John Bello
Encyclopedia
John Joseph Bello is an American
entrepreneur
best known for creating and building the SoBe
brand of New Age beverages.
, the son of the late Generoso “Jerry” and Edith (Melito) Bello. He is a 1964 graduate of Plainville High School
in Plainville, Connecticut
, where he played football, was student council
president and was named to The National Honor Society
. Bello went on to matriculate at Tufts University
in Medford, Massachusetts
, on a Navy ROTC
scholarship. There, he played football for two years, was a member of Delta Upsilon
fraternity, and played drums in a rock band
called “The What Four.” He earned a bachelors degree
cum laude in history in 1968. While at Tufts he also met the former Nancy Nelson, to whom he was married 1969.
and served a four-year tour that included a tour of duty
in South Vietnam
as Supply Officer for PBR Mobile Base II on the Mekong Delta
with a mission of combat support for several river patrol boat (PBR) squadrons. He was awarded the Navy Commendation Medal
with Combat V
for meritorious service. In 1972, After Vietnam, Bello was assigned to the Moffett Field Naval Air Station Moffett Field as the Navy Exchange Officer. He resigned his commission as a Lieutenant to attend graduate school.
, graduating with an MBA
in 1974. While at Tuck he was named an Edward Tuck
Scholar. After Tuck, his first business position was in brand
management at General Foods
, where he worked on Sanka
and Maxwell House
coffee brands. After an interim experience in athletic footwear as product director for Keds Brand footwear, he moved on to a strategic planning and marketing functions in the Pepsi Cola Division of PepsiCowhere he worked on Mountain Dew and the Pepsi Challenge.
, where he ascended to the position of President of NFL Properties in 1986. At NFLP, he helped transform licensed apparel from a small business
selling novelty merchandise in specialty store
s into everyday fashion transcending fan-wear, sold at major chain sporting goods
and department store
s. In addition to creating NFL ProLine authentic sideline gear and apparel made available to consumers to so that they could "Wear What the Pros Wear", Bello drove major sponsorships with Coke, Canon, Gatorade, Miller Brewing, GTE, Apple, Citibank, American Airlines and many consumer food products through a Sunday insert program called the "NFL Tailgate Party." He also played a major role in creating the NFL Experience, a fan festival that is now a fixture and fan favorite at Super Bowls. Also, Bello helped organize the the American Bowl series of international pre-season games starting with the 1986 game between the the Refrigerator Perry led Super Bowl Champion Chicago Bears and Dallas Cowboys played in front of 81,000 fans at London's Wembley Stadium. Bello's innovative approach to promoting and enhancing the NFL experience included bedecking pro golfer Payne Stewart in NFL Team colors as he played on the tour, sponsoring NASCAR racers, women's lines of NFL team clothing and made for TV events such as the Quarterback Challenge and The NFL's Fastest Man.
During Bello's tenure at NFLP, the business grew from $30 million in retail sales
, sponsorships and publishing to $3 billion when he left in 1993. Bello is broadly credited with creating the model by which every major sports league now operates. He was ranked 46th on Sporting News’ list of Most Powerful People in Sports in 1992.
Bello left NFLP on Labor Day in 1993 amid controversy. He resigned as a result of losing a power struggle with then-NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue
who was seeking to consolidate league operations under the commissioner's office.
. At AriZona he joined a former Pepsi colleague Mike Schott, then COO of AriZona Beverages. After four months he left AriZona to create his own beverage company in partnership with Tom Schwalm that became the South Beach Beverage Company, named after the trendy South Beach
area of Miami.
The new company, based in Norwalk, Connecticut
, marketed so-called "New Age" beverages—exotic juice blends and ready-to-drink iced teas—but faced formidable competition from its predecessors, including Snapple
, Mystic, Nantucket Nectars
and AriZona. South Beach needed a point of differentiation in the marketplace, so Bello added trace elements of various herbs and nutrients—such as ginseng, ginkgo biloba, guarana, carnitine, Echinacea, yohimbe, taurine and praline—and promoted their benefits beyond hydration. He launched a "3G" line of drinks, which included supposed energy boosters like ginseng, ginkgo biloba and guarana. He also expanded the brand's iced tea portfolio to include more exotic offerings such as Black Tea
, Oolong Tea
(with bee pollen
), Green Tea (with Echinacea) and Red Tea
(with selenium). Under Bello's direction, SoBe launched a line of "3C" Elixirs (containing calcium, carnitine and chromium) in varieties such as Orange-Carrot, Orange-Tomato (including lycopene), Energy (with guarana, yohimbe and arginina), Power (taurine, creatine and praline), Zen Blend (triple ginseng tea with schizandra), Wisdom (with ginkgo biloba, St. John's wort and gotu kola
) and Eros (with dong quai
, damiana, foti and zink).
He created the "dueling lizards" design and took a lead role in the company's guerrilla marketing
effort, proclaiming himself as the "Lizard King" in radio advertisements
. He gave the brand an "attitude" by enlisting athletes who were somewhat out of the mainstream—such as golfer John Daly
and downhill skier Bode Miller
—as official spokespersons for the brand. The SoBe marketing team also wooed independent beverage distributors, offering them very high margins and a small chunk of equity in the company.
From its creation in 1995, SoBe's sales rose rapidly and climbed to $275 million by 2000. The following year, the brand rode the "good-for-you" trend among American consumers to break the quarter billion dollar barrier in 2000. SoBe was sold to PepsiCo for a reported $370 million cash on October 30, 2000. Bello remained with Pepsi overseeing SoBe until early 2004.
By the end of 1999 the company had sold 14.8 million cases of drinks and taken in $166.4 million. South Beach challenged rival AriZona in sales and was pursuing Snapple for leadership in the new age drink category. Less than pleased, rival AriZona slapped the company with a lawsuit claiming that SoBe had copied its bottle design or stolen trade secrets. Then Judge Sonia Sotamayor ruled in SoBe's favor denying a preliminary injunction. Legal action proceeded and persisted on the federal and state level until 2007, long after the company had been sold to PepsiCo. In 2007, the court dismissed all AriZona claims on summary judgement
In 2001, Bello was named Ernst and Young's National Entrepreneur of the Year in the Consumer Products
category for his accomplishments at SoBe.
With a former NFL associate Bruce Burke, Bello formed Firefighter Brands, a social enterprise intended to benefit local firefighting units with revenues generated from the sale of Firefighter Branded coffee, chips, chili's, trail mixes and energy drinks. The project was supported by a group of well to do and high profile community minded investors but ultimately failed due to lack of cohesive co-operation among various firefighting entities.
In 2005, Bello invested in and became chairman of Soup Kitchen International
, a company he helped found that markets soups created by Al Yeganeh, the New York-based soup chef made famous as the "Soup Nazi" on the popular Seinfeld TV show, for retail stores, and developed franchised restaurants.
In 2006 Bello became a general partner of Sherbrooke Capital, a venture capital
firm that provides growth capital to early stage health and wellness companies that led the $6.35 million equity-financing round for IZZE in early 2005. In the spring of 2006, Bello was appointed Chairman of the Board
of the IZZE Beverage Company
, a maker of sparkling juices. Izze was subsequently sold to PepsiCo for an undisclosed sum. In addition, he serves on the board of Boathouse Sports, a Sherbrooke portfolio company
and as acting CEO and Chairman of Adina for Life, another Sherbrooke portfolio company.
Bello resides in Scottsdale, Arizona
and Rye, New York with his wife Nancy. The couple has three grown children: Lauren, Lindsay and John Michael.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
best known for creating and building the SoBe
SoBe
SoBe is a brand of teas, fruit-juice blends and enhanced water beverages owned by PepsiCo. The name SoBe is an abbreviation of South Beach, named after the upscale area located in Miami Beach, Florida. In the past, the SoBe name has also been licensed for gum and chocolate products...
brand of New Age beverages.
Early Life
Bello grew up in Plainville, ConnecticutPlainville, Connecticut
Plainville is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 17,328 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 9.8 square miles , of which 9.8 square miles is land and 0.1 square miles is water...
, the son of the late Generoso “Jerry” and Edith (Melito) Bello. He is a 1964 graduate of Plainville High School
Plainville High School
Plainville High School is a public high school in Plainville, Connecticut. It is the only high school in the town of Plainville, Connecticut, serving roughly 873 students...
in Plainville, Connecticut
Plainville, Connecticut
Plainville is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 17,328 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 9.8 square miles , of which 9.8 square miles is land and 0.1 square miles is water...
, where he played football, was student council
Students' union
A students' union, student government, student senate, students' association, guild of students or government of student body is a student organization present in many colleges and universities, and has started appearing in some high schools...
president and was named to The National Honor Society
National Honor Society
The National Honor Society is a recognition program for high school students in grades 10-12 in the United States and in several other countries...
. Bello went on to matriculate at Tufts University
Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university located in Medford/Somerville, near Boston, Massachusetts. It is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts and on the eastern border of France...
in Medford, Massachusetts
Medford, Massachusetts
Medford is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in the United States, on the Mystic River, five miles northwest of downtown Boston. In the 2010 U.S. Census, Medford's population was 56,173...
, on a Navy ROTC
Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps
The Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps program is a college-based, commissioned officer training program of the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps.-Origins:...
scholarship. There, he played football for two years, was a member of Delta Upsilon
Delta Upsilon
Delta Upsilon is the sixth oldest international, all-male, college Greek-letter organization, and is the oldest non-secret fraternity in North America...
fraternity, and played drums in a rock band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
called “The What Four.” He earned a bachelors degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
cum laude in history in 1968. While at Tufts he also met the former Nancy Nelson, to whom he was married 1969.
Naval Career
Upon his graduation from Tufts, Bello was commissioned an Ensign in the United States NavyUnited States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
and served a four-year tour that included a tour of duty
Tour of duty
In the Navy, a tour of duty is a period of time spent performing operational duties at sea, including combat, performing patrol or fleet duties, or assigned to service in a foreign country....
in South Vietnam
South Vietnam
South Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...
as Supply Officer for PBR Mobile Base II on the Mekong Delta
Mekong Delta
The Mekong Delta is the region in southwestern Vietnam where the Mekong River approaches and empties into the sea through a network of distributaries. The Mekong delta region encompasses a large portion of southwestern Vietnam of . The size of the area covered by water depends on the season.The...
with a mission of combat support for several river patrol boat (PBR) squadrons. He was awarded the Navy Commendation Medal
Commendation Medal
The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration which is presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. For valorous actions in direct contact with an enemy force, but of a lesser degree than required for the award of the Bronze Star, the Valor device may...
with Combat V
Valor device
The Valor device is an award of the United States military which is a bronze attachment to certain medals to indicate that it was received for valor...
for meritorious service. In 1972, After Vietnam, Bello was assigned to the Moffett Field Naval Air Station Moffett Field as the Navy Exchange Officer. He resigned his commission as a Lieutenant to attend graduate school.
Early Business Career
Bello entered the Amos Tuck School at Dartmouth CollegeDartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
, graduating with an MBA
Master of Business Administration
The Master of Business Administration is a :master's degree in business administration, which attracts people from a wide range of academic disciplines. The MBA designation originated in the United States, emerging from the late 19th century as the country industrialized and companies sought out...
in 1974. While at Tuck he was named an Edward Tuck
Edward Tuck
Edward Tuck was an American banker and philanthropist. Born in Exeter, New Hampshire, he was educated at Dartmouth College. Tuck donated $500,000 to Dartmouth to endow the Amos Tuck School of Administration and Finance, in memory of his father...
Scholar. After Tuck, his first business position was in brand
Brand
The American Marketing Association defines a brand as a "Name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or service as distinct from those of other sellers."...
management at General Foods
General Foods
General Foods Corporation was a company whose direct predecessor was established in the USA by Charles William Post as the Postum Cereal Company in 1895. The name General Foods was adopted in 1929, after several corporate acquisitions...
, where he worked on Sanka
Sanka
Sanka is a brand of instant decaffeinated coffee, sold around the world, and was one of the earliest decaffeinated varieties. Sanka is distributed in the United States by Kraft Foods.-History:...
and Maxwell House
Maxwell House
Maxwell House is a brand of coffee manufactured by a like-named division of Kraft Foods. Introduced in 1892, it is named in honor of the Maxwell House Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. For many years until the late 1980s it was the largest-selling coffee in the U.S. and is currently second behind...
coffee brands. After an interim experience in athletic footwear as product director for Keds Brand footwear, he moved on to a strategic planning and marketing functions in the Pepsi Cola Division of PepsiCowhere he worked on Mountain Dew and the Pepsi Challenge.
National Football League Properties
In 1979, he joined NFL Properties (NFLP), the marketing and merchandising arm of the National Football LeagueNational Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
, where he ascended to the position of President of NFL Properties in 1986. At NFLP, he helped transform licensed apparel from a small business
Small business
A small business is a business that is privately owned and operated, with a small number of employees and relatively low volume of sales. Small businesses are normally privately owned corporations, partnerships, or sole proprietorships...
selling novelty merchandise in specialty store
Specialty store
Specialty stores are small stores which specialize in a specific range of merchandise and related items. Most stores have an extensive depth of stock in the item that they specialize in and provide high levels of service and expertise...
s into everyday fashion transcending fan-wear, sold at major chain sporting goods
Sports equipment
Sports equipment is a general term for any object used for sport or exercise. Examples of sports equipment include:-Exercise equipment:Examples for exercise include swiss balls, weights, equipment for the gym...
and department store
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...
s. In addition to creating NFL ProLine authentic sideline gear and apparel made available to consumers to so that they could "Wear What the Pros Wear", Bello drove major sponsorships with Coke, Canon, Gatorade, Miller Brewing, GTE, Apple, Citibank, American Airlines and many consumer food products through a Sunday insert program called the "NFL Tailgate Party." He also played a major role in creating the NFL Experience, a fan festival that is now a fixture and fan favorite at Super Bowls. Also, Bello helped organize the the American Bowl series of international pre-season games starting with the 1986 game between the the Refrigerator Perry led Super Bowl Champion Chicago Bears and Dallas Cowboys played in front of 81,000 fans at London's Wembley Stadium. Bello's innovative approach to promoting and enhancing the NFL experience included bedecking pro golfer Payne Stewart in NFL Team colors as he played on the tour, sponsoring NASCAR racers, women's lines of NFL team clothing and made for TV events such as the Quarterback Challenge and The NFL's Fastest Man.
During Bello's tenure at NFLP, the business grew from $30 million in retail sales
Retailing
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...
, sponsorships and publishing to $3 billion when he left in 1993. Bello is broadly credited with creating the model by which every major sports league now operates. He was ranked 46th on Sporting News’ list of Most Powerful People in Sports in 1992.
Bello left NFLP on Labor Day in 1993 amid controversy. He resigned as a result of losing a power struggle with then-NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue
Paul Tagliabue
Paul John Tagliabue is a former Commissioner of the National Football League. He took the position in 1989 and was succeeded by Roger Goodell, who was elected to the position on August 8, 2006. Tagliabue's retirement took effect on September 1, 2006. He had previously served as a lawyer for the NFL...
who was seeking to consolidate league operations under the commissioner's office.
SoBe Beverages
Upon his departure from the NFL, Bello took a position as VP Marketing with Brooklyn, New York-based Ferolito, Vultaggio and Sons, makers of AriZona iced teaAriZona Beverage Company
AriZona Beverages USA is a producer of various flavors of iced tea, juice cocktails and energy drinks from the United States, based in Woodbury, New York....
. At AriZona he joined a former Pepsi colleague Mike Schott, then COO of AriZona Beverages. After four months he left AriZona to create his own beverage company in partnership with Tom Schwalm that became the South Beach Beverage Company, named after the trendy South Beach
South Beach
South Beach, also nicknamed SoBe, is a neighborhood in the city of Miami Beach, Florida, United States. It is the area south of Indian Creek and encompasses roughly the southernmost 23 blocks of the main barrier island that separates the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay.This area was the first...
area of Miami.
The new company, based in Norwalk, Connecticut
Norwalk, Connecticut
Norwalk is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of the city is 85,603, making Norwalk sixth in population in Connecticut, and third in Fairfield County...
, marketed so-called "New Age" beverages—exotic juice blends and ready-to-drink iced teas—but faced formidable competition from its predecessors, including Snapple
Snapple
Snapple is a brand of tea and juice drinks which is owned by Dr Pepper Snapple Group and based in Plano, Texas. The brand was founded in 1972. The brand achieved some notoriety due to various pop-culture references including television shows.-History:...
, Mystic, Nantucket Nectars
Nantucket Nectars
Nantucket Nectars is a beverage company created by Tom First and Tom Scott who met at Brown University in 1985. After graduation they headed to Nantucket where they started Allserve, a floating convenience store servicing boats in Nantucket Harbor, delivering everything from newspapers to...
and AriZona. South Beach needed a point of differentiation in the marketplace, so Bello added trace elements of various herbs and nutrients—such as ginseng, ginkgo biloba, guarana, carnitine, Echinacea, yohimbe, taurine and praline—and promoted their benefits beyond hydration. He launched a "3G" line of drinks, which included supposed energy boosters like ginseng, ginkgo biloba and guarana. He also expanded the brand's iced tea portfolio to include more exotic offerings such as Black Tea
Black tea
Black tea is a variety of tea that is more oxidized than the oolong, green, and white varieties.All four varieties are made from leaves of the shrub Camellia sinensis. Black tea is generally stronger in flavor and contains more caffeine than the less oxidized teas. Two principal varieties of the...
, Oolong Tea
Oolong
Oolong is a traditional Chinese tea produced through a unique process including withering under the strong sun and oxidation before curling and twisting. Most oolong teas, especially those of fine quality, involve unique tea plant cultivars that are exclusively used for particular varieties...
(with bee pollen
Pollen
Pollen is a fine to coarse powder containing the microgametophytes of seed plants, which produce the male gametes . Pollen grains have a hard coat that protects the sperm cells during the process of their movement from the stamens to the pistil of flowering plants or from the male cone to the...
), Green Tea (with Echinacea) and Red Tea
Red tea
Red tea may refer to:* A type of tea known in most countries as black tea, made from the completely oxidized bud leaves of Camellia sinensis. This tea type is commonly known in some Asian cultures as 紅茶...
(with selenium). Under Bello's direction, SoBe launched a line of "3C" Elixirs (containing calcium, carnitine and chromium) in varieties such as Orange-Carrot, Orange-Tomato (including lycopene), Energy (with guarana, yohimbe and arginina), Power (taurine, creatine and praline), Zen Blend (triple ginseng tea with schizandra), Wisdom (with ginkgo biloba, St. John's wort and gotu kola
Centella asiatica
Centella asiatica is a small herbaceous annual plant of the family Mackinlayaceae or subfamily Mackinlayoideae of family Apiaceae, and is native to India, Sri Lanka, northern Australia, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Melanesia, Papua New Guinea, and other parts of Asia...
) and Eros (with dong quai
Angelica sinensis
Angelica sinensis, commonly known as "dong quai" or "female ginseng" is a herb from the family Apiaceae, indigenous to China.-Chinese:...
, damiana, foti and zink).
He created the "dueling lizards" design and took a lead role in the company's guerrilla marketing
Guerrilla marketing
Guerrilla warfare is about waging small intermittent attacks on different territories of the opponent with the aim of harassing and demoralising the opponent and eventually securing permanent footholds....
effort, proclaiming himself as the "Lizard King" in radio advertisements
Radio commercial
Commercial radio stations make most of their revenue selling “airtime” to advertisers. Of total media expenditures, radio accounts for 6.9%. Radio advertisements or “spots” are available when a business or service provides valuable consideration, usually cash, in exchange for the station airing...
. He gave the brand an "attitude" by enlisting athletes who were somewhat out of the mainstream—such as golfer John Daly
John Daly
John Daly may refer to:*John Daly , former colonial Anglican bishop* J. Burrwood Daly , U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania* John Charles Daly , veteran radio & TV newsman and television host on What's My Line? 1950–1967...
and downhill skier Bode Miller
Bode Miller
Samuel Bode Miller is an American alpine ski racer. He is an Olympic and World Championship gold medalist, a two-time overall World Cup champion in 2005 and 2008, and is generally considered the greatest American alpine skier of all time...
—as official spokespersons for the brand. The SoBe marketing team also wooed independent beverage distributors, offering them very high margins and a small chunk of equity in the company.
From its creation in 1995, SoBe's sales rose rapidly and climbed to $275 million by 2000. The following year, the brand rode the "good-for-you" trend among American consumers to break the quarter billion dollar barrier in 2000. SoBe was sold to PepsiCo for a reported $370 million cash on October 30, 2000. Bello remained with Pepsi overseeing SoBe until early 2004.
By the end of 1999 the company had sold 14.8 million cases of drinks and taken in $166.4 million. South Beach challenged rival AriZona in sales and was pursuing Snapple for leadership in the new age drink category. Less than pleased, rival AriZona slapped the company with a lawsuit claiming that SoBe had copied its bottle design or stolen trade secrets. Then Judge Sonia Sotamayor ruled in SoBe's favor denying a preliminary injunction. Legal action proceeded and persisted on the federal and state level until 2007, long after the company had been sold to PepsiCo. In 2007, the court dismissed all AriZona claims on summary judgement
In 2001, Bello was named Ernst and Young's National Entrepreneur of the Year in the Consumer Products
Product (business)
In general, the product is defined as a "thing produced by labor or effort" or the "result of an act or a process", and stems from the verb produce, from the Latin prōdūce ' lead or bring forth'. Since 1575, the word "product" has referred to anything produced...
category for his accomplishments at SoBe.
Other Business Activity
Upon leaving Pepsi, Bello formed JoNa Ventures, a family investment vehicle that included among other endeavors investment and active involvement in Firefighter Brands and Soup Kitchen International.With a former NFL associate Bruce Burke, Bello formed Firefighter Brands, a social enterprise intended to benefit local firefighting units with revenues generated from the sale of Firefighter Branded coffee, chips, chili's, trail mixes and energy drinks. The project was supported by a group of well to do and high profile community minded investors but ultimately failed due to lack of cohesive co-operation among various firefighting entities.
In 2005, Bello invested in and became chairman of Soup Kitchen International
Soup Kitchen International
Soup Kitchen International is a well-known soup restaurant at 259-A West 55th Street, near 8th Avenue, in Manhattan, New York City, run by Ali "Al" Yeganeh. It is part of the Original Soup Man chain of stores, which is also run by Yeganeh....
, a company he helped found that markets soups created by Al Yeganeh, the New York-based soup chef made famous as the "Soup Nazi" on the popular Seinfeld TV show, for retail stores, and developed franchised restaurants.
In 2006 Bello became a general partner of Sherbrooke Capital, a venture capital
Venture capital
Venture capital is financial capital provided to early-stage, high-potential, high risk, growth startup companies. The venture capital fund makes money by owning equity in the companies it invests in, which usually have a novel technology or business model in high technology industries, such as...
firm that provides growth capital to early stage health and wellness companies that led the $6.35 million equity-financing round for IZZE in early 2005. In the spring of 2006, Bello was appointed Chairman of the Board
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
of the IZZE Beverage Company
Izze Beverage Company
IZZE Beverage Company is the name of the company that produces the Izze line of fruit-derived carbonated soft drinks commonly sold at Starbucks and other coffee shops, Chipotle, Whole Foods, Target, CostCo, other health food stores, and grocery stores. IZZE is made of 70% fruit juice and 30%...
, a maker of sparkling juices. Izze was subsequently sold to PepsiCo for an undisclosed sum. In addition, he serves on the board of Boathouse Sports, a Sherbrooke portfolio company
Portfolio company
A portfolio company is a company or entity in which a venture capital firm, buyout firm, holding company, or other investment fund invests. All of the companies currently backed by a private equity firm can be spoken of as the firm’s portfolio....
and as acting CEO and Chairman of Adina for Life, another Sherbrooke portfolio company.
Personal
Bello's outside activities include: Board of Overseers for Athletics, Tufts University; Board Member, Dartmouth College’s Tuck Center for Private Equity; Board Member Gordon Entrepreneurial Institute at Tufts University and Board of Directors, New York Council Boy Scouts of America. He has lectured at colleges and MBA programs including Tuck, NYU, Yale, Cornell, Georgetown, Tufts, Dartmouth, and at high schools and at business forums and symposiums about his NFL and SoBe experiences and entrepreneurship.Bello resides in Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale is a city in the eastern part of Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, adjacent to Phoenix. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2010 the population of the city was 217,385...
and Rye, New York with his wife Nancy. The couple has three grown children: Lauren, Lindsay and John Michael.