Bid to win the opportunity to meet Kit Goldsbury in San Antonio, Texas!
Kit Goldsbury is the Chairman and Founder of Silver Ventures (SV), a San Antonio-based private investment company. In 1969, Kit joined Pace Foods as one of a two-person prep line. A decade later, he was named President. In 1995, as Pace’s Chairman, Kit sold Pace Foods to Campbell Soup Company. He later founded Silver Ventures. In 1998, SV purchased a fledging tomato company, Desert Glory. Today known as NatureSweet, it is the leading producer of greenhouse-grown tomatoes in North America, employing 7,000 full-time year-round associates. In 2002, Silver Ventures acquired the 22-acre Pearl Brewery. Kit saw its potential to revitalize the neighborhood reach of the San Antonio River and preserve the area’s historic architecture. The once derelict, abandoned industrial site is now a bustling neighborhood home to chef-driven restaurants, independent retailers, 650 residences, 30 companies the #1 year-round farmers market in the country, and the nationally recognized Hotel Emma, a 5-star designated hotel. Pearl is recognized as one of the most successful urban and environmental revitalization efforts in the U.S.
In 2008, Kit partnered with The Culinary Institute of America to address the underrepresentation of Mexican-Americans in restaurant leadership. Together, they opened the Institute's third campus at Pearl— with programs committed to promoting Latin cuisines, culinary techniques, and diversity in the hospitality industry. Kit created the El Sueno Scholarship to increase accessibility to all students—90 percent of whom receive financial aid. Its 1,100 graduates have changed the city’s local food scene and helped make San Antonio the second UNESCO Creativity City of Gastronomy in the United States. Kit is a San Antonio native and a graduate of Trinity University. He is widely respected for his philanthropic contributions to major institutions and community initiatives in the San Antonio area. Kit remains the visionary and creative force behind the ever-evolving Pearl district.