Daniel C. Staton - Chairman of the Board
Mr. Staton has been our Chairman of the Company since October 2004 and our Treasurer since December 2008. Mr. Staton has served as President and Chief Executive Officer and as a member of the Board of Directors of Enterprise Acquisition Corp. (AMEX: EST), a blank check company formed with the purpose of effecting a merger, acquisition or other similar business combination with an operating business, since its inception in July 2007. Mr. Staton has served as Managing Director of Staton Capital LLC, a private investment firm, since 2003 and as President of The Walnut Group, a private investment firm that has made over 20 private equity and venture capital investments, from 1997 to January 2007. Prior to forming The Walnut Group, Mr. Staton served as General Manager and partner of Duke Associates from 1981 to 1993. With its initial public offering, Mr. Staton became Chief Operating Officer and a director of Duke Realty Investments, Inc. (NYSE: DRE), a real estate investment trust, from 1993 to 1997. Mr. Staton served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Storage Trust Realty, a real estate investment trust, from 1997 to 1999 and led its merger with Public Storage (NYSE: PSA), where he has served on the Board of Directors since 1999. The Walnut Group was an initial investor and Mr. Staton served as director of Build-a-Bear Workshop (NYSE: BBW), a specialty retailer with over 300 stores, from 1998 until its initial public offering in 2004. The Walnut Group was an initial investor in Deal$: Nothing Over a Dollar, a specialty retailer which grew from one location to 67 locations until its sale to Supervalu Inc. in 2002. In connection with other investments by The Walnut Group, Mr. Staton served as director of Ameristop, a convenience store operator with over 140 locations, from 1998 to 2003, as a director of Skylight Financial, a credit card company for the "underbanked," from 1998 until its sale in 2003 and as a director of Changing Paradigms, a leader in private-label household products, from 1999 until its sale in 2006.
Mr. Staton has also invested in and served as a director of United Sports Ventures, owner of three minor league baseball and four minor league hockey teams, from 1997 to 2002. Mr. Staton has co-produced or invested in numerous successful Broadway musicals, and plays including The Producers, Hairspray, Jersey Boys, and August: Osage County all of which won the Tony Award for "Best Musical" or "Best Play" as well as A Catered Affair and Smokey Joe's Cafe, Broadway's longest-running musical revue.
Mr. Staton majored in Finance at the University of Missouri and holds a B.S. degree in specialized business from Ohio University and a B.S. degree in business (management) from California Coast University. Mr. Staton has served as Executive in Residence at both the University of Missouri and Ohio University.
