SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Michael Schutt, referred to as Schutty by his friends, is a hard person to miss—whether you are on a show floor, at a customer cocktail party, or simply having dinner at the table over. Between the contagious laughter and his well-known beard, he is, in many ways, a beacon about town. This year, he has made a huge jump and pivot in his career path, landing at Bay Area Herbs, Organics, & Specialties with a new vision and a plan to take his creativity to the next level.
True to form, Michael does not like to be put in a box when it comes to definitions. So, when I asked him about his new role as Director of Business Development, I found out quite quickly that his new company is honoring this part of his nature.
“When Steve Hurwitz—the Owner of Bay Area Herbs, Organics, & Specialties—and I started framing what this role could look like, he immediately removed the guardrails that would bind me to any singular focus that would traditionally come with a Director of Business Development role,” Michael shares. “Instead, what he, Indiana Fischer, the Vice President and Director of Sales, and myself crafted was a true path to creativity. Bringing my retail experience and industry presence to this collection of professionals, I've been afforded the opportunity to look at all aspects of our business from grower and product assortment to innovation and technology and apply my lens to a business that has thrived for more than two decades.”
There are many aspects to this diverse lens that will inform Michael’s first tasks in his role.
“Job one is to lean in on what has been hard coded in my DNA and be that relationship builder, both internally to bond with my newly joined team, and then I will extend that same mantra out to both our current customers and future ones,” he says.
The next steps will be exuding a solution-provider mentality to everything the company does, while consistently exhibiting a say yes attitude to every interaction, he details.
“Helping to hone how we engage with retail has already been some of the early work and was already in my wheelhouse. But already collaborating with Indiana and the team to develop new retailer shipper concepts and new item recipes has been rewarding on a whole new level,” Michael reveals.
When Mike was provided the opportunity to wield the pen and paper of the next chapter’s "fit and culture," as he calls it, he knew he had found the right move.
I laugh loudly when he shares that Steve was not scared off by his desire to run at 100 miles per hour—a sentiment I understand. As Michael tells it, Steve actually encouraged it.
“So when I'm not looking at how we can attack the daily business of being the very best supplier of Culinary Herbs to retail, foodservice, or meal kit customers, I'm looking around the curve for the next big thing that will allow us to serve our customers and the industry on a deeper level,” he shares with me.
Before this shift in Michael’s path, he worked for the premiere retailer, Raley’s Supermarkets, primarily in the Northern California and Northern Nevada trade area for nearly four decades. Honoring the many mentors and friends over that career, Michael expresses how each helped shape the leader he is today.
“I will be forever grateful. That journey directly led me to a better understanding of servant leadership and the service of giving back and, to that end, I've been dedicated to various roles within the Fresh Produce & Floral Council (FPFC) for the last eight years culminating this year as the 2023 Chairman of the Board,” he says. “Knowing that I have less time in the windshield of this industry than I do in the rearview mirror makes giving back and uplifting the next generation the imperative and the FPFC does just that.”
Congrats, Schutty, on this new role and exciting path ahead. We can’t wait to see what you accomplish at Bay Area Herbs, Organics, & Specialties.
