Billy Tomber: From bottle-labeler to company manager [St. Louis Post-Dispatch]

Sept. 12--Billy Tomber, 38, operations manager for Rio Syrup Co., 2311 Chestnut Street, St. Louis. Also, editor of "The Soulard Renaissance," a monthly newspaper that has been written and published by volunteers from the Soulard Restoration Group since 1976.

BIOGRAPHICAL DATA

Family -- Single with a girlfriend, Liz Wolfe, formerly of Hinsdale, Ill., a physical therapist at St. Luke's Hospital. Eldest child and only son of Phil and Addie Tomber of Webster Groves. His sisters are Connie Tomber Lang, 34, of Lake Tahoe, Nev.; Katherine "Sweetie" Siorek, 32, newly married to Andy Siorek. The newlyweds live in Kirkwood and Sweetie works for Express Scripts. His youngest sister, Lizzy Tomber, 27, is an employee of the National Democratic Institute in Washington. She speaks Arabic and works mostly in the Mideast. Billy's parents work in the family syrup business. Phil is the president of Rio, which was founded in 1940 by his late father, Stuart Tomber; Addie works in product development.

Education -- A 1990 graduate of St. Louis University High School; a 1995 graduate of St. Louis University with a bachelor's in communications and marketing.

Did you always plan to work in the family business?

No, not in the least. I started working at Rio when I was in fifth grade. I put labels on bottles. I worked there all through high school, too, but didn't plan on making it my life's work.

Have you worked elsewhere?

When I got out of college I worked for Anheuser-Busch. I followed the PGA Tour around the country. I did that for three years.

Sounds like a tough job. Why did you quit?

I got tired of being on the road all the time. The family business sounded a lot better after that.

Is it a big business?

We employ five people and three of them have the same last name. The others are the woman who runs the office, who's been with us for 40 years, and the man who runs the lab.

How many flavor syrups does Rio make?

Around 240, but I'm confident that we will introduce our 250th flavor this year.

What will it be?

I can't say yet, but we're planning something in recognition of someone special in St. Louis.

What do your flavorings go into?

They're most commonly used in snow cones and slushes. But they also get used in milk shakes, ice cream, Italian ice and soda. They were originally used mainly in sodas but then ready-made sodas became more popular. We've seen interest pick up in recent years in soda flavoring as people have gotten more involved in making their own foods and drinks.

Are you trying to expand the market for your products?

Yes, I'm working on some custom drink mixes now. Some people also use our syrups to flavor coffee, but we don't market them for that.

Why not?

We would have to reconfigure the mixes. Coffee is acidic and the mixes would have to be made differently to taste good -- but there are people who have successfully flavored coffee without mixes.

Do you taste all your syrups?

Yes, my mom and I do most of the tasting. We have a snow cone machine in the factory and we'll put some syrup on the ice and try it out. I keep a box of crackers in my desk drawer so I can clear my palette between tastings.

How did you get involved in "The Soulard Renaissance"?

I have lived in Soulard for about 10 years and I love the community and I want to do whatever I can to help make it more successful. I also like writing and it seemed like a good way for me to help out.

Are you a rehabber?

I wish I could say that I had done a lot of work to my house, but it was pretty much done when I moved in. It was built in 1890.

Are you involved in other aspects of the community?

I help with the community garden, but I want to make it clear that I do not have a plot. It's my girlfriend's plot, and I just help out sometimes. I'm also a new member of the Mardi Gras Inc. board. And I host and play a lot of trivia nights. I like what I call the "head-slapping questions."

You have achieved some small amount of fame for your trivia knowledge, haven't you?

Well, I was on "Jeopardy" once. It's a long story but it ends with "I left with $8." I get a lot of laughs with that.

Other hobbies?

Bicycling. I ride every day.

Last best book?

"Outliers," by Malcolm Gladwell. It explains why I will never be a pro hockey player, since I was born in June.

You drive a ...

Cannondale 500. Blue. Oh, my car. It's a red, 1999 Mercury Tracer. I have never owned a car in the decade in which it was made. You can put that in there.

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