Barrington man grows business that manages local wine festivals

Scott Janess of Barrington said he wanted to be just like Jerry Maguire. Sports was on his mind. Being a manager.

But wine?

Well, it didn't occur to him until later that the fruit of the land would generate the fruit of his own labor and the creation of his own company, InPlay. The firm organizes and manages wine festivals in cities nationwide, including in Chicago and Naperville.

"He's very professional," said John Buckley, director of institutional advancement for the Naper Settlement in Naperville. "Scott draws on vendors with high quality, and he's very sensitive to our needs as a venue."

Such customer service and entrepreneurship run in Scott Janess' family.

In 1947, his grandfather Charles Arch founded Blistex, a lip balm maker based in Oak Brook. The family business continues today under his uncle, Dave Arch, CEO and chairman. A young Janess even worked for the family business, doing so-called grunt jobs like filling cracks in the floor with sealants.

But Janess had aspirations that nudged his entrepreneurial spirit. That led him to an internship and then a full-time job at IMG, a global firm that represents talent in sports, entertainment and the media.

Janess fulfilled a dream as a pro sports agent, working with stars in motor sports and golf, including Arnold Palmer. The job caused him to bounce around from Chicago to Cleveland to Dallas and eventually back home.

By January 2001, he decided to start his own company called InPlay. It focused entirely on creating and managing wine festivals because "there aren't a lot of other people who do it and do it well," the amateur wine collector and connesoir said.

Janess operated InPlay out of his home for about two years before getting a separate office. The company has four workers. But the staff often expands to about 15 workers when doing an event.

His most recent event was the Windy City Wine Festival, held last weekend.

Next is the Naperville Wine Festival Friday and Saturday, Sept. 18 and 19, at the Naper Settlement. It's now in its seventh year and has grown considerably.

The Naperville event started with about 4,000 attendees visiting with 16 vendors. This year, about 9,500 are expected to try the wines and see new products from 45 vendors, including wineries, distributors, wholesalers and others.

"The vendors aren't just from Illinois or the Midwest. They're global," he said.

This year, Janess' InPlay has been working on eight wine festivals. Next year, 11 events are planned. Besides Chicago and Naperville, other cities include Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Kansas City and elsewhere.

"We've got a good model and niche in place now," Janess said.