Crains New York - August 12, 2013 - (Page 8)

BUSINESS PEOPLE $584K Median CFO salary in 2012, up 2.8% from a year earlier Source: Compensation Advisory Partners EXECUTIVE MOVES buck ennis PUSHING BOUNDARIES: Chef Alex Stupak proved naysayers wrong when he broke new ground with an upscale Mexican joint, whose name means “push.” GOTHAM GIGS Turning up the heat Alex Stupak brings ‘punk’ approach to Mexican food ‘Everyone told me no, I was going to fail’ After years of taming butter and flour, chef Alex Stupak is wrangling ingredients with more bite: habanero peppers to green chorizo. ¶ “I approach everything with a punk-rock mentality,” said Mr. Stupak. “I very much love provoking.” ¶ Mr. Stupak, 33, shook up the culinary world in 2010 when he left his post as head pastry chef at acclaimed Lower East Side restaurant WD-50 to open innovative Mexican eatery Empellón Taqueria in the West Village. But getting investors on board with the new concept wasn’t easy. ¶ “Everyone told me no, I was going to fail,” said Mr. Stupak. “They said I was known for something, and once you’re known you can’t change.” ¶ As dinners with potential investors fell through, Mr. Stupak took a different tack. Rather than prove that the numbers would work, he decided to talk passionately about his new idea. Two investors immediately put up $1.1 8 | Crain’s New York Business | August 12, 2013 million to open Empellón Taqueria. The 1,800square-foot restaurant was profitable within two weeks, an almost unheard-of feat. ¶ Mr. Stupak fell in love with cooking as a child in Leominster, Mass., and grew up watching In Julia’s Kitchen. At 12, he talked his way into a dishwasher position at a local restaurant. ¶ “I wanted to wash dishes because I would eventually have the honor to peel potatoes,” he said. ¶ He worked in almost every type of kitchen—Denny’s, local country clubs—before attending the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y. He sliced and diced his way through top-rated kitchens, and served as head pastry chef at Grant Achatz’s modernist shrine, Alinea, in Chicago. ¶ Mr. Stupak is on a roll. He plans to finish his first cookbook, expand from his current two restaurants to three, and eventually open the first three-Michelin-starred Mexican eatery. —laura lorenzetti International House: Calvin Sims, 49, joined the nonprofit as president and chief executive. He was previously a program officer at the Ford Foundation. Hanover Street Capital: Lee J. Siracuse, 45, joined the financial services firm as vice president and senior asset manager in its NPL asset management group. He was previously a director in the credit-risk management group at the Hypo Real Estate Capital Corp. Cigna Corp.: Scott Evelyn, 50, was promoted to president and general manager for the tristate area at the health insurance company. He was previously president and general manager for Florida. Friedman: Laura Kucera, 38, joined the accounting firm as chief marketing officer. She was previously marketing director, national financial services and capital markets, at Grant Thornton. AddThis: Scott Allan, 47, joined the social-media company as chief marketing officer, a newly created position. He was previously senior vice president, global marketing, at Rakuten LinkShare. Newtek Business Services: Thomas Harkins, 56, joined the business services provider as senior vice president and chief credit and risk officer of Newtek Merchant Solutions. He was previously chief strategy officer at First Payment Services. PwC: Vin Colman, 53, was promoted to U.S. assurance leader at the professional services firm. He was previously East region vice chairman. Miles Everson, 49, was promoted to U.S. advisory services leader. He was previously U.S. advisory financial services leader. Ackman-Ziff Real Estate Group: Marc Schulder, 39, joined as managing director. He was previously investment manager at Real Estate Capital Partners. CBIZ MHM: Gary Rosen, 55, joined the accounting firm as managing director. He was previously managing director at the Mercadien Group. Protiviti: Peter Grupe, 55, joined the business consulting and internalaudit firm as director. He was previously a white-collar-crime specialist at the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Two Trees Management Co.: Thomas Conoscenti, 32, joined the real estate company as director of commercial leasing, a newly created position. He was previously executive director of planning and administration at the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership. American Friends Musée d’Orsay: Polly Lyman, 58, joined the nonprofit as director of development, a newly created position. She was formerly

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crains New York - August 12, 2013

IN THE BOROUGHS
IN THE MARKETS
THE INSIDER
SMALL BUSINESS
BUSINESS PEOPLE
OPINION
STEVE HINDY
GREG DAVID
REAL ESTATE DEALS
REPORT: SPORTS BUSINESS
FOR THE RECORD
CLASSIFIEDS
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
SOURCE LUNCH
OUT AND ABOUT
SNAPS

Crains New York - August 12, 2013