Phil Saunders
One of Rochester’s most successful entrepreneurs, Phil Saunders
is currently CEO of W.W. Griffith Oil and is credited with
transforming the company from a three-truck operation into a
million-dollar fuel distributor. He is also responsible for the
development of the Sugar Creek convenience store chain, now with
more than 100 stores, which grew out of Griffith Oil. His most
recent investments include the purchase of
Swain Ski and Snowboard Resort
and Canandaigua Lake's
Bristol Harbor Golf Resort, which includes a golf course
designed by Robert Trent Jones.
Saunders' most lucrative business venture was the development of
a truckstop franchise known as Travel Ports of America, a
company that he founded in 1979. Travel Ports has a reputation
of being on the cutting edge of the industry, providing services
and amenities for professional drivers as well as tour buses and
families. These travel centers are complete with ATMs, Internet
services, and fax machines, and plan to introduce on-site health
centers. The company grew to operate sixteen travel centers in
seven states before its merger with
TravelCenters of America in
June, 1999.
His other successes include
Genesee Regional Bank and
American Rock Salt
Co.
Saunders was a four-sport athlete in his teen years and has been
a generous supporter of his high school alma mater near
Rochester, contributing a number of large gifts to athletics. He
went on to attend Hobart College for his undergraduate studies
but left after his second year.
Saunders' road to success has run the gamut in terms of
investments. From truckstops to ski resorts, Saunders has a
history of turning small, average performing companies into
multi-million-dollar industry standouts.
While Saunders has mastered the ability to make big money, he
still keeps his heart grounded in helping those who are less
fortunate. In 2001, he established the Saunders Family
Neuromuscular Research Fund with a gift of $1 million to the
University of Rochester Medical Center. The Saunders Family
Foundation, headed by his wife, Carol, helps many local causes.
Other philanthropic ventures of Saunders' include membership on
the board of the Greater Rochester chapter of the American Red
Cross, the executive committee of the Steuben Area Council of
the Boy Scouts of America, and the Business Advisory Council of
the School of Business at SUNY College at Geneseo.
Mr. Saunders was our guest on April 15, 2005. Click here for a short YouTube sample of his remarks.
The monthly Guest Executive Dinner series is sponsored by Houghton's business department for the purpose of increasing student exposure to marketplace professionals from various fields and service opportunities to be both salt and light after college.
