Eugene (Gene) Luciana was born in 1941 and grew up in Steubenville, Ohio. He graduated from Franciscan University in 1963 with a B.S. degree in finance and accounting. He joined the Deloitte accounting firm and upon attaining his CPA certificate, he taught accounting at Franciscan University as well as at Kent State University. Gene subsequently became the chief financial officer and a Board member of Heritage industries in Chattanooga, Tenn. Through an acquisition, he became executive vice president, chief financial officer and a Board member of Chase Paper and Packaging in Greenwich, CT. After sale of the company to International Paper, he became the executive vice president, chief financial officer of Sunbelt Beverage Company, a leading wine and spirits distributor, which took him to Baltimore. 3 Mergers and acquisitions transactions were the main driver of Gene’s career. His most recent transactions involved the wine and spirits companies of the Wirtz family of Chicago, Illinois, creating Breakthru Beverage. He retired in 2021 as executive vice president, chief financial officer of Breakthru but remains on the Board of its majority owner.
Gene and his wife Betty Ann have lived in New Canaan as well as Darien for 35 years. They have six children. His interests include politics, the stock market, St. Thomas More Church, the New York Yankees, the NFL and Notre Dame football.
