Dana is a native of the San Francisco Bay Area. He studied sociology and political science at the University of California, Berkley, before joining the management team at the Westin St. Francis and the Four Seasons Clift Hotel in San Francisco.
Currently, as a consultant, Dana travels the world working with major hospitality companies and casinos on their customer service culture and brand standards. His clients have included Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, Mandarin Oriental, Hilton International, Preferred Hotels and Resorts, the Taj Group, Peninsula Hotels and Venetian/Palazzo Hotel in Las Vegas.
His passion for wine resulted in running a wine distribution company in Seattle, WA, specializing in wines from California, Washington and Oregon.
Manfred studied political science and art history at the University of Minnesota and the University of Vienna, Austria. He worked for several years designing and leading customized tours across Europe and has lived in Austria, Italy, Turkey, Uganda and the United States.
Besides following a career in market research for a major Fortune 500 company in Seattle, WA, his interest in food and wine led him down the path of jointly owning a wine distribution company with Dana Jackson.