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The Big Book: Most Influential Virginians


Steven C. Smith, president and CEO, Food City, Abingdon Why he is influential: Smith leads Food City, a supermarket chain with $2.5 billion in annual revenues, with more than 16,000 employees working at 123 locations across Virginia, Tennessee,


Kentucky and Georgia. It operates under the Food City and Super Dollar Supermarkets brands. Smith serves on the boards of GO Virginia, the Food Industry Association and TOPCO Associates LLC. Recent developments: Over the last year, Food City has been the focus of news reports revealing that a Knox- ville, Tennessee, Food City pharmacy purchased one million OxyContin pills in 2008 alone and acquired 8.5 mil- lion oxycodone pills within a six-year period. Tennessee’s attorney general is suing the pharmaceutical supplier, alleging RICO violations. Food City, which has not been accused of crimi- nal wrongdoing, has said it’s “proac- tively working” with drug enforcement and pharmaceutical experts to refine dispensing practices at its 100-plus pharmacies.


Clyde Stacy, CEO, Par Ventures LLC, Bristol


Why he is influential: Stacy is an investor in local businesses and properties around Bris- tol, most notably the Bristol Mall, which his Par Ventures purchased for $2.6 million in 2018. He and fellow South-


west Virginia native Jim McGlothlin (see Page 56) plan to turn the mall into the Hard Rock Bristol Resort and Casino – pending the expected legalization of casi- nos by the General Assembly. Before starting Par Ventures, Stacy was head of Rapoca Energy Co., a coal mining com- pany based in Bristol. Recent developments: Bristol Mall is currently home to CBD processing facil- ity Dharma Pharmaceuticals, in which Par Ventures holds a financial interest. In January, Dharma became the first company licensed by the Board of Phar- macy in Virginia to process CBD oil.


Bruce L. Thompson, CEO, Gold Key | PHR, Virginia Beach Why he is influential: Thompson started two companies, Profes- sional Hospitality Resources and Gold Key Resorts, in the hotel, ski resort and vacation ownership sectors, beginning in


1986. But most Virginians know Thomp- son for his remake of Virginia Beach’s


oceanfront, which started in 2011 and has led to the newly refurbished Cava- lier Hotel and the $125 million Marriott Virginia Beach Oceanfront, opening in March. He’s also been active in civic service, raising more than $5 million for ALS research and securing funding for a fully accessible park at the oceanfront. Recent developments: The opening of the Marriott property — a 305-room hotel with more than 25,000 square feet of meeting space — and the comple- tion of the 42 Ocean condominium project mark the conclusion of phase two of Thompson’s $350 million master plan for the neighborhood. Next up: another hotel, which will complete the all-in-one resort.


Warren Thompson, founder, president and chairman, Thompson Hospitality, Reston


Why he is influential: Thompson runs the largest minority-owned food and facilities man- agement company in the country, with 5,500 employees and rev- enue of $760 million. A graduate of Hampden-


Sydney College and U.Va.’s Darden School of Business, Thompson founded the company in 1992 with the purchase of 31 Big Boy restaurants. Black Enter- prise ranks Thompson on its list of the nation’s largest black-owned companies, noting the company’s contracts with 20 historically black colleges and universities.


Pharrell Williams, Grammy-winning recording artist and performer, developer and founder of the Something in the Water festival, Virginia Beach


Why he is influential: Williams, who is behind some of the biggest hip-hop and pop hits of the past decade — perhaps you’ve heard “Happy”? — has never for- gotten his Virginia Beach roots. Last November, the music superstar turned up at a City Council meeting to speak on behalf of the proposed $325 million Atlantic Park development — slated to include a surf park, 3,500-seat entertainment venue and residential and retail space — on which he is partnering with Venture Realty Group. He also debuted the wildly successful Something in the Water music festi- val last April, which delivered an economic impact of $24.11 million to the region.


Recent developments: Something in the Water comes back to the beach in late April with a three-day concert featuring dozens of superstar artists, among them Post Malone, Foo Fighters, Chance the Rapper and, naturally, Williams. Williams also will narrate TV ads for Virginia Beach’s spring tourism campaign, which will feature his new song, “Virginia.” As for Atlantic Park, Virginia Beach City Council gave it the go-ahead in November, with construction set to start in a couple of years on the former Dome site.


58 | MARCH 2020 Photo by Lionel Hahn/Sipa via AP Images


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