Meet our team

Steve Manley
Strategic Growth Advisor | C-Level Executive | Founder – Navagar Management Services

Steve Manley is a veteran executive and strategic advisor with more than three decades of experience building, scaling, and restructuring businesses across hospitality, consumer products, manufacturing, franchising, and international distribution.

Throughout his career, Steve has held multiple C-suite leadership roles, including CEO, President, COO, CFO, and Vice President, within both entrepreneurial ventures and established multi-unit organizations. He has founded and scaled several companies, most notably Appellation Ventures and Esser Wines, an international wine supplier with brands distributed across the United States, Canada, and more than 24 international markets. 

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Steve’s operational expertise is rooted in real-world execution. Over the course of his career, he has:

• Built and launched more than 100 restaurant and hospitality operations from the ground up
• Led multi-state operational teams exceeding 2,000 employees
• Personally trained more than 150 corporate management leaders
• Delivered record profit turnarounds, including a 600% performance improvement in Pizza Hut operations
• Generated $10M+ incremental revenue growth and 100%+ sales expansion in multiple business units 

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Beyond operational leadership, Steve has deep experience in:

strategic business development
mergers & acquisitions
corporate restructuring
supply chain and operational systems design
new product development and brand creation
government regulatory navigation (EPA, OSHA, TTB, and federal licensing) 

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He has also developed more than a dozen trademarked wine brands and built large-scale distribution partnerships in both domestic and international markets. 

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Through his consulting firm, Navagar Management Services, Steve advises founder-led companies, emerging brands, and growth-stage enterprises on strategic expansion, operational optimization, and enterprise value creation.

His advisory work focuses on helping organizations navigate complex growth challenges, unlock operational efficiency, and design scalable business systems that support long-term success.

 
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Leadership That Has Built Real Companies
Steve Manley brings more than 35 years of executive leadership experience across multiple industries including hospitality, beverage manufacturing, franchising, distribution, and consumer brands.

His leadership experience includes:

• Building 100+ hospitality locations and operational facilities
• Managing multi-state operations and thousands of employees
• Delivering $10M+ revenue growth and major profitability turnarounds
• Launching international consumer brands distributed in 24+ global markets

Unlike many consultants who operate purely from theory, Steve’s perspective is grounded in real operational leadership and entrepreneurial execution.