consulting will now sunset as a brand and our team becomes the Next Gen Practice at UTA Marketing. We continue to do the same work across strategy, research, implementation, and education for our clients! While our day-to-day remains the same, we will continue to focus on Gen Z, culture mapping, and insights, and more entertainment and media work as we merge our work with UTA Marketing and the world of culture creation through media. Our team includes executives, coordinators, and assistants at UTA. Shaina Zafar (Former Co-founder/CMO of JUV) is an Executive at the Next Gen Practice under UTA Marketing. Ziad Ahmed (Former Co-founder/CEO of JUV) is the Head of Next Gen!

Ziad: As the Head of Next Gen, I get to sincerely say that my job is at the intersection of my fourteen-year-old passions where I get to engage with advocacy, community, and creativity every single day – where I get to commit myself daily to creating space for more of us, to holding the door open for so many more of us after me. Alhamdullilah for all of it.

Wellth: We're aligned in our goals to build a brighter future for all of us - what's your call to action for leaders looking to make an impact?

Shaina: We hope that more companies believe in the power of young people to be equitable stakeholders in their decision-making processes. Your next VP of marketing should be 22. Gen Zers are consuming content and creating culture and can be co-conspirators for brands. When we democratize access to intergenerational dialogue, we all benefit, regardless of our age, and we hope to live in a world where there are more young CEOs and CMOs!

Partner with Hue to showcase your brand with a progressive audience of leaders and culture-makers, through our media, events, and coaching. Find out how.