| John is the owner of Gladstone’s Long Beach and a trustee of Miller’s Children’s Hospital. He previously served as director of restaurant development at Panda Restaurant Group, responsible for surfacing new sites and negotiating lease terms for more than 60 locations in seven western states. Before that, he was an investment representative with Alex. Brown & Sons where he developed and delivered several investment banking clients that raised over $150 million in capital. He received his MBA in finance and entrepreneurship from the USC where he was a member of the Dean’s Honor List, winner of the Entrepreneur Program’s “Best Business Plan” competition and the 1996 recipient of the USC/MBA Young President’s Organization Fellowship.In a previous role, John trained and competed with Dennis Conner in both the 1987 and 1992 America’s Cup Challenges aboard Stars & Stripes, which, in 1987, successfully recaptured the America’s Cup from the Royal Perth Yacht Club in Perth, Western Australia. He served as a Crew Member, Starboard Trimmer and Chief Rigger responsible for Stars & Stripes’ standing and running rigging. In 1991, he was recruited to participate in Francis Ford Coppola’s motion picture production of “WIND” as an actor, sailor, stuntman and technical advisor. Carroll Ballard directed this action/love story using the America’s Cup as the central theme. |
