The Spirit Box Team
Spirit Box leverages the experience of business owners, former DECA students and advisors to provide a hands-on, career-connected learning program that teaches students how to run a business.
Meet the Spirit Box Team
Philip Baird
Owner
Over the years, Philip has helped start and manage businesses including work with manufacturers, distributors, publishers, industrial designers, and promotional marketers. Through that experience, he realized his true passion is using his background to help kids get a head start on the skills they need to be successful in entrepreneurship and business management. He created Spirit Box to do just that. He built Spirit Box into a unique sales system that helps high-schoolers develop a practical foundation they can rely upon for long-term success in business and in life.
Blaise Ebish
Account Manager
Blaise was born and raised in Springfield, Missouri and graduated from Mizzou with a bachelor’s degree in economics and a minor in computer science. In addition to his work with Spirit Box, he manages 6 residential lofts locally and provides investment advice through Auxan Capital. He has a passion for all things technology and community-centered, and founded a worker-managed software company known as IndependUS Co-op. During free time, he also enjoys camping, strategy games, and reading manga.
Sam Howard
Account Specialist
Sam currently attends Ozark Technical Community College in his hometown of Springfield, Missouri. Business and marketing have always been at the forefront of Sam’s academic career, with experience competing at the international level for DECA. Outside of his work with Spirit Box, he also works with local radio stations, operating the soundboard for various live broadcasts. Sam strives to create a comfortable, trusting work environment that facilitates cooperation and team-work. In his free time, Sam enjoys listening to music, collecting vinyl records, and watching sports with his father.
Chris Langston
Owner
Chris Langston is a Springfield, Missouri native passionate about building sustainable businesses that create local jobs. With a background in performance consulting and web development, he co-founded and led several successful companies, including Keep Supply, an industrial refrigeration parts distribution company. Chris holds an MBA from Baker University and a BS in Marketing from Missouri State University. When he’s not spending time with his family, Chris juggles too many hobbies, including video game development, wood carving, and billiards.
Krysta Baird
Marketing
Krysta has more than twenty years of award-winning design and marketing management experience. Her "anything is possible" approach consistently brings ideas to life on time and on budget. Add that to high expectations for quality, and you'll notice she’s a bit of a perfectionist. Knowledgeable and experienced in a variety of industries, her specialties include marketing strategy, design, brand management, marketing automation, process efficiency, and social media. When she’s not working she's raising teenagers and helping her husband run several other business ventures.
Brianna Mullally
Marketing
Brianna is a former teacher and coach who’s passionate about creativity and business. She loves learning new things and finding ways to make an impact. The challenge of taking what she learned as a teacher and applying it to the world of marketing has been her favorite part of changing careers. She graduated from Missouri State University and earned her master’s degree from William Woods University. When she isn’t working, Brianna enjoys spending time with her family, reading, or planning their next Disney trip.