Kent Hahne

President and Founder

A restaurant guy all his life, Mr. Hahne started working at McDonalds at the age of 15 next to his school. After college, where he studied Accounting and Computer Programming he opened his own restaurant in Germany – catering to the embassies in Bonn. After that Mr. Hahne became McDonald’s youngest franchisee in Germany, opened 14 restaurants in former East Germany and sold out in February 2006. Mr. Hahne founded VAPIANO in 2002 with his partners. He’s also founder and owner of the well known SEGAFREDO in Europe, Desert Moon Café and Tacuba in the USA. He is now expanding VAPIANO full time. In 2008 Mr. Hahne founded the european Restaurant & Retail Management Company APEIRON – www.apeiron-ag.com. With a group of experts, Mr. Hahne is responsible for worldwide franchise sales, support and communications. Mr. Hahne is married with four children and is a born US citizen, growing up on both sides of the Atlantic.

Bill Bessette

CEO Vapiano USA, Canada, Middle & South America

Bill Bessette joined the United States Marine Corps at age 17. After serving 7 years, he graduated college before transitioning into the restaurant industry with the Outback Steakhouse team. His immediate success led him to the Chart House Restaurants where he spent 8 years covering key markets, working his way up to Regional Manager for the Northeast. Mr. Bessette joined Legal Sea Foods as the Director of Operations in 2004 overseeing 10 restaurants, before accepting a position as Sr. Vice President of Operations overseeing 32 restaurants (Including 3 different concept Legal Sea Foods, Legal Test Kitchen and Legal C-bar). Mr. Bessette’s work in US markets includes: California, Texas, Colorado, Florida, DC, Atlanta, Philadelphia, NY/NJ, and Boston.

Gregor Gerlach

CFO

Gregor Gerlach was Vapiano’s original investor five years ago and continues to serve as the Chairman of the Board. Mr. Gerlach is currently the CEO of Seaside Hotels, a boutique hotel chain with 7 world class hotels in Germany and Spain. Mr. Gerlach spent four years with McKinsey after receiving his MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Klaus Rader

EVP/Secretary

Mr. Rader was one of four original founders of VAPIANO. Prior to founding Vapiano, Mr. Rader was the youngest McDonalds franchisee in Germany (alongside Kent Hahne) and owned 6 McDonalds. In 1998 he founded L’ Osteria, a casual dining fresh pizza/pasta concept that has four locations. In 1999 he co-founded Balzac Coffee and has led that concept to grow to almost 30 locations.

Harold Kestenbaum

HAROLD L. KESTENBAUM is an attorney who has specialized in franchise law and other matters relating to franchising since 1977. From May 1982 until September 1986, Harold served as franchise and general counsel to Sbarro, Inc., the national franchisor of over 1,000 family-style Italian restaurants and, was a director from March 1985 to December 2005. In addition, he currently sits on the Board of Directors of two public companies, YTB International, Inc., Ultimate Franchise Systems, and the privately held GarageTek, Inc. From September 1983 to October 1989, he served as President and Chairman of the Board of FranchiseIt Corporation, the first publicly traded company specializing in providing franchise marketing and consulting services and equity financing to emerging franchise companies, which he co-founded. Harold has just authored the first book dedicated to the entrepreneur who wants to franchise his/her business called “So You Want To Franchise Your Business”. It is a step by step guide to what a businessperson needs to know and do to properly roll out a franchise program.

Known for keeping his franchisor clients out of legal trouble, attorney Harold Kestenbaum says those he represents have honored him with the nickname “the franchising guru.” He wears the title proudly, especially given that in 30 years of specializing in franchise law, he has argued cases in a courtroom only twice.

Matteo Thun

Design and Architecture

Milan design star Matteo Thun is the brainchild behind Vapiano’s unmistakable image. A veteran in the architectural world, Thun has won many awards including “Hotel of the Year for the Side Hotel Hamburg" and the "Worldwide Hospitality Awards" in 2005.

Anthony Felli

V.P. Operations

Anthony Felli joined Vapiano International, LLC in 2008 as the Vice President of Culinary & Purchasing. Prior to joining the Vapiano team, he was the Regional Director for Landry’s Restaurants INC., where he was responsible for the oversight and direction of eleven units throughout the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. It was at the Chart House (owned by Landry’s) where Mr. Felli first met current Vapiano Chief Executive Bill Bessette and they began their long-standing relationship in the restaurant industry. Mr. Felli also holds several degrees in culinary and restaurant management. In 1997, Mr. Felli received his A.S. in Baking & Pastries and his B.S. in Restaurant Management from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. After graduating top of his class, he went on to earn his Master’s Degree in Human Resources from Purdue University in 2000. A native of Sonoma County California, he currently resides in Alexandria, Virginia.

Steve Halt

CPA

Steven R. Halt has over thirty years of public accounting experience in representing small to medium size businesses, including emerging and fast-growing companies, non-profits and individuals. His experience in accounting and tax and his excellent communication skills allow him to provide clients with a variety of services such as general business and strategic planning, business valuation, human resources, systems design and tax and financial planning.

Mr. Halt was appointed to the Board of Directors of several non-profit organizations and has served on a number of committees with the Fairfax and Alexandria Chambers of Commerce. He often speaks at various forums on tax matters. For the past fifteen years he has served as a coordinator and participant of the Executive Forum Group of the Fairfax Chamber, advising business owners on a variety of issues. Mr. Halt is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). He holds a BA in Accounting from the University of Maryland.