Mike Repole, Chairman and co-founder, BODYARMOR

Mike Repole — and an experienced team of longtime associates — pulled off a rare career double this year with the sale of BODYARMOR to the Coca-Cola Company. That created a new category of entrepreneur, one who has twice sold startup brands for more than $1 billion. There are other entrepreneurs who have pulled off multiple sales, of course (BODYARMOR Co-Founder Lance Collins among them), but the price tag for Repole’s labor is indicative of the scale he’s able to bring to brands that become permanent parts of the industry. That’s a good year for sure, but what underscores the title of Person of the Year is that Repole has also spread the wealth and success throughout the company and throughout the community. Estimates are that more than 40 core employees at BODYARMOR have become millionaires through the sale — something that resonates within the entrepreneurial culture because of its emphasis on hustle, ingenuity, and team loyalty. Beyond that, Repole, already a major financial contributor to civic institutions like St. John’s University, immediately followed news of the Body Armor sale with news of a $50 million donation to the Memorial Sloan Kettering hospital to fund cancer research. Repole’s teams are willing to take on the hard task of building brands his way because they know that no one will work harder than him for the same end, and that he won’t simply rely on superior skills and vision when drive is the real difference-maker. This year, he was an easy choice for person of the year.