Tyler Hawes is Managing Partner and Founder of Grand Ferry Capital, LLC, an independent sponsor focused on investing in middle market specialty food import and distribution businesses.  Most recently, Tyler was President of Roland Foods, an importer and redistributor of branded specialty foods and ingredients that serves the foodservice, retail, and industrial channels.  Prior to joining Roland Foods, Tyler was Executive Vice President, Sales & Operations at The Chefs’ Warehouse, a publicly traded, specialty food distributor that provides ingredients to the finest restaurants, hotels, and gourmet stores with over 15 distribution facilities in North America.  He has held various other positions in the food industry including General Manager at Larkin Cold Storage, a cheese import and logistics company in Long Island City and worked for Artisanal Premium Cheese in Manhattan, managing procurement for the boutique cheese company servicing restaurants and end consumers through their e-commerce platform.

Tyler holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance with Honors from Syracuse University, a Diploma of Culinary Arts from the French Culinary Institute, and an MBA from MIT.  He currently serves on the Board of Directors at Ring’s End, Inc. based in Darien, CT and is a member of YPO Metro NY.