New Belgium co-founder Jordan to enter Colorado Business Hall of Fame

DENVER — Kim Jordan, co-founder and former CEO of New Belgium Brewing Co. in Fort Collins, is one of six business leaders to be inducted into the Colorado Business Hall of Fame.

According to an announcement Tuesday by the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce and Junior Achievement, Jordan will be inducted into the hall at a ceremony on Feb. 6 at the Hyatt Regency Denver at the Colorado Convention Center, along with Walter Isenberg, Anita Padilla-Fitzgerald, Earl L. Wright, Charles S. McNeil and Winfield Scott Stratton.

Jordan co-founded New Belgium Brewing with Jeff Lebesch in 1991 and became CEO a decade later as the company expanded, transforming it into a leading craft brewery by emphasizing environmental responsibility and employee ownership. When she sold the company to the Lion-Kirin group in 2019, her co-workers received nearly twice the value Jordan and her family did as a testament to broadly shared equity.

A Fort Collins staple, Jordan and her co-workers started the Tour de Fat, an annual bicycle parade and fundraiser for local nonprofits. She is active in the community, serving on several boards, and founded the Mighty Arrow Family Foundation for impactful philanthropy.

Jordan has received numerous awards, including the Colorado Governor’s Citizenship Medal for Growth and Innovation in 2016, the Brewers Association Recognition Award in 2019, and the Teddy Roosevelt Conservation Partnership Conservation Achievement Award in 2021.

Jordan and Lebesch and the company won BizWest Bravo! Entrepreneur awards in 2000 and 2005.

Walter Isenberg co-founded Sage Hospitality Group in 1984 with Zack Neumeyer and has led it for four decades, establishing it as a leader in hotel and restaurant operations, real estate and brand building. Sage’s ventures include Denver’s Union Station and McGregor Square.

McNeil was born in 1949 in Greeley and raised in Estes Park. A fourth-generation Colorado entrepreneur, he  founded NexGen Resources Corp. in 1991 and has served as its CEO ever since.

The daughter of labor workers, Padilla-Fitzgerald began her mortgage industry career at age 18 as a receptionist at Silver State Savings and Loan. Rising through roles including president and CEO of First City Financial Corp, she founded MegaStar Financial Corp in 1991 and also owns MegaStar Holdings, which handles real estate investments. Padilla-Fitzgerald founded Take3Tech to innovate mortgage technology.

Wright started his career at Irwin Management in Indiana. In 1972, he co-founded Asset Management Group, which became AMG National Corp. in 1975. As CEO and chairman of AMG, he oversees a wealth-management firm with assets of approximately $8.1 billion as of March 31.

“Pioneer laureate” Stratton moved to Colorado Springs in 1872, and 19 years later discovered a gold vein at the Independence Mine in Cripple Creek, becoming the first millionaire of the gold rush there. He sold the mine for $11 million in 1899. Stratton also improved Colorado Springs’ infrastructure, including the Colorado Springs and Interurban Railway, and built the city’s first professional baseball stadium. Many streets, parks, and buildings throughout the city are named after him.

The Hall of Fame event is supported by Presenting Sponsor UMB Bank, Reception Sponsor IMA Financial and Media Sponsor KMGH-TV Channel 7. Denver7’s Lisa Hidalgo will emcee the event.