Meet Rob Bunten, CFO
Rob may lead the finance department, but he knows the ins and outs of most every area of the company as one of our longest-tenured Cameron’s team members. Read on to learn a little more about what he does when he’s not crunching numbers.
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Topeka, the capital city of Kansas. It was a really great place to grow up, but hasn’t changed much over the years. Nearby is Lawrence, a growing town and home to my beloved KU Jayhawks! I lived in Colorado for 6 years and moved to Minneapolis in 1985. Now I live in Excelsior, near Lake Minnetonka, in a nice, quiet neighborhood with my wife, Stephani, 3 dogs (Yellow Lab Gus, 13; Yorkies Karl, 2, and Gigi, 5). and a cat (Bobby, 15). My daughter, Nicole, now lives in Kansas City.
Tell us a little more about them!
My wife Stephani is a psychologist, working with people with mental disabilities. It’s a challenging profession and she is very good at it, truly helping people. She’s a very patient person – which is why she can live with me! My daughter Nicole is 24. She decided on her own to go to my alma mater, KU, which made me very happy. She graduated in 3 years, earned her master’s degree, and got a job at an accounting firm. She’s been there two years and she’s already been promoted. I’m VERY proud of her!!
What do you do at Cameron’s, and how long have you been doing it?
I’ve worked at Cameron’s as CFO since 1999, after 15 years of banking as a commercial lender in the Twin Cities. Cameron’s was actually one of my bank customers. I guess you can say that I count beans all day (get it?). The company has been through many changes over the years and has consistently grown revenues. I’ve been involved in all financial and most operational aspects of the company over the years.
What’s your favorite part of working at Cameron’s?
The people! We have a fun group of people, in all departments. We get along, do stuff together, make fun of each other. I’ve worked with my team for a long time, I consider them my family. We built the current building in 2008 which opened the door for growth and new people. Growth has been fun and challenging, I’m proud to be part of it all. I know Cameron’s will continue to be successful with a great brand and excellent team.
When did you first try Cameron’s?
Probably in 1996 or 1997, when I worked in banking and Cameron’s was one of my customers. I’ve been drinking it ever since. I can’t remember what I drank before that, but I’ve always loved good coffee. Cameron’s has a consistent taste and quality, it is really very good.
What’s your favorite Cameron’s blend, and how do you like to brew it?
Velvet Moon! That’s my mom’s favorite too. It’s smooth and flavorful. Typically on a weekday I brew single serve because my dog Gus is panting at me, wanting to go on a walk. I got the single serve brewer just because of him. On weekends though, I like to brew up a pot using a Technivorm brewer… I think of it as an old-fashioned pour over!
What does your ideal Saturday morning look like?
Waking up with a cup of coffee, enjoying the natural silence while sitting out on the patio watching birds. Then, getting in my kayak and tooling around Lake Minnetonka.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
Spare time??? When I find some, I like to kayak, ride my bike, walk around Excelsior and go to restaurants, or hang out with the puppies. I’m an avid birdwatcher, maybe because of my biology degree. We have breeding osprey by our house that come back every year. It’s fun to see them raise their young and fly around our home looking for things to eat. The American dipper is a really cool bird too, it lives in Colorado near mountain streams. It dives into the water and walks on the creek bed underwater eating bugs from the bottom. Stephani and I do the binge-watching thing too. We just finished Goliath and love Better Call Saul, but there are so many good shows.
Any favorite vacation spots?
Definitely St. John, in the U.S. Virgin Islands. It’s beautiful, most of which is Virgin Islands National Park. We snorkel, hike, and enjoy the Caribbean food and drinks. We planned a trip there last fall but due to the hurricane went to Costa Rica instead. We fell in love with it, we’ll definitely go back.
What’s your favorite place to grab food or a drink?
I have to give a shout-out to Zuppa Cucina in Shakopee! They have great food, great people, and they know what I want as soon as I walk in. Close to home, Excelsior has many good places. Haskell’s is a great place to grab a burger and a beer and watch the people walk by. Speaking of beer, Badger Hill in Shakopee makes my favorite beer, Traitor IPA. I was in Chicago recently and had the chance to try 3 Floyds Yum Yum American Session ale – outstanding!
