Brandon Bell didn’t set out to be one of the fittest executives in the Capital Region. Though he works out regularly, Bell hasn’t played sports since high school and doesn’t even belong to a gym.
What’s more, he grew up working at Val’s Marina, his family’s restaurant in Maurepas. With its menu full of fried seafood platters, it’s hardly the kind of place that serves heart-healthy, diet-friendly dishes.
So you could attribute Bell’s toned physique and cardiovascular conditioning to good genes. He also has youth on his side.
But the biggest factor behind Bell’s fitness success is a competitive, disciplined attitude that allows him to work tirelessly and push himself to succeed.
“I’ve always been a go-getter,” he says. “I held down four jobs while I was in college.”
Working hard has always been part of Bell’s life. He started working in the family restaurant when he was 13, pitching in behind the scenes and learning how to run a business from the ground up. He made time for basketball and baseball, but he never considered himself an athlete and quit playing once he went to Southeastern Louisiana University.
He graduated in 2005 with a degree in business and a determination to go into sales. He landed a job with an industrial supply company, and a few months later went to work for Smith Tank & Steel, which was the largest customer of his former employer.
Bell was familiar with the company, which builds and repairs above-?ground storage tanks. Sam Smith Jr., who owns Smith Tank & Steel, was impressed with Bell’s drive and natural sales abilities, and hired him away. In the year since, Smith has not only been a boss to Bell, but he’s also become a mentor and a friend.
Bell, meanwhile, is helping his new employer grow. He was its first official sales associate, and he’s helped to take Smith Tank & Steel to the next level as its business development manager. The company recently relocated from Livingston to the former 84 Lumber site on La. Highway 30 in Gonzales.
“There’s so much happening right now, and we’re growing so fast,” Bell says. “It’s really exciting. I feel like I got in on the ground floor.”
Bell and Smith also are workout buddies. Though neither belongs to a gym, they use a workout room in Smith’s house, where Bell concentrates mostly on weight training. He averages five days per week, squeezing in workouts in the evenings after work, and he regularly alters his routine to prevent boredom.
Staying in shape is important for Bell, and it helps keep him focused and challenged.
“I look at these people who are out of shape, and I can’t even imagine letting myself get to that point,” he says. “That’s not the way I want to live.”
