Photos by Craig Isaacs, BlueGoo Photography. View on website here.

Tom Stack, 2023 Business Person of the Year. Photo by BlueGoo Photography

Cue the mic, drumroll please ... the Lafayette Chamber announces Tom Stack as 2023 Business Person of the Year.

As comfortable in front of an audience as any band member, the Lafayette Chamber will be calling Tom Stack to the mic once again. Not as MC which has been one of his many volunteer rolls since becoming a Lafayette Chamber member in 2007 - at the Lafayette Art & Wine Festival, Rock the Plaza Summer Concert Series, the Lafayette Res Run for Education, but as the 2023 Lafayette Business Person of the Year.

The Lafayette Chamber was very fortunate to have 12 qualified candidate nominations for the 2023 Business Person of the Year! The selection committee chose Tom Stack for his decades of service to our community.

A dinner will be held in his honor on Friday, February 3 at the Lafayette Park Hotel & Spa. The evening will also include the State of City Address by Mayor Carl Anduri and the introduction of the Lafayette Chamber’s 2023 Board of Directors.

Colleen McCormick, 2013 Business Person of Year, nominated Tom, "Not only does Tom excel in his business, but he has also been a tireless volunteer and ambassador for Lafayette and the Chamber. As a longtime Town Hall Theatre volunteer/board member/VP, Tom brought countless music and comedy groups to Lafayette producing +/- 75 shows, worked with Sustainable Lafayette to make Town Hall greener, and worked with Gold Star Families to support military families. He helped keep music and theatre alive in our community. He supports small businesses and has been an advocate for open space."

In 2000, Tom, his wife Kiki, and their son, Sam, moved to Burton Valley. Tom is a 4th generation San Franciscan, a 1975 graduate of San Francisco's St. Ignatius College Preparatory and a 1979 graduate of Santa Clara University with a degree in Business Management. A serial entrepreneur, Tom spent 20 plus years working with and for the Grateful Dead, first by building his own licensing and marketing business into a worldwide distribution operation, then joining the Grateful Dead as VP of Licensing and Merchandising. Tom also represented Carlos Santana and the estates of Jerry Garcia, Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley and Janis Joplin.

In 2006, he then bridged this experience into a successful real estate practice with Coldwell Banker Realty. Tom's ability to manage expectations, communicate clearly, and be authentic with his clients has earned him rave reviews. “Tom's business style is "relational, not transactional" and relationships are very important to him.” notes Colleen. “Tom drops by our store [Lamorinda Music] to bring gifts throughout the year, writes personal notes of support, and treats everyone like a treasured friend instead of just a business contact.” His motto, “I’ll treat you like a Rock Star!” holds true for so many in our community including us at the Lafayette Chamber.

"He has been a positive, creative, passionate, energetic, and dynamic Lafayette community member as long as I’ve known him. From my humble perch in life as a musician, I initially observed him thru a lens as a performer at the Town Hall Theatre in The Sun Kings. Not only does Tom have genuine love for music and the live music experience, he also appreciates, respects, and is 100% comfortable navigating within the business of music. He’s compassionate as well as intelligent. He had the show-biz magic when bringing us bands to Town Hall Theatre and worked extremely hard to ensure every show was a success. Tom’s a rare breed in what is often a cynical, cutthroat industry - even at a community level. He loved Town Hall Theatre and took a lot of pride in seeing it revived and watching it thrive - to the obvious benefit of the community, of course. His idea of the win is “everybody happy” - the venue - the band - the fans, and the community. I am extremely confident he applies the same ethos acting as real estate agent, and in the myriad community events he wraps himself up in." Drew Harrison - Singer/Songwriter, The Sun Kings - A Beatles Tribute as Nature Intended.

John McCormick, the 2022 Business Person of the Year states, "Tom's enthusiasm, energy, and spirit are contagious. You can't help smile and feel great after talking with him. Tom is one of those special people that make Lafayette so special. We are thrilled to have Tom as this year's Business Person of the Year."

A dinner will be held in his honor on Friday, February 3 at the Lafayette Park Hotel & Spa. The evening will also include the State of City Address by Mayor Carl Anduri and the introduction of the Lafayette Chamber’s 2023 Board of Directors.

Some Rock Star facts:

Tom spent over 20 years of his early career by building a business from scratch, initially selling t-shirts in parking lots across the country at Grateful Dead shows, eventually marketing and licensing Rock and Roll merchandise to over 600 stores in the US, Europe and Japan as a licensee of the Grateful Dead. Tom also worked directly with rock legend Carlos Santana, creating and distributing Santana merchandise through his multiple channels. He then went on to work for the Grateful Dead handling worldwide sales, licensing, and product development. He became well-known for his attention to detail, his integrity, his hands-on approach and “second to none” customer service. If you are going to work with Rock Stars, you'd better treat them like Rock Stars!

Tom brings his love of music home to Lamorinda, having served as Vice-President of the Board of Directors at Lafayette's Town Hall Theatre from 2009 to 2020. As one of his many responsibilities, Tom created Town Hall's Music & Comedy Series, producing over 75 Rock and Roll and Comedy shows bringing live music and entertainment to the local community, while also introducing thousands of people to our little gem of a Theatre. During Tom’s tenure, he helped oversee the Theatre’s ascendancy as one of the East Bay’s premier entertainment venues, winning Diablo Magazine’s 2020 “Best of the East Bay” award for best venue for tribute bands.

Tom spearheaded an organization that fought for the preservation of an open space initiative in the Lafayette Community Park, keeping 68 acres of pristine parkland populated by heritage oaks, meadows, two creeks and abundant wildlife from being graded, paved and developed with redundant services offered in numerous other areas of Lafayette. The efforts of this group were a success, and the park remains untouched.

Tom's passion for coaching has been satiated by volunteering with Lafayette Little League, LMYA basketball and soccer, as well as serving as a basketball coach for many years in the local CYO programs.

He and his family are known for having presented the annual "Halloween House" in Burton Valley, from 2001-2017, where the neighborhood converged on their home to bear witness to multiple actors/actresses, smoke and fire, screams and shrieks and general spooky mayhem.

In 2006, he then bridged his experience into a successful real estate practice with the Orinda office of Coldwell Banker, serving his clients by managing the buying and selling process from start to finish. Tom has received multiple awards during this time for his annual sales production, consistently finishing in the top 1% nationally in sales among all Coldwell Banker agents.

At his core, Tom is a “relational” agent, rather than a “transactional” agent. Tom cultivates and nurtures his relationships with his clients, and he is there for them before and after the sale. Creating clients for life is his goal.

In 2009, Tom earned the prestigious EcoBroker Certification. He is educated and qualified about the choices that home and business owners have in purchasing, installing and managing eco-friendly technologies.

Tom is a Charter Member of the Lafayette Chamber of Commerce’s Green Committee, Sustainable Lafayette and an active member of the “Try Lafayette First” campaign which encourages residents to support local businesses.

Member of The Contra Costa Association of Realtors, The California Association of Realtors and The National Association of Realtors.

Criteria for the Lafayette Business Person of the Year includes:

• Current Lafayette Chamber of Commerce Member;
• Is involved with a successful business;
• Has been involved with either the Chamber or other community based organizations;
• Their work should support our mission: To promote and maintain a healthy business climate and to preserve and enhance the quality of life in Lafayette;
• Someone who has given their time, money or energy to help make Lafayette a healthy community where people want to live, work and shop;
• Someone who models excellence in everything they do;
• Someone who brings this community together and/or makes us proud to be a member of the community.

Nominations were accepted through December 9, 2022. 2024 nominations will be accepted starting November 2023.

Tom will join former BPOY award recipients Ed Stokes, Paul Barendregt, Dan Kelly, Barb Sorken, Dave Hill, Don Jenkins, Cynthia Murdough, Paul Bettelheim, Bob Ewen, Sereta Churchill, Ann Denny, Caesar Perales, Dennis Garrison, Scott Hampton & Wendy Tamis, Steve Cortese, Mike Heller, Mo Levich, Larry Blodgett, Tom Courtright, Larry Duson, Jay Lifson, Colleen McCormick, Brian Aiello, Leila Douglah, Andy and Wendy Scheck, Brenda Oum, Dana Green, Terry Ring, Jennifer Perlmutter and John McCormick.

A dinner will be held in his honor on Friday, February 3 at the Lafayette Park Hotel & Spa. The evening will also include the State of City Address by Mayor Carl Anduri and the introduction of the Lafayette Chamber’s 2023 Board of Directors.

The Lafayette Chamber is currently accepting nominations for the 2023 Citizen of the Year. Click here to learn more: https://lafayettechamber.org/coy.

Click the image to view photos on Flickr.

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John McCormick, 2022 Lafayette Business Person of the Year and co-owner of Lamorinda Music.  Photo by BlueGoo Photography, Craig Isaacs.

Volunteering – A Way of Life for the McCormicks

Lafayette Social, June issue

It’s evident to those who know them that they’ve done great work with the schools and community since the opening of Lamorinda Music in 2009. Many in the business community know John and Colleen for their recent service on the board of the Chamber of Commerce. John recently served as president of the Chamber Board for two years, helping to lead the small business community through the pandemic. They were also named Business Person of the Year — Colleen in 2013 and John in 2022. And while all these things are amazing, what puts the tiger in this couple’s power tank is their passion for volunteering and giving back to the community.

Read full Lafayette Social June edition HERE>

On Friday, January 31, 2020, the Lafayette Chamber honored Jennifer Perlmutter, the Lafayette Business Person of the Year during the State of the City Address at the Lafayette Park Hotel & Spa.

A little more than a year ago the Lafayette Chamber – and the community – was concerned that there were so many vacancies in the downtown core area of our business district along Mt. Diablo Blvd. Seventeen buildings sat empty with little movement for perspective business to take root in Lafayette. Discussions began to consider alternate short- term leases to allow “pop-up” business to operate, filling the empty buildings and keeping our downtown vibrant.

At the same time, just down the street, artist Jennifer Perlmutter was working behind the scenes with Steve Cortese (The Mercantile and La Fiesta Square) and his staff to consider developing a plan to do a “pop-up” art gallery in the vacant old World Savings/Wells Fargo building on the corner of Mt. Diablo Blvd. and Moraga Rd. Roughly 6,000 square feet of space was offered to Jennifer in a 6 month lease.

Jennifer already had a successful art gallery in town, The Jennifer Perlmutter Gallery, located at 3620 Mt. Diablo Blvd. She was ready to take on a new project. Her vision took the bank space, teller’s booths, the vault and the natural light and created a place where art and community came together. The new gallery was named JPG@TheBank. From her opening day on Valentine’s Day 2019 each exhibit has highlighted a variety of media, large and small sculptures and illustrations. But what makes the gallery unique is the way other art forms are celebrated. Music, Performing Art, Poetry, and Art in Motion have all been woven into the fabric that has become a center for our community to meet, learn and appreciate art.

As her vision came into focus it not only filled the old bank, it changed the neighborhood. Most of our vacant spaces are now thriving businesses. Her generosity and inclusiveness has brought so many new people to our downtown. She connected with art students at Saint Mary’s College and has brought speakers and presenters together on an array of subjects.

Jennifer Perlmutter’s tent is large enough for all of us in Lafayette to gather and be rewarded by experiencing art. She helped make our community a better place to work, live, learn, shop and play. That is why she was named the Lafayette Chamber’s 2020 Marquis Business Person of the Year.

What interests Jennifer is the transformative power creativity and art can have on your life. Her mission is sharing creativity that touches and inspires. When you visit JPG@TheBank, you can pick up the souvenir coffee mug with some interesting questions on it.

“What is art? Where do you see art? Why does art matter?”

Just before JFK died in Dallas, he said: “We must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth.”

The “Marquis” Business Person of the Year Annual Dinner was held on Friday, January 31, 2020, at 6:00pm at the Lafayette Park Hotel & Spa. The evening also includes the introduction to the Lafayette Chamber’s 2020 Board of Directors, our incoming President John McCormick (Lamorinda Music) and the “State of the City” address by Mayor Mike Andersen.