Business

SF State Business Gator Great Dear Biersch

Dean Biersch

Brewery executive

This Gordon Biersch Brewing Company co-founder has taken his love of beer to wine country with his latest venture, Hopmonk Tavern.

SF State Business Gator Great Barry Braverman

Barry Braverman

Theme park designer

Life after SF State has been an excellent adventure for this teaching-credential recipient. He was the lead designer for California Adventure, one of Disney's newest theme parks.

SF State Business Gator Great Gregory Fischbach

Gregory Fischbach

Video game executive

Video games were a slam-dunk for this one-time president of RCA Records International. He went on to start Acclaim Entertainment, Inc., the company responsible for bringing the top-selling "NBA Jam" to market.

SF State Business Gator Great Stephen Gillett

Stephen Gillett

Technology and business leader

This former Starbucks CIO put his MBA to use as executive vice president and COO of Symantec.

SF State Business Gator Great Andreas Glocker

Andreas Glocker

Tech executive

After graduating with a degree in computer science, he founded Bay Area ISP Sirius Connections, top-rated for three years running before he sold it and founded Fastmetrics(link is external).

SF State Business Gator Great Mohan Gyani

Mohan Gyani

Telecommunications executive

He set out to become a petroleum engineer but found his true calling in the business world. He played a key role in the IPO of AT&T Wireless and went on to serve as president and CEO of the company's Wireless Mobility Group.

SF State Business Gator Great Charles Hall

Charles Hall

Inventor

When his master's project idea for a Jell-O chair flopped, he came up with the idea for a water-filled vinyl mattress. Still popular today, the waterbed is an indelible icon of the '70s.

SF State Business Gator Great Kishore Kripalani

Kishore Kripalani

Restaurateur

His new MBA in hand, he opened the Bay Area's first Gaylord India Restaurant on Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco. The top-rated restaurant now has locations worldwide.

SF State Business Gator Great Chris Larsen

Chris Larsen

Chairman and CEO

In 1993 this E-Loan co-founder was instrumental in passing California's strong consumer financial privacy law. Today he is CEO of another online lender, Prosper.com, and online payment protocol innovator Ripple Labs.

SF State Business Gator Great Paula LeDuc

Paula LeDuc

Business and community leader

After earning a master's degree in special education, she taught cooking classes at the Living Skills Center for the Visually Impaired before launching a second career, as head of Paula LeDuc Fine Catering.

SF State Business Gator Great Tom Lehner

Tom Lehner

Automaker executive

This political science grad, once chief of staff for a U.S. senator, says diverse backgrounds and competing interests at SF State prepared him for politics and public service. Today he's vice president of public policy at the Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association.

SF State Business Gator Great Yvonne Lembi-Detert

Yvonne Lembi-Detert

Hotel owner

This owner of Personality Hotels on Union Square shocked her marketing professor in the 1970s by inviting a major developer mentioned in her textbook to speak to her class.

SF State Business Gator Great Stephen Lincoln

Stephen Lincoln

Bakery owner/fitness instructor/actor

The high-protein/low-carb cookies and brownies produced at his New York-based Protein Bakery are healthful as well as tasty, say fans including Oprah Winfrey.

SF State Business Gator Great Gilman Louie

Gilman Louie

Partner, Alsop Louie Partners

He was still finishing his bachelor's degree when he founded a successful computer-game company responsible for some of the biggest games on the market. Today, as a technology venture capitalist, he is helping other promising entrepreneurs develop their ideas.

SF State Business Gator Great Andrew Ly

Andrew Ly

CEO

The head of the thriving Sugar Bowl Bakery sharpened his business acumen at SF State, where he got a great education and met his future wife, Cindy, when the two were assigned to work together on a class project.

SF State Business Gator Great Kermit Lynch

Kermit Lynch

Wine merchant

Saveur magazine named this English major among its 100 favorite food-related people in the United States. His popular Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant is located in Berkeley.

SF State Business Gator Great George Marcus

George Marcus

Real estate broker

The founder of the Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Brokerage Company has remained closely connected to his alma mater.

SF State Business Gator Great Manny Mashouf

Manny Mashouf

Clothing retailer

He founded bebe Inc. clothing line, the worldwide brand associated with chic, avant garde, sophisticated women including some of the biggest names in Hollywood.

SF State Business Gator Great Susan RoAne

Susan RoAne

Best-selling author, keynote speaker

She learned from forward-thinking faculty like Dr. George Hallowitz before writing books such as "How to Work a Room," which has sold more than a million copies.

SF State Business Gator Great Jeff Sand

Jeff Sand

Industrial designer

In 1994, this industrial design major co-founded Switch Snowboard Bindings, the first company to sell step-in binding for snowboards. His work has since led to more than 12 utility and design patents.

SF State Business Gator Great Stephen M. Wolf

Stephen M. Wolf

Airline executive

Businessweek credited this SF State grad with helping pull U.S. Airways out of a nosedive after he came on board as CEO in 1996. He went on to become chairman of R. R. Donnelley & Sons, a commercial printing company.

    

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