Press kit

Headshots

Headshot (JPG)Portrait (JPG)Working at Bamboo (JPG)

Bio (one paragraph)

Tim Haines founded the marketing agency Symposia Labs, grew it for eight years, and sold it. Today he runs Unicorn Flames in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he helps companies hire marketing talent, redesigns how marketing and communications teams work with Claude automations, and teaches teams to use AI with skill, confidence, and good judgment. He built the custom AI curriculum for Salesforce Workforce Navigators and founded the Midwest Marketing Meetup, a 288-member community that meets at Bamboo Grand Rapids. His free, hands-on sessions on Claude and Claude Code run in Grand Rapids year-round, with a workshop at Bamboo Ann Arbor on November 9, 2026.

Bio (one line)

Tim Haines sold his marketing agency and now teaches Midwest marketing teams to build with Claude Code. Founder, Unicorn Flames, Grand Rapids.

Story angles

• The Claude Code shop in the Midwest. A former agency owner teaching non-developers to build working automations, in a room, for free.
• What the company is built from. Unwinding a business, a marriage ending, and rebuilding through writing.
• A free community, not a funnel. A marketing meetup that bans the sales pitch.

Past appearances

• Tech Week Grand Rapids Podcast, September 14, 2026 (about 17 minutes, starts at 5:18:40)
• Crash That Course Show & Tell recordings: Fractional Hacks for Lean Teams, ChatGPT for Marketing, Marketing Automations for Non-Developers, Wading into Claude Code

Fall 2026 lineup

• Midwest Marketing Meetup, Bamboo Grand Rapids (Theater Lounge), Thursday, October 15, 4:30 to 6:00 PM ET. Free. Register
• Wading into Claude Code, Bamboo Ann Arbor, Monday, November 9, 1:00 to 3:00 PM ET, Maple room.
• Great Lakes AI Week, Toledo, November 10 to 12 (attending).

Full calendar and the story behind it

Wordmark

UnicornFlames

The logo is the wordmark: "Unicorn" and "Flames" set in bold Helvetica Neue with no space between them, "Unicorn" in navy #0c1b2a and "Flames" in periwinkle #6e86f0. Use it as shown. Do not use older Crash That Course or Daylighting Talent logos to represent Unicorn Flames.

Company facts

• Unicorn Flames LLC, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Founded by Tim Haines.
• Home base: Bamboo Grand Rapids, 2 Fulton St W, Grand Rapids, MI 49503.
• Brands: Midwest Marketing Meetup, Crash That Course, Daylighting Talent.
• Contact: Tim Haines, tim@unicornflames.com, (616) 546-1620.