News & Views

Midtown Athletic Club's member magazine, Spirit, recently interviewed GRB Chairman Phil Saunders. In part one of a two-part article, Phil talkes about his first business, making water skis at age 16, and other ventures in transportation, distribution, and energy businesses. Part two will be published in next quarter's issue.

Read the full article here.

Duncan Moore, a University of Rochester professor, has written a great op-ed piece about Rochester in the New York Times. He notes that since we've nurtured a "fertile entrepreneurial class" through our universities and private/public partnerships, Rochester is thriving. Moore challenges local businesses to continue to invest in the community.

GRB is proud to embrace this enterpreneurial spirit and be a resource for companies who are doing just that.  

GRB client CJ Rapp, inventor of Jolt cola, recently launched a new beverage. Karma water debuted locally in September. We are proud to be part of the local team that brought Rapp's next creation to market.

From coverage in the Democrat & Chronicle: 

Rapp said he made it a point with the new company to involve other Rochester-area businesses in various aspects of the enterprise.

"There are 10 to 12 locally based companies that have a business role with the new company," Rapp said. "There is tremendous talent in this community."

Among the local businesses involved are ValTech, Hammer Packaging, Martino Flynn, The Bonadio Group and Wright Wisner Distributing Corp. These local firms and others are doing parts of the overall process, such as manufacturing and distributing the caps and labels, designing the bottle and marketing the product using traditional and online approaches.

GRB Chairman Phil Saunders is not only an entrepreneur and philanthropist, but is also an avid outdoorsman who hikes, hunts and fishes on 3,000 acres he has come to own in the sleepy, picturesque Livingston County township of Ossian.

In 2006, RIT received $13 million from entrepreneur E. Philip Saunders to create the E. Philip Saunders College of Business.  A lifelong entrepreneur, Saunders is currently Chairman of GRB.  RIT highlighted him in their alumni magazine. 

Phil Saunders continues his involvement in the transportation and energy industries, accepting a position as a director of Torvec, a local company that develops automotive energy saving technologies.  Read their blog post about the addition.