Entrepreneur of the Year 2007
Retail Trade Finalist
Judges comments: “Paul has led the company through unparalleled growth and has inspired a first-of-its-kind, familyoriented sports bar concept.”
Story by: Judith Harlan
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Paul Sonner
Bully's Sports Bar & Grill
Category: Retail Trade
JUST A DOZEN YEARS AGO, Bully’s was simply an idea in owner Paul Sonner’s mind. Now its incarnations are everywhere, with more than 300 employees in seven corporately owned restaurants and a soon-to-open franchise location in Fernley.
The ingredients for Bully’s success: quality food, value for the customer and a fun atmosphere boasting comfortable seating, dim lighting and abundant neon — all punctuated by an all-youcan- consume menu of sports offerings on more than 40 televisions in strategic locations.
Sonner’s innovation not only is evident through the sports bar and grill concept that he has helped define in the area; he also is known for his commitment to innovative solutions to community problems. On Thanksgiving, Bully’s opens its doors to the public and offers a free, traditional Thanksgiving dinner.
Not content to rest on the successes of Bully’s, Sonner has further refined his business by opening A Slice of Bully’s in the Galena area and the Timberline Lounge, a location for upscale dining, also with a location in Galena and Sparks.
