In partnership with the WBDC, SBDC @ ICNC and The Hatchery Chicago
In recognition of Women’s History Month, we are celebrating women who are driving innovation. These women are recognized for their innovations in innovative products, technologies, channels and business models. This event is a panel discussion where we will discuss the unique ways these women are transforming the way we think about food.
Moderator:
Anna Dawson is the Hospitality Sales Manager at SpotOn for Illinois. She takes great pride in her work. Anna is passionate about helping small business owners achieve their dreams in the food and beverage industry. She provides services to all types of entrepreneurs, whether you are looking for technology to utilize as simple as an invoice and online ordering or as robust as a multi location full service restaurant, needing complete streamlined software. She has been a Chicago native for the past 10 years and resides in the Northside with an office in the loop.
Panelists:
Riana Lynn is the founder of Journey Foods, a food tech company that supports cutting-edge product management and data services for food businesses. A biologist turned serial entrepreneur, Riana has developed high-growth, nationally recognized technology, and food businesses. Her accomplishments have been featured on MIT 35 under 35, CNBC, Forbes, USA Today, Wired, TechCrunch, Entrepreneur Magazine, Food Tank and more.
Lisa Curtis is the Founder & CEO of Kuli Kuli, the leading brand pioneering the sustainably sourced superfood moringa. Kuli Kuli’s moringa powders, bars and wellness shots are sustainably sourced from African women and other small farmers around the world and sold in 11,000 U.S. stores. Lisa began working on Kuli Kuli while serving in the Peace Corps and has grown it into a multi-million dollar social enterprise. Previously, Lisa wrote political briefings for President Obama in the White House, served as a United Nations Environment Programme Youth Advisor, and worked at an impact investment firm in India. Lisa was recognized on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list and Inc Magazine’s Top 100 Female Founders list. She has been featured in numerous outlets including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and on MSNBC’s Morning Joe.
Becca McCraken is the Director of Merchandising at Farmer’s Fridge. Becca launched the Merchandising team at Farmer’s Fridge in 2020. She built the foundation for the merchandising strategy, capabilities and KPIs needed to create customer value through our menu while optimizing revenue and margin. Since then, the team has been focused on leveraging data to drive decision making and performance management across menu innovation, pricing, assortment mix and retail partners.
