Join us on this fascinating journey through the history and heart of Bogle Family Vineyards, as our guest Jody Bogle takes us back to her family's roots in the Sacramento River Delta. Discover how six generations of farming evolved into a renowned winemaking legacy, beginning with a serendipitous pivot from potatoes to Petite Syrah and Chenin Blanc grapes. Jody recounts the Bogle family's resilience through the Great Depression, their strategic foray into viticulture, and the birth of their own wine label, illustrating the powerful blend of luck, strategic shifts, and familial collaboration th ..read more

Growing up with the backdrop of a small Japanese village, Taro's yearning for freedom and acceptance was a seed that would eventually blossom into an American dream. Alongside his son Koki, Taro shares how he saved enough money from a paper route to fly his whole family to America as a teenager. He talks about how his father had a dream they should open a restaurant and how a chance encounter with a Japanese businessman landed them investment money which allowed them to fulfill that dream. With no experience running a restaurant and nearly no research into location, food costs, equipment cost ..read more

Discover the incredible transformation of Roy and Ryan Hill, the sibling duo behind Elite Service Experts, as they share their tale of turning a period of near hopelessness into a flourishing family legacy. Their father's daring decision to purchase his former employer's equipment and transition to serving an established customer base set the groundwork for what would become a testament to entrepreneurial resilience. This episode peels back the layers of their journey, from facing the hardships of leadership within a family to the powerful words of encouragement that shifted a moment of grief ..read more

One would not suspect a young newspaper carrier to redefine the process from sidewalk or porch drop to in-home delivery, as it was self defined.  Now would one expect that to turn into his first positive business exit.  But that's what you'll hear on today's episode with Mark Haney. Inspiring, educational and not without the highs and lows of taking the family business into a creative growth cycle only to find a highly leveraged situation that went from optmistic to nearly broke. A testament to the power of dreaming big, adapting to change, and seizing opportunities came from unexpe ..read more

Natalie talks with Jennifer Carriere-LaDuke, who is a 4th generation owner, board member, and marketing wiz for her 133 year old family farming business, Carriere Family Farms.  The business started with her great grandfather coming to the Sacramento area from Canada where he worked for a farmer clearing thick vegetation from the land surrounding the Sacramento River and helped planting row crops. Before long he fell in love with the farmer's daughter and became part of a family farm that has passed from generation to generation since the 1890's.  Jennifer shares the importance of t ..read more

Join the conversation as your host,  Natalie Mariani-Kling delves into Sacramento history by talking with Kevin Fat, a 3rd generation member of the Frank Fat’s Restaurant Group family. Frank Fat’s in downtown Sacramento stands as the oldest family owned restaurant in the city, having opened in 1939 and still being owned and run by members of the Fat family.  Kevin talks about the history of Fat’s, how his grandfather first came to America from China at age 16 and even with a language barrier, his personality, integrity and love of people helped him forge relationships that would help ..read more

Alan Turanski grew up in the beekeeping world and started to keep his own hive by age 10. His father Dick Turanski started a honey and beekeeping accessory company in the 1970’s after trying some poison oak honey at a friend's house. Soon Glory Bee honey was being sold in large quantities to natural food stores and bakeries for use in healthy breads.  Alan took over as President of the company several years ago and has led the company forward with an eye of sustainability, philanthropy and honing in on the long standing values of the company, which led him to turn Glory Bee into an offici ..read more

Today's episode is a unique story for A Seat at the Table.  Typically we interview single family businesses, but Holt of California would never have become as mighty as it is today, employing 900 people brokering deals for Caterpillar equipment. It was the joining of three separate family businesses that allowed Holt of California to be a mainstay in the California agriculture business.  Your host, Natalie Mariani-Kling talks with Ken Monroe, President and Ryan Beatie, Senior Vice President about the history of the company, how they handled the merging of multiple businesses and mult ..read more

Stan Van Vleck always had a drive to succeed and a mind for business. He grew up in a cattle ranching family and had his eyes set on being a part of the family business but unfortunately, old school tradition shut him out of that opportunity as he was not the first born son in his family and didn't quite fit the mold his father wanted him to fit. After being told several times by his father that he could not be a part of the family business, Stan went on to pay his way through college and law school and began building an investment portfolio that would give him the ability to eventually buy ou ..read more

Natalie talks with Paul Endelman whose father Ken started the world's largest manufacturer of pilates equipment and education. Paul is head of sales strategy at Balanced Body and he tells the story of how his father went from building custom water beds to building custom exercise equipment for a famous Hollywood trainer.  Paul tells Natalie how his grandfather instilled in him a love of art that led him to seek out art all over the world and eventually come back to Sacramento and help put together large public art projects like the Art Hotel. That type of civic involvement inspired Paul ..read more