Meet Phil Bernstein

The embodiment of integrity

Phil Bernstein is a fifth-generation family member, Chairman, and single shareholder of Jacob Stern & Sons, Inc. Today, he and his wife Leslie live in Santa Barbara, California. Phil graduated from Wesleyan University in 1964 after having already worked for Jacob Stern & Sons, Inc. full-time for five months. He worked at the plant during the summer in high school and college and knew he was interested in what the company was doing and in its future.

Phil Bernstein even remembers meeting Bill Hardesty, a future

In 1970, Phil found the feed fat market for the by-products coming from the Acme-Hardesty plant. With help from a network of sales representatives and the purchasing and management capabilities of Jeff Peeler, this business was built to where Jacob Stern became the largest supplier in the country of blended fats to the animal feeding industry. This business was later sold.

Phil later became president of Acme-Hardesty in February of 1971. He recalled this event, “My dad and my uncle were in my office. This was highly unusual because it was a little before eight o'clock when I started. They never started that early. And I thought something's up. So, the man whom they had just hired two years before to run the business, his name was Jim Kane, had just passed the night before on a business trip. So, that was the bad and saddening news. The good news was that they were naming me as the new President of Acme-Hardesty.”

With that, Phil Bernstein was the first family member to run Acme-Hardesty since the start of the company. Bernstein recalled having a very “basic” vision at the time he was named President of Acme-Hardesty, “I had to turn to people I knew who had experience in the business.” Bernstein continues, “So, the first thing I did was, I called the man who had run Acme-Hardesty through the 60s. His name was Earl Seabold.”

Later that year in 1971, Phil Bernstein engineered the purchase of Snow and Company in California. This business, under the name Snow Commodities Co., was built into a large marketer of feed ingredients along the entire west coast from Canada to Mexico and, sometimes, internationally.

In 1980, Phil purchased all of the Jacob Stern stock that was owned by other members of his family to become the sole shareholder. With the help of Dick Sheffer and Henk Peeters, other experienced and trusted colleagues, he also managed the transformation of Acme-Hardesty from a manufacturer to an importer/distributor. He recalled the small team running the company at the time, “And at that point, there were five of us in the company. Dick and I, and three people running the office. And one outside salesperson.”

During the mid-eighties, with Phil’s financial guidance, the management team of Harold and Jeff Peeler and John Lindquist re-engineered the physical plant and processes of the Texas division. This led to the emergence of the company as the largest dealer in inedible tallow in the world with the capability to deliver special qualities of tallow to demanding customers, many being major international personal products manufacturers.

In 2002, Phil Bernstein attracted Jon Atkatz to join Jacob Stern as CEO. Jon’s skills and management attention allowed Phil to take on a more chairman-like position. Bernstein recalled his time working alongside Jon Atkatz stating, “We worked very closely together. And we started to upgrade management at Acme-Hardesty.”

This allowed Phil Bernstein to be able to start focusing on other interests, such as his growing family and volunteer activities. Through many trials and tribulations with Phil Bernstein behind the wheel, Jacob Sterns & Sons and Acme-Hardesty have always been able to adapt and come out on top against competition and economic downturns.

Bernstein credits his wife, Leslie, whose support and understanding provided him the base from which he was able to work with and learn from all of the good folks under his care.

While he was busy traveling the world and solving problems wherever they existed, she maintained a home and raised four great children. He is grateful to all those who have supported him and his goals, but especially to her.

“I offer the end of this history, not as an end, but as a beginning. My own involvement with the Acme-Hardesty business has been nothing short of challenging, exciting, and fulfilling. It has been an education and it has been full of remarkable relationships with outstanding people. I look at the company today and see unlimited opportunity. I also see a beginning of the next stage in the life of the company as new people lead it to reach its potential.”