For nearly three decades, Terry Snow has parlayed his passions — active sports, travel and gracious living — into a multimedia company that produces high-quality magazines, books, cable television programming, pro sports tours, public events and websites. First as owner and CEO of World Publications and now as CEO of Bonnier Corporation, he oversees one of America's most successful special-interest multimedia companies.

A longtime competitive water skier, Snow graduated from the University of Florida with a finance degree in 1977. He moved to Winter Park, Florida — the epicenter of competitive skiing — and launched a magazine now known as WaterSki. Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Snow expanded the company, launching several consumer titles including WindSurfing, Sport Fishing, Sport Diver and WakeBoarding, and acquiring a second fishing title, Marlin.

As his niche-market strategy took off, so did Snow's desire to further expand into the travel and lifestyle segments. World Publications bought Caribbean Travel & Life in 1997, then in an even bolder step acquired Saveur and Garden Design magazines from Meigher Communications in 2000. Those moves significantly enhanced both revenue and staff while establishing a larger presence for the company in New York. In June of that year, Saveur earned the industry's highest honor, the National Magazine Award for General Excellence. Building on that momentum in the travel and luxury lifestyle markets in this decade, World Publications purchased Islands, Spa, Destination Weddings & Honeymoons and Resorts & Great Hotels.

Yet even while crafting that stable of titles, Snow has continued to pursue his original passion for water sports and boating. From 1995 to 2005, he oversaw the launch or acquisition of Boating Life, Fly Fishing in Salt Waters, KiteBoarding, Cruising World, Sailing World and Power Cruising.

While growing his publishing empire, Snow always had been a proponent of cross-media synergy, pushing the company into sports marketing. In the 1980s World Publications bought the professional water ski tour, a move that put his then-fledgling company on cable television's ESPN. Since then, the company has been involved in producing hundreds of hours of programming and currently produces a number of television series.

Websites became an integral part of World Publications in the 1990s as part of Snow's effort to give enthusiasts in his markets access to the best and most comprehensive information available. The websites have evolved beyond mere archives of content and now incorporate original research, streaming video and Web-exclusive content to help participants better enjoy their pursuits.

Snow faced a new challenge in March 2007 when Sweden's Bonnier Group — which had purchased a minority share in World in May 2006 — purchased 18 magazines from Time Inc. and combined those assets with World, creating the new company Bonnier Corporation. Having built his company from a single magazine founded three decades ago, Snow now oversees more than 40 brands as CEO of Bonnier Corp.