Contributors
Erik Cox
Erik is the Vice President of Product Strategy at Crunch Time. After spending two decades as a restaurant operator, Erik joined CrunchTime in 2008 to help build the tools he wished he had during his time in the restaurant industry. Today he leads the strategic planning and development of systems designed to innovate restaurant operations. For more than 20 years, Crunch Time has helped some of the world's top restaurant brands streamline back office operations, optimize food and labor costs, and increase profitability.
Trevor Crivello
Trevor Crivello is the founder and president of Iron Mountain Refrigeration and has a decade of experience in commercial refrigeration. Iron Mountain Refrigeration supplies commercial refrigeration equipment to fast-casual restaurants ranging from small operations to large national chains. Trevor leads Iron Mountain Refrigeration with a passion for quality and a devotion to providing the highest level of customer service.Nina Daigle
Nina M. Daigle is a Tax Partner specializing in Restaurant, Franchise, and Hospitality services, with a focus on quick-service restaurants and fine-dining establishments at Aprio, LLP. Nina provides unparalleled support to business owners, CFOs, and CEOs, covering various strategic business services. These include tax preparation and planning, account reconciliation, financial planning, and general ledger management.
Richard Delvallee
Richard Delvallee is Senior Vice President of Consulting for Revenue Management Solutions.
Gerri Detweiler
Gerri Detweiler is the education director at Nav, a fintech company that matches small business owners with financing options, and provides free business and personal credit reports. A recognized credit expert, Gerri has been answering credit and financial questions for more than 20 years, is the author or coauthor of 5 books on credit and financial topics and has been interviewed in more than 4,000 news articles.
Alicia DiStefano
Alicia DiStefano is Vice President, Practice Leader of QSR and Dining, bringing nearly 20 years of experience across real-time marketing and measurement, data as a service (DaaS), programmatic, and self-service media. Since joining InMarket in 2022, Alicia has helped leading restaurant brands power and measure digital marketing experiences, empowering advertisers to maximize campaign impact. Prior to joining InMarket, Alicia held numerous leadership roles in the adtech space including Mobilewalla’s VP of Sales and GroundTruth’s VP, Head of Industry for Retail & Restaurants.
John Dorer
Headquartered in New York City, eb3.work has positioned itself as the premier solutions provider in tackling the United States’ persistent and growing shortage of unskilled and entry-level labor. Founded on the principle of streamlining the complexities of the U.S. immigration system, the company serves as a crucial bridge between employers in need of labor and foreign nationals seeking lawful employment in the United States.
Kyle Drenon
Kyle is a lifelong fan of delicious food. He loves working with restaurants and manufacturers to tell their unique stories through media. He has been a marketing consultant and specialist for more than 12 years.
Matt Drewes
He previously worked in various CPG Brand Management positions at Campbell Soup Company and M&M/Mars including a year developing business in Russia. Matt holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Auburn University and an MBA from the Columbia Business School at Columbia University. He’s married with four children and an active volunteer coach at his YMCA.
Brian Duncan
Brian Duncan is the President of me&u USA. With over a decade of leadership experience in hospitality, Brian is a veteran in the industry with an unrivaled resume that demonstrates disruption through technology. He holds a strong passion for the industry and is determined to build a better future for hospitality.
Blas Escarcega
Blas Escarcega serves as Pollo Campero's VP of Franchise Development. Escarcega, a restaurant financial executive, spent the bulk of his career guiding those in the restaurant industry to a path of growth and profitability. Escarcega held the position of CFO at a beverage distributorship before transitioning to Campero USA, where he first held the position of Corporate Controller for over two years and then Corporate Business Partner and Director of Finance for over 13 years. As VP of Franchise Development, Escarcega leverages his experience and drive to accelerate franchise development.Kelly Esten
Kelly Sennatt Esten is Vice President of Product Marketing of Toast, the all-in-one platform built for restaurants.Chen Feller
Chen Feller is Digital Marketing Manager for GKI Group. GKI Group is a home for technologies and innovations, bringing even the craziest and most ambitious ideas to life. With a strong team of engineers, marketers, and years of experience in the startup business, the group owns, manages, and founded over 16 companies, scaling from patent-pending technologies to robotics to single malt whiskies.
Kate Finley
Kate Finley is the founder of Belle Communication, a best-in-class PR and creative strategy firm that helps brands think bigger for now + next. The firm has partnered with more than 100 brands, including Shake Shack, First Watch, The Halal Guys, Nestlé, and Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams.
Marlo Fogelman
Since opening its doors in 2004, the agency has won more than 30 communications industry awards for excellence across public relations, communications, digital and social media. Marlo has also received numerous accolades and distinctions, including being recognized as one of Boston’s “40 Under 40” by the Boston Business Journal in 2006. She is a member of the 2007 class of the Emerging Leaders Program at the UMass – Boston, and was named one of the seven most innovative Bostonians by BizBash magazine in 2011. In 2019, Marlo was awarded the Pinnacle Award for Achievement in Entrepreneurship from the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce and was selected as one of the 28 notables in Boston magazine’s cover story “The Powers That Will Be” in 2019.
Originally from Detroit, Michigan, Marlo is a graduate of Boston University School of Law and holds a Master’s Degree in International Relations from Boston University’s College of Arts & Sciences.
Jason Fry
Jason is intimately familiar with state and federal tax programs affecting employers, and also focuses on compliance and risk mitigation for workforce regulatory issues. Earlier in his career, Jason worked for the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, Georgia State University’s College of Law, the Clayton County Solicitor General’s Office and a private civil litigation law firm. Jason received his law degree from Georgia State University and is a member of the State Bar of Georgia.
Nick Fryer
Nick Fryer has over a decade of experience in the logistics industry, spanning marketing, public relations, sales enablement, M&A and more at 3PLs and 4PLs including AFN Logistics, GlobalTranz, and Sheer Logistics.
CJ Gaffney
CJ Gaffney is VP, Group Strategy Director at Partners + Napier, where he leads brand strategy that connects cultural insights with business impact. His experience across fast food, health, and travel has made him an expert in finding the emotional tension behind everyday decisions — from dinner rush cravings to carving out time in the family calendar to moments that matter in care. He's a 4x Effie winner and 2x Jay Chiat winner, working with brands like Smashburger, Checkers & Rally's, Applebee's, BurgerFi, Jack Daniels, MD Live, and Delta Vacations.
Robin Gagnon
Robin Gagnon, co-founder and CEO of We Sell Restaurants, a brand that has carved an unparalleled niche in the industry as the nation's leading and only business broker franchise focused on restaurants. Under Robin’s leadership, We Sell Restaurants has grown to 45 states where it dominates the restaurant space for sale marketplace and franchise resales, delivering on the founder’s vision to Sell More Restaurants Than Anyone Else.
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