An Interview with David Hoffmann

from County Living Magazine Spring 2022

Solving HR Needs for Small and Medium Businesses

For many generations, Augusta, Missouri has been a sleepy, quaint, rural village attracting families and friends from all over the state to enjoy the delicious wines from grapes grown among the breathtaking rolling hills. Now, fast forward to 2022 where plans are unfolding to make Augusta a national treasure. All this can be attributed to the vision of Washington, Missouri natives David and Jerri Hoffmann, founders of the Hoffmann Family of Companies. During a personal interview with CEO David Hoffmann, I was able to learn in greater detail about what motivates and drives him to create and enhance all of their endeavors.

FROM FARMER TO GLOBAL ENTREPRENEUR

From humble beginnings, David Hoffmann grew up on a dairy farm in the Washington area, just 10 miles from Augusta, which taught him the value of hard work, integrity and dreaming big. “I used to get milk from the farmers when I was a little kid 12 or 13 years old. My dad drove a milk truck. We would go get the milk about 3:30 a.m. from the farmers – 55 gallons of milk – and bring it down to the Missouri Valley Creamery to process the milk. Then my dad and I delivered fresh milk door to door at 4:00 a.m. each morning. It was a lot of work – but has turned into a labor of love for me. I developed an entrepreneurial spirit early on and have never looked back!” High school sweethearts who met at the age of 15, David and Jerri have now been married for 50 years this year. They have three children and 12 grandchildren. Two sons, Greg and Geoff, are key players in the Hoffmann enterprises. Besides Augusta,

Augusta –

The New Global Destination

DAVID HOFFMANN SHARES HIS VISION IN A PERSONAL INTERVIEW

BY CAROL KINDINGER

the Hoffmann Family of Companies are active in well-known communities, such as Naples, Florida; Winnetka, Illinois; Avon, Colorado; and most recently, Mackinac Island in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. With 7,000 employees worldwide, the company has spread globally into a variety of sectors, including professional services, hospitality and entertainment, agriculture, golf, real estate, and manufacturing and distribution. (Visit HoffmannFamilyofCompanies.com/portfolio for full listing)

PUTTING MISSOURI WINES ON THE MAP

The Hoffmanns have taken a keen interest in further developing and expanding Missouri’s wine industry, which was the first American Viticultural Area in the U.S., before NAPA Valley and Sonoma, into a world-wide destination. In fact, they are investing $150 million into Augusta, renovating wineries, buildings and the downtown area back to the glory days they were when they were built back in the 1800’s, and to be more aesthetically pleasing. Mr. Hoffmann shared that the Mount Pleasant cellars had been closed for 20 years to the public and are now open and part of the Augusta Vineyard Tours, a once in a lifetime experience that takes you through the vineyards on your own John Deere Gator ATV, then to the Augusta Winery bottling facilities and ending with a private tour through the wide tunnels and 160-year-old hand carved cellars, where dinners and special events can be enjoyed. Their Augusta wineries, Montelle Winery, Mount Pleasant Estates, Augusta Winery and Balducci Vineyards, are fully operational and open nearly every day of the year with the exception of a few holidays, and they are selling wine, a lot of it. In fact, wine sales are up 25% from last year and sales tax revenue in the town of Augusta is up over 400%. Currently, they ship wines to Illinois, Indiana and a lot in Florida – with plans to expand into Michigan soon and more. They plan to distribute their wines both domestically and internationally. Mr. Hoffmann said, “We are going to put Missouri wines on the map. At this time, our biggest fear is running out of wine. We are currently having to buy grapes from other vineyards in Missouri just to keep up with demand, because we only use Missouri grapes and do not blend with grapes from other parts of the country.”

GLOBAL ASPIRATIONS

“My vision includes making Augusta a global destination. We will continuously provide new attractions and new experiences in America's first Wine Country. With over 1,500 acres of vineyards, in addition to the four wineries, some of our plans are already underway and soon to be completed. These include a women’s clothing store; a 60-room 5-star hotel and conference center in the heart of Augusta; guest cottages, a hostel along the Katy Trail; hunting lodge; 12-hole championship golf course; art gallery; restaurants; world-class spa; luxury yacht sailing the Missouri River, and so much more.” Augusta has always played an important role as a wedding destination, and now the plans are to enhance that capability. It’s important to note that the Hoffmanns always make certain that the facilities and amenities meet their standards – referred to as the “Hoffmann Standard of Excellence.” A farm has been created, nestled within the vineyards that features goats, Clydesdales, cattle and much more for families to enjoy. “It’s pretty cool,” says Mr. Hoffmann. The Hoffmann Family of Companies also purchased the historic Emmaus Homes complex and acreage in nearby Marthasville, formerly a seminary consisting of 50 acres and 10 buildings. A lot of progress has been made that includes restoring buildings to create employee housing. Buildings that were not significant - built in the 70’s and with no architectural

“We will continuously provide new things and new experiences in Wine Country. – David Hoffmann

interest - have been removed. Development will include an 18-room boutique hotel and a winery on that campus, which will constitute their fifth winery to date and called The Chateau Hoffmann. There are a lot of similarities between what the Hoffmanns are doing in Augusta and how they transformed Naples, Florida, which is a popular winter destination for many Missourians. They went to Naples about six years ago and to date have acquired 37 different properties and over 35 business operations, making them the largest private investor of commercial real estate in Naples, like the area communities they’ve invested in as well. Aesthetically they brought the buildings all up to the Hoffmann Standard of Excellence, installed over a million dollars in sculptures, a trolley system (did that in Augusta as well) and attracted a lot of new businesses and restaurants – which is also happening in Augusta. They also own two golf courses, the Hertz Arena and Everblades hockey team and the Naples Princess luxury yacht (identical to 150-passenger “Miss Augusta” now in service in Augusta, Missouri). Their efforts in Avon, Colorado at the foot of Beaver Creek and on Chicago’s North Shore occurred in a very similar fashion. And, with their recent acquisition of Shepler’s Mackinac Island Ferry, they have similar plans in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. “We will continuously provide new things and new experiences in America's first Wine Country. A couple examples are that, to our knowledge, we have the only trolley system in the country that goes through the vineyards. And, we have the only luxury yacht in the U.S. that takes you up and down the Missouri River through Wine Country. In fact, some unique experiences will only be available in Augusta that you can’t do anywhere else in the world,” says David Hoffmann. When asked if the COVID pandemic altered their timeline, Mr. Hoffmann indicated it had slowed their progress down around 120 days. “Some employees got COVID and some key people were reluctant to travel that we needed from other parts of the country, such as assistance with certain aspects of the hotel. We certainly hope the pandemic is behind us now.”

IT’S GOOD FOR BUSINESS

JoAnn Milster, President of the Augusta Chamber of Commerce, told me that the Chamber is very supportive of the Hoffmann Family of Companies’ efforts in their community. She feels it will elevate the town – bringing in a lot more revenue by attracting many tourists. Ms. Milster is especially pleased that the Hoffmanns converted the Emporium back to a general store as it had been many years ago. It helps that the trolley stops there so visitors can shop for souvenirs, gifts, picnic items, snacks and even wines from all four of their wineries. Even after many years in business, David Hoffmann is like the “Energizer Bunny.” While most people could be comfortable by just resting on their laurels, that is not the case with him. He has projects all over the world going on all the time. Throughout my interview with Mr. Hoffmann, I could hear the excitement in his voice. I asked, what drives him to continue growing and expanding his businesses? He replied, “It’s a passion! It’s fun! I would rather do it than play golf! It’s a family business that has worked well for us – a lifetime deal. We’ll keep growing it forever!” Why not head on out to Augusta and explore all the new attractions while enjoying Missouri’s fine wines! Check out www. VisitAugustaMO.com for all there is to do with the Hoffmanns in Augusta.