John was born and raised in Savannah, GA and graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1971.  His career in the seafood business started in 1977 behind the wheel of one of the two shrimp boats owned by his father, John W. Stephens, Jr.  The boats were iconic St. Augustine Trawlers, aptly named Savannah and Notre Dame.  Armed only with a Time-Life Navigation book, a Finance degree and an entrepreneurial spirit, he set out shrimping throughout the Gulf of Mexico, John running the Savannah and Capt. Junior Clark running the Notre Dame.  The elder Capt. Junior had the same ambitious spirit, but also a wealth of experience and a humble teaching style.  In 1979, John and Capt. Junior decided they wanted to pack their own shrimp and sell it where they wanted so they opened a packing house in Bayou La Batre, Alabama.  The Bama Shrimp Company grew steadily and innovated many of the processes that are now the norm in the seafood industry, such as IQF freezing shrimp.  Bama mastered other species besides shrimp and became one of the largest seafood processors and distributors in the Southeast US.  Whether steering a shrimp boat or steering the path of Bama, the goal has always been the same for John – produce seafood that we can all be proud of.  This pride is why Bama still devotes so much time and treasure towards product quality.  Capt. John has also instilled the culture of the “Bama Family.”  Seafood is our business and our way of life, but taking care of each other is what drives us to continue making this company stronger every day.

Michael started working at Bama as a boy and takes pride in the fact that many of our longtime plant employees were at one time his bosses. He is passionate about seafood, supporting American fisherman, and long-term partnerships with our valued customers.  His representation of the broader U.S. seafood industry has allowed him to appear as a guest at President Obama’s January 2011 State of the Union address. Michael has also advised a Presidential Task Force, the Department of Customs and Border Protection, the Food and Drug Administration, the International Trade Commission, and the Department of Commerce on fisheries policies and initiatives. Through his work on the Board of the Southern Shrimp Alliance, he is well-versed in fisheries regulation, management and advocacy.  Michael also serves on NOAA Fisheries’ American Fisheries Advisory Committee which determines the distribution of grant money for fisheries promotion and marketing. Michael has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Notre Dame and a juris doctorate degree from Stetson University College of Law.

Mr. Johnny’s seafood career started on the golf course.  Through golf he met the illustrious Leon Kenney who operated Pinellas Seafood, which was eventually sold to Red Lobster.  Mr. Johnny started by working in maintenance and then production for Mr. Kenney, assembling a lifetime of stories working for one of the “cowboys” of the American seafood industry.  You will be hard-pressed to find a seafood plant operator with more experience than Mr. Johnny.  He has built numerous seafood plants in the US and overseas using ingenious approaches to process seafood for our customers’ evolving needs.  It is his resourcefulness and indominable attitude that has allowed Bama to adapt and thrive over the last 45 years.  However, it is Mr. Johnny’s experience with managing people that has contributed the most to Bama’s success.  He leads by example and never gives up.  This solution-oriented approach quietly inspires our team of over 100 employees every day.

Adam was born and raised in coastal Alabama. His father, Eddie Zewen, was a lifelong friend of John Stephens and sourced shrimp for Bama around the world for over thirty years.  As a boy you could find Adam running around the bayous in his skiff with a fishing pole.  Not a whole lot has changed since then – he still keeps a fishing rod in the back of his truck and rarely makes it through a day without wetting a line.  Adam’s Bama career began when he was 15 years old, unloading shrimp and fish boats, shoveling ice and loading trucks.  By his mid-20’s his ambition and talent were apparent and he was managing over 200 employees as Bama’s production manager.  He then put his talent to work running warehouse operations before transitioning to purchasing.  Adam knows what “Bama Quality” means, and he ensures that we maintain our exacting standards by working with boats, plants, and vendors who believe what we believe.

Brian grew up in St. Petersburg, FL and graduated from the University of South Florida.  Like a lot of us at Bama, the seafood industry is in his blood.  Brian’s diverse understanding of seafood processing and refrigeration coupled with his talent for fabrication and construction have allowed us to produce innovative products over the last 20 years.  Much of Brian’s technical expertise came from years of working with tradesmen who had been in this industry their entire life. The pace of work was incredibly fast, and it was rare for anyone to take the time to teach Brian anything. These were the kinds of lessons you learn by holding a flashlight and helping out a seasoned pro as they tackled problems or built something new. With time, Brian was the one doing the welding or troubleshooting the equipment, and his unconventional education coupled with his passion for finding solutions has evolved into one of Bama’s greatest assets.

 Like most of the management team at Bama, Fred started at the bottom, running the Sanitation shift at our plant while he was in graduate school at the University of South Florida.  It was hard work on the graveyard shift, but it illustrated Fred’s commitment to Bama and his passion for the seafood industry.  Fred is responsible for all food quality and food safety at our plant, but he also travels the globe to ensure that all facilities we buy from have been inspected and meet our standards.  Fred’s wealth of plant experience coupled with his academic qualifications help define the culture of quality here at Bama.  Fred has taught marine biology at St. Petersburg College and is in his final steps of earning his PhD from the University of South Florida with a focus on applied multitropic aquaculture.

Dottie graduated from Florida State University with a degree in Marketing and has been part of the Bama team since 2007.  She has helped Bama develop some of our most innovative products and also supports Bama in finance and human resources. As the daughter of John Stephens and sibling to Michael Stephens, Dottie is no stranger to the seafood industry.

Jon coordinates all incoming and outgoing product, including all logistics.  He started at Bama working on a forklift in the freezer, learning our processes and ensuring that our warehouse was clean and efficient.  Now he is the “promise keeper,” ensuring that our customers get the product they need when they need it.  Jon is smart and resourceful, and we are thankful that he is on our team!