Tracy Taraski's not one to carry on — especially about herself. Taraski leans toward the softer-spoken side, but anyone who fails to listen carefully risks missing her quick-witted jokes and years of foodservice and design wisdom. Working in the challenging sports foodservice arena — no pun intended — that wisdom comes in handy.
Click for a list of past winners in the following categories: Dealer, Consultant, Service Agent, Manufacturers' Rep and Operator.
Wayne Jones didn't start his career in foodservice equipment and supplies as a manufacturer's representative. In fact, he spent the first half of his 29 years in the sector in customer service and sales on the dealer/distributor side of the business.
Repair work has been part of Gary Petitti's life from the very beginning. As a child, Petitti went on service calls with his father, a television repairman. In high school, he studied industrial electronics, while in college it was computer electronics repair. Repair work — restoring antique cars and motorcycles — is even his hobby.
Hard working. Dedicated. Passionate. Driven to succeed. While any one of these traits apply to countless foodservice professionals, collectively they serve as the cornerstones of success for FE&S’ 2014 Top Achievers.
The Great Recession changed how many foodservice executives thought about their companies. Perhaps no one embraced these changes as much as Drew O'Quinn, vice president of Fayetteville, N.C.-based Thompson & Little and FE&S' Top Achiever-Dealer for 2014.
A strong work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit helped Kristin Sedej forge her own path.
Chris Folz survives and thrives in the foodservice industry by making very conscious and deliberate choices about the direction his company should take and identifying the correct path to get there. It's ironic, then, that FE&S' Top Achiever – Manufacturers' Representative for 2014 got into this business almost by accident.
Gary Potvin knows the importance of "life or death" timelines.
Today's foodservice equipment and supplies industry remains a vibrant and resilient place for those individuals with a vision, a willingness to embrace technology and the ability to recruit new generations of professionals into this dynamic environment. Nowhere is that more evident than in the stories behind FE&S' 2013 Top Achiever Award Recipients.
Jameel Burkett talks fast. That's not a bad thing — it becomes obvious a few seconds into conversation that his brain works just as fast, or faster. And good thing, too, he's a busy guy. At the ripe age of 33, Burkett's already on the fast track to industry stardom. On top of that, he's a loyal family man with a wife, two-year-old daughter and five-year-old son. Not a bad run in such a short time.
