Native Son’s Leadership Family
Native Son’s crew is a homegrown family of…
Jon Sanchez - President
Jonathan Sanchez, a USC Marshall School of Business graduate, started his professional career working for Nestle. Fueled by his passion for craft beer, Jon left Nestle to go back to his native land in Orange County, Calif. His entrepreneurial dreams came true with the opening of Native Son-Santa Ana in 2014, turning an old unused office building to one of OC’s best rooftops bars. His company, Manfred Danger now operates 3 locations in SoCal. When he is not running his company, you can find Jon on the golf course or corralling his 4 sons.
Brock Woolsey - Beverage Director
Brock has been in the hospitality industry ever since he got out of high school. It started with coffee and then shifted to alcohol. The Food & Beverage industry was never his original plan. After dropping out of nursing school and touring as a musician, it became clear that his passion was in the hospitality industry. He is always on the hunt for a tasty beverage. #bevyboy
Lilyan Rock - Head of Business Development
Lilyan graduated with a degree in History and Mathematics from the University of California, Santa Cruz and began her professional career in research, archives, and records management. After working for her University during Graduate school, for the City of Orange as an Assistant Librarian, and as a Research Fellow with National Archives, Lilyan found her true place at Native Son. Starting as a part time beertender in 2019, Lilyan worked her way into the heart of the Native Son family and now facilitates the expansion and build-outs of the next Native Son locations. When she is not working, she can be found outside hiking and camping with friends, or happily scratching on a game of pool with a cold beer in hand.
Jeffrey Kwon - General Manager, Native Son IE
Jeffrey Kwon joined the team back in 2014 when his high school buddy, Jonathan Sanchez, was planning to start Native Son Santa Ana. After being management in Santa Ana for a couple years, He made the trek out to the Inland Empire in 2019 to become the General Manager of Native Son IE. Jeffrey Kwon gradated from CSULB with a Bachelor's degree for Business Administration. He enjoys traveling, hiking, and says his life goal is to eat his way around the world.
Atsuki “Sookie” Demizu - Lead Bartender, Native Son IE
Sookie has been a force of creativity and precision for the Native Son team since 2019. Born and raised in Japan, he brings with him eight years of stateside experience through an impressive tenure of high standard cocktail bars, including W. Wolfskill in Riverside and Sandfish in Palm Springs. He leads the Native Son Inland Empire team to accept nothing short of excellence in their cocktail program and practice of hospitality.
When he is not behind the bar, Sookie is busy sharpening his discipline in Jiu Jitsu, finding a balanced similarity between grappling on the mat and performing well-executed customer service. He loves sipping on an American Trilogy, and being a part of his community through the delight of a great drink.
Bryce Keating - Lead Bartender, Native Son OC
Bryce got his start his career beertending at some of Orange County’s award-winning breweries. After experiencing all that he can working in beer, he joined the Native Son team in 2021 & quickly grew a passion for cocktails that has lead him to this position. When he’s not behind the bar, he’s spending time with his wife & three children exploring the nature of Southern California & beyond.