MEET THE TEAM

Karl J. Schoen

FOUNDER & CEO

Karl Schoen grew up in Los Angeles, surrounded by a culture of business and entrepreneurship. Through the early stages of his career, Karl noticed that one of the most crucial elements of success for a fledgling company is the passion that the founder and its employees have for the company they work for, and the product that they make.

Having come from a family of whisky enthusiasts, whisky was always brought out at family gatherings as a way to celebrate the good times. This got Karl thinking about how he could marry his own passion with an entrepreneurial venture. It was then that he had the idea for what he now calls The Perfect Fifth – a way to not only be able to share his love for whisky with his family, but also to raise a glass with all of those that are whisky enthusiasts like himself.

Ben Schoen

DIRECTOR OF SALES

Having originally chosen a path adjacent to his brother Karl, Ben found himself drawn back to the family venture, which perfectly links family traditions with their entrepreneurial spirit.

Growing up in Los Angeles, Ben had always been intrigued legal profession and attended law school in 2009. Having received his JD from South Texas College of Law, he became licensed to practice law in 2013. After five years as a litigator – involved in various areas of the law, including civil litigation and criminal defense – Ben and his wife decided to move their family back to Los Angeles to be closer to the rest of the Schoen family.

Geographically close to family, the tradition of sharing a whisky together resumed, and it wasn’t long before Karl introduced Ben to his vision of The Perfect Fifth. Inspired by the idea of bringing these great single cask whiskies to America, Ben joined The Perfect Fifth team as Chief Marketing Officer. It has brought him even closer to the tightknit whisky community, and he is enjoying every moment of it.

Jim Murray

Master Blender

Joseph M. Hartman

DIRECTOR OF INTERNATIONAL SALES

Prior to joining The Perfect Fifth, Joseph was the founder and CEO of Alumalite LED. There, he worked extensively on behalf of his clients to obtain government rebates from New York State’s Department of Energy (NYSERDA) during the LED lighting revolution. That experience, coupled with his distinct subject matter expertise in luxury sales and marketing, makes him an indispensable member of our leadership team. In addition to his role as Director of Operations, Joseph's curiosity to learn and expand inspired him to head-up and buildout our international business vertical.

Joseph earned his BA in Business from Fairleigh Dickinson University.