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Born in Izmir, Turkey in 1967, Stephane moved to France in 1980 to finish middle and high school before immigrating to the U.S. in 1987. He attended the University of Milwaukee Wisconsin where he studied Business Administration. In 1987, he also joined Derco Aerospace as a part-time employee. During this period he virtually touched all aspects of the business; this early cross-training helped him in later years to understand the diversity of customer requirements and ways to better serve customers.

In 1989, Stephane converted to full time status and continued to expand his sales experience base as an Account Representative, Account Manager and then Sales Manager. In 1991, he became a shareholder of the company by acquiring shares from Mr. Edward Dermond (father) who was then retiring from the business.

Commencing in 1993, Stephane served as Director of Sales for a variety of regions including Europe, Africa, South America and Middle East before being promoted to Vice President of Worldwide Sales for Derco Aerospace in 1995. He joined the Board of Directors in 1996 and furthermore, became Vice President and Secretary of Derco Holding in 1998 concurrent to his position at Derco Aerospace. Along with Eric Dermond, Derco CEO, he acted as the senior relationship manager for the entire global network of customers, responsible for building and overseeing all interactions. He played a pivotal role in the negotiation and closure of major contracts and transactions. His strong performance resulted in double-digit sales growth over the years bringing the total company sales in excess of $215M in 2001. He also was responsible for meeting the objectives, strategy, structure, manpower, training and compensation plans of the sales force.

In 1998, Stephane attended the Executive Development program of the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. A veteran of international sales, he is both multilingual and multi-cultural. His global adaptability is enhanced by the fact that he has lived on three different continents and is fluent in five languages (French, Italian, Spanish, Turkish, and English).

In 2002, he was a key member of the team who transitioned the acquisition of Derco Holding to Sikorsky Aircraft, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation. Following successful transfer of assets to Sikorsky, Stephane stayed on five years post sale to fulfill his employment agreement, resigning from Derco in May 2007. These five years were a wealth of information in better understanding corporate structure and operations.

In 2004, along with brothers Eric and Max, a real estate development company was formed, investing in commercial. The company exists today as Dermond Property Investment. Dermond Property Investments (DPI) is an integrated Real Estate services Company with operations in acquisitions, new development, historical rehabilitation and property management. In 2009, DPI expanded its real estate portfolio to include residential development. With the aim of taking Real Estate Investment to the next level and providing top notch service to its Tenants, DPI owns and manages its properties in order to ensure customer/tenant satisfaction.

In 2008, Stephane again with his two brothers acquired 50% equity in Aero Precision Industries (API), marking their return to the Aerospace Industry. API is a military aircraft spare parts and systems distributor, located in Livermore, CA. Stephane held the position of Executive Vice President and Board Member until 2012 when he, his brothers, and their partners sold the business to Greenwich Aerogroup. Presently, Stephane is President of Optimum Vehicle Logistics (OVL), a company formed in 2007. OVL started up as an Exclusive AM General’s Authorized HUMVEE Parts Distributor for the Middle East and Africa but has quickly grown, distributing parts for several other OEM’s such as Navistar Defense, Oshkosh Defense, BAE Systems, Warn, Parker and more. OVL primarily serves customers in international markets supporting wheeled and track vehicle fleets.