Founder and Senior Partner of Granite Bay Ventures, a regional real-estate development and syndication company; prior to starting Granite Bay Ventures, was the founder of Step Ahead Investments, Inc., a wholesale distributor of closeout and promotion merchandise which grew to over $100 million in annual sales, 66 retail locations, and over 1,300 employees; acted as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Step Ahead from its incorporation in 1987 until December 1998, when it merged with Dollar Tree Stores, Inc., the largest publicly traded dollar store chain. |