FOOD & BEVERAGE
LARRY BELL
Owner Bell’s Brewery, Kalamazoo
Larry Bell moved to Kalamazoo in the late 1970s to attend college. After graduation, he began working at the original Sarkozy Bakery where he gained an interest in yeast and fermentation. Soon after, Bell started brewing his own beer and saw an opportunity to make a business out of it. Bell opened a homebrew supply shop in 1983 under the name Kalamazoo Brewing Co. He began selling beer commercially two years later. In 1990, Bell’s beer became available outside Michigan, and three years later, Bell’s became the first Michigan brewery to open an on-site pub, the Eccentric Café. Today, Bell’s, which officially changed its name from Kalamazoo Brewing Co. in 2005, can be found in 39 states, as well as Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico. Bell reassumed operations of the company after his daughter, Laura Bell, stepped down from the role of CEO in 2018.
JAMES BERG
CEO, partner Essence Restaurant Group, Grand Rapids
EDUCATION: Kalamazoo College (B) NOTABLE: In 1986, production reached 135 barrels. Originally self-distributed, me and a staff of nine bottled and delivered everything for the next four years.
DENNIS EIDSON
Board chair SpartanNash, Grand Rapids
Dennis Eidson has held key senior leadership positions since joining SpartanNash in 2003, culminating in his appointment to president in 2007, chief executive officer in 2008 and chairman of the board in 2016. He was serving as interim CEO and was replaced by new president and CEO Tony Sarsam in September. Eidson joined the SpartanNash board of directors in 2007. He previously served as the company's chief operating officer from 2007-08 and executive vice president of marketing and merchandising from 2003-07. Eidson spent his entire career in the grocery retail and wholesale distribution industry and is passionate about embracing changing trends and technology to create a personalized, diversified, local grocery experience for store guests and independent customers throughout the United States and military families around the world. His leadership and commitment to building an inclusive, accountable culture has driven SpartanNash's growth and was critical throughout the multibillion-dollar transformational merger between Spartan Stores and the Nash Finch Company in 2013.
James Berg got the bug for the food and beverage industry in the 1980s, working as a server for restaurants such as Taco Boy and T.G.I. Fridays. In 1993, he moved into formal dining, taking a position with Egypt Valley Country Club as its lead bartender and beverage director. He was quickly promoted to dining manager and beverage director, where he was responsible for beverage coordination for events such as the First of America Classic Golf Tournament held at the country club, which served 40,000 people. Berg went to work for the Woodrick family in 1996 to help open Bistro Bella Vita. He started as restaurant manager and was soon promoted to general manager. In 2006, he formed Essence Restaurant Group (ERG) with partners Patrick Wise and Jeffrey Gietzen, becoming the owner-operators of Bistro Bella Vita and opening The Green Well in 2007 and Grove in 2011. Wise recently left ERG, and last year, ERG added a new partner, Hillary Edwards-Berg. FIRST JOB: Taco Boy on Plainfield in 1988 FUNNIEST WORKPLACE EXPERIENCE: My record for shots of espresso is 24 in 1998 at Bistro Bella Vita. Haven’t slept a good night since. HIDDEN TALENT: I can juggle. FAVORITE HOBBIES: Golfing and working out FAVORITE BOOKS: Milan Kundera’s “Unbearable Lightness of Being” and Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World.”
DAVE ENGBERS
Co-founder, president Founders Brewing Co., Grand Rapids
EDUCATION: Michigan State University (B) FAVORITE HOBBIES: Michigan State University football and basketball FAVORITE TV SHOW: “Madam Secretary” FAVORITE TRAVEL DESTINATION: Italy
48 THE GRAND RAPIDS 200
Born and raised in Grand Rapids, Dave Engbers attended Hope College where he met fellow co-founder Mike Stevens. The pair spent their college years dreaming of opening a brewery, and after a few years spent on unsatisfying career paths, Engbers and Stevens decided they never wanted to look back on life with regrets. They wrote a business plan, secured funding and opened the doors of Founders Brewing Co. in 1997. Building the brewery from the ground up, the pair had to spend time in every role. Recently, the company sold 90% of ownership to longtime partner Mahou San Miguel based in Spain, but Engbers and Stevens still are involved in the brewery. EDUCATION: Hope College (B)
