The Business of Food #VHFood

Join us for a night of discussion around the intersection of food, tech, and venture.

Panelists:

• Brian Ballan - co-Founder of A&B American Style. @ABAmericanStyle
• Philip David Crouse - CEO and Founder of Tiny Kitchen Brands and the brand Cup & Compass. @drinkcnc
• Luke Holden - Founder and President of Luke's Lobster, Co-Founder & Managing Partner at Cape Seafood LLC. @Luke_Holden
• Benjamin McKean - Co-Founder & CEO of Hungryroot; former Co-Founder & CEO of Savored (acquired by Groupon) @benjaminmckean

Moderator:

• Michele Di Pietro - Director of Culinary Development at Organic Avenue and Founder of the Georgetown University Alumni in Food group. @mikdp17

The moderated panel discussion will be followed by Q&A and an opportunity to mingle with other attendees and the panelists.

Special thanks to our event partner: WeWork - Soho West.

Brought to you by: Venturing Hoyas

• Ellie Wheeler - Principal, Greycroft Partners @ellie
• Joseph Rizk - Ventures Lead, IDEO @jfrizk
• Tiffany Yu - Founder, Diversability and Dir. of Business Development, REVOLT Media @ImTiffanyYu
• Scott Howard - Founder, Current Consulting @sthoward

FAQ:

• Q. What happens with ticket sale proceeds?
• A. 99% Pizza & soda for the event, 1% nametags. All individuals who work on these events are volunteers!
• Q. I heard there is now a free Peruvian dessert to taste at the conclusion of the panel, true?
• A. Absolutely true. Just when you thought pizza and sodas was enough.
• Q. What is an alfajores?
• A. A Peruvian caramel sandwich cookie. Check this out.

-------

Bryan Ballan: In 2010, Brian Ballan reinvented himself. He had grown passionate about the connection between community and food so he left finance and dove in head first. Less than a week after leaving his tie behind, he was a line cook at Buddakan in New York City apprenticing under nationally acclaimed chefs. He is a founder of A&B American Style, making minimally processed condiments without added sugar or artificial preservatives. Just food in your food.

Philip David Crouse: Philip David Crouse is the CEO and Founder of Tiny Kitchen Brands. Prior to founding TKB, Philip worked for four nationally distributed food and beverage companies (Rick’s Picks, KIND Healthy Snacks, Cisse and Boulder Specialty Brands). Philip started his career at Deloitte Consulting in New York City. Philip earned his MBA from Columbia Business School and his A.B. in Political Science and Entrepreneurship at Washington University in St. Louis. During his time at WashU, Philip was an active entrepreneur, founding and selling a successful bicycle rental business called Bears Bikes, which is still in operation today!

Luke Holden: Luke was born and raised in Cape Elizabeth, a small town on the coast of Maine. He spent his sunny summers lobstering in his hand-made skiff, and his frigid winters playing ice hockey in Casco Bay. Luke left home to study finance and management at Georgetown University, but remained a Mainer at heart. Luke's Lobster was borne of Luke's undying passion for all things Maine and the business savvy he accrued as an investment banker. Currently, Luke spends part of his time in Maine managing Cape Seafood, Luke's sister seafood company, and sitting on the boards of Maine Lobster Marketing Collaborative and The Lobster Institute.

Ben McKean: Ben is the founder and CEO of Hungryroot, a brand of farm fresh 7-minute meals. Prior to Hungryroot, Ben was a Vice President and General Manager at Groupon, overseeing their food and beverage business. Ben came to Groupon through the acquisition of Savored, which he founded in 2009. Savored was the nation’s leading provider of yield management technology to the restaurant industry. Prior to Savored, Ben worked in Merrill Lynch’s technology investment banking group. Ben is a graduate of Georgetown University and currently lives in New York City.

Michele Di Pietro: As a seventeen year veteran of the culinary industry, Michele Di Pietro, an MSB accounting undergrad, did not take the usual trajectory into the world of food. After five years as a CPA at one of the then-Big 6 accounting firms, she said "arrivederci" to the world of audit, enrolled in cooking school and never looked back. The bulk of her food career has been behind-the-scenes in food and concept development, currently as the Director of Culinary Development at Organic Avenue and previously at Whole Foods Market, analyzing food trends and overseeing all aspects of bringing innovative and flavorful foods to market. Her personal culinary passion is regional Italian cuisine, with a philosophy of “keep it simple, and use only the best possible ingredients available”. At any time, she is planning her next themed-dinner party in her Manhattan home and her next culinary travel adventure. She has recently founded the Georgetown University Alumni in Food group (Facebook | LinkedIn), hoping to bring Hoyas in the food world together from around the globe for networking and other delicious opportunities.

Limanjar: is a New York-based bakery that celebrates the refined confectionery tradition of Lima, Peru. By sourcing the best local ingredients, as well as the most exotic Peruvian flavors, Limanjar crafts the finest alfajores, manjarblancos and other iconic desserts from Peru's capital. Our cookies and pastries are prepared daily and can be ordered online for next day delivery in New York City.

Joaquín Ormeño: is the Co-Founder of Limanjar, a New-York based, e-commerce bakery that celebrates the refined confectionary tradition of his hometown, Lima. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University, where he studied International Economics and Mandarin Chinese. He is currently an investment banker at Citigroup’s Latin America Debt Capital Markets Group in New York. With a passion for food and Peruvian culture, Joaquín discovered the potential of the Latin American pastry market when he started selling his cookies while being a banker. Along with the team at Limanjar, they are now determined to take Peruvian and Latin American confectionary traditions to new heights, starting by New York.