PANELISTS

David Baer | COO | Firenza

Dave Baer started as a driver for Domino’s Pizza while in college 1991. He managed a Domino’s Pizza store in 1994 and was Rookie manager of the year. From 1994-1998, he held positions of Supervisor, Senior Supervisor and Training Director of Corporate operations at Domino’s Pizza in the Northeast. From 1998-2012, he was VP of Operations of a 17 store Franchise. Since 2012, he has been the Director of Operations at the Zinga Franchise group and multi unit franchisee. From 2014 to present, he has been President and COO/ Co Founder of Firenza Pizza. He has since opened locations across the country.

Ron Simpson | Co-Owner | The Avocado Show

“You don’t have to know exactly what you’re doing to be successful.“ Creative serial entrepreneur Ron Simpson [33] discovered this life philosophy at quite a young age and never ever looked back. After setting up and selling a few startups varying from marketing to music and events to fashion, his latest challenge “The Avocado Show”, a restaurant based in Amsterdam, took the whole world by storm with hundred millions of views, huge worldwide fan bases, daily lines in front of the door, multi millions in funding, sparring sessions with the leaders of the industry, fans camping outside and 5 award nominations.

Maxine Vogt | Research Analyst | Euromonitor International

Maxine Vogt is a research analyst at Euromonitor International, a world leader in strategic research for consumer markets. With a background in consumer psychology, Maxine analyses the services and payments landscape, including industries such as foodservice, retailing and consumer finance. She provides insights on trends, developments, growth opportunities and competitive environments across these industries for various European countries, including the UK, France and Switzerland. In addition to contributing to Euromonitor’s syndicated database Passport, Maxine works on producing strategic content across the industries she researches. She is based out of Euromonitor International’s London office, and holds a master’s degree from the IE Business School.

MODERATOR

Aaron Brewer | Associate Director of Franchise Relations | Dickey’s Barbecue Restaurants

Aaron Brewer currently serves as Director of Franchise Relations at Dickey’s Barbecue Restaurants, Inc. Aaron has been with the Dickey’s brand for seven years, starting out on the Dickey’s training team in 2011 and evolving her role to be more hands on with franchisees. A piece of her current role includes traveling the nation with Mr. Dickey, the founder of Dickey’s Barbecue Pit, meeting with owners and hosting events. Aaron has worked in the restaurant and hospitality industry for over 20 years. In her time at Dickey’s, she has developed several training and culture standards for the Dickey’s Barbecue Pit brand.