John
Paukulis
John Paukulis, Founder & Managing Director, is a visionary leader in entertainment, technology, venture building, and AI-driven marketing. With over 30 years of experience, he has pioneered digital innovations, from launching Hollywood’s first movie URL in a tv spot, to driving $1B+ in Paramount Pictures marketing campaigns as a studio executive. His expertise in AI-powered consumer engagement, brand scaling, and multi-million-dollar M&A deals fuels Butterpie Venture Studio’s rapid growth. His track record of working with A-list celebrities and orchestrating successful brand exits frames Butterpie as the ultimate launchpad for the next generation of creator-led businesses.
About Our Business
For over 20 years, our team has helped A-list celebrities and creators build, manufacture, and distribute consumer products for fees, and now we are applying that same proven infrastructure to build and own equity in the brands we launch:
Butterpie Holdings LLC operates as a venture studio focused on the creator economy. The company's stated objective is to partner with established celebrity-creators to co-develop and launch consumer brands. Historically, launching independent products has been a highly fragmented and capital-intensive process for creators, often requiring them to manage multiple third-party vendors across manufacturing, fulfillment, and e-commerce. Butterpie seeks to streamline this process by centralizing these operational functions under one platform. Rather than utilizing a traditional fee-for-service agency model, Butterpie forms equity partnerships with creators. By combining an experienced management team with proprietary AI technology, the company aims to build a more systematic and scalable approach to brand development.
Paul
Shrater
Paul Shrater, Founding General Partner & Chief Executive Officer at Butterpie, is a seasoned entrepreneur with 20+ years in e-commerce, logistics, and brand development. As co-founder of Minimus.biz, he scaled a multi-million-dollar enterprise handling $1B+ in GMV. He ensures Butterpie’s creator-led brands are built for rapid growth, operational efficiency, and high-value exits.
Vishal
Shukla
Vishal Shukla, Founding General Partner & Chief Digital Officer at Butterpie, is an AI pioneer with 20+ years in enterprise technology, data-driven automation, and venture scaling. As CEO of Rysun Labs, with over 400 developers, he's provided tech solutions for dozens of Fortune 1000 companies. His expertise in data analytics, automation, and e-commerce ensures Butterpie’s brands scale, maximizing investor returns.
Ronak
Bhatt
Ronak Bhatt, Founding General Partner and Chief AI Innovation Officer at Butterpie, is a Silicon Valley technology leader with 20+ years of experience driving digital transformation at Meta, Netflix, Walmart.com, and Cisco. Ronak has built enterprise AI and cloud solutions adopted by Fortune 500 companies worldwide. At Butterpie, he drives the development of CreatorGPT (rebranded ButterpieGPT) - which powers the venture studio’s creator-first model, accelerates go-to-market, creates defensible IP, and delivers investor-visible enterprise value.
Marc
Benitez
Marc Benitez, President & Chief Business Development Officer at Butterpie, is a seasoned brand leader with 20+ years in consumer products, licensing, and retail distribution, having built global businesses with Coach (Tapestry), Authentic Brands Group, Creative Artists Agency Global Brands Group, and Von Dutch. He has turned brand equity into sell-through across multiple sectors. His expertise in dealmaking, brand positioning, and go-to-market execution fuels Butterpie’s creator-first model and ensures long-term enterprise value & equity-rich exits.
Sabastian Enges
Sabastian Enges, Founding General Partner, Chief Sales Officer & Creator Mentor at Butterpie, is a high-impact sales strategist, content creator, and performance coach with 19M+ likes. As the founder of Quantum Academy, he has mentored thousands in peak performance, sales mastery, and brand monetization. His expertise in creator psychology, and revenue acceleration ensures Butterpie brands dominate the market.
