PANELISTS

Sammy Aldeeb | CEO | Urban Bricks

Sammy Aldeeb came to the U.S. in 1998 from Dubai and jumped right into franchising. Within 10 years, he’d amassed a portfolio of more than 20 franchise locations. Wanting to dive into the fast-casual pizza industry and not finding one that he liked, he created his own brand and launched Urban Bricks in 2015. With a culture that’s edgy, outgoing and progressive, Urban Bricks allows guests to build-your-own pizza, panini, pasta and salad, choosing from more than 30 ingredients that are prepared fresh each morning at over 17 locations in the United States.

Alonso Castañeda | VP of Brand Development & Strategy | Four Foods Group

Alonso Castañeda’s professional career began as a General Manager for Qdoba Mexica Grill in Colorado and he excelled in the business quickly and passionately. Since then he has worked as a Director of Franchise Operations, Regional Manager, Director of F&B, Director of Sales and Store compliance and currently Vice President of Brand Development and Strategy for the Four Foods Group Brands. He received the RevGen award from Mercato Partners in 2017 for top revenue generator in the FFG Brands. He has worked with great companies such as Qdoba, Paradise Bakery, Panera Bread, Café Rio, Kneaders Bakery & Café, R & R BBQ and Mo’Bettahs Hawaiian Style Food.

Patrick Conlin | President | Jake’s Franchising, LLC / Wayback Burgers

Pat Conlin joined Jake’s Franchising, LLC, franchisor of Wayback Burgers, as Senior Vice President in 2017. He has direct responsibility over the marketing, product procurement & distribution departments. His other responsibilities include assisting in franchise development, training, operations, strategic planning and franchise relations. Through his years in the franchising world, he’s been involved in all aspects of running a successful franchise business – from operations, franchise development, real estate, construction, marketing, delivery. Previously, he was in franchising with Blimpie from 1985 until 2018. Pat graduated from Rutgers University in 1985 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in business with a minor in finance.

Matt Friedman | Co-Founder & CEO | Wing Zone

Back in 1991, finding Amazing Flavor was not so easy – especially at the University of Florida in Gainesville, FL where Matt Friedman and Adam Scott were away at school. Matt and Adam spent many a night in their fraternity house kitchen perfecting the recipes that one day would become Wing Zone’s trademark flavors. Starting with a single storefront, Matt and Adam built the Wing Zone brand, satisfying the cravings of Flavorholics in other towns, states and now, worldwide. Today, Matt and Adam are among the few ever to be inducted in the Buffalo Wing Hall of Flame. Wing Zone now has nearly 100 locations.

MODERATOR

Scott Absher | Co-Founder & CEO | Shiftpixy

Scott Absher, Co-Founder and CEO of ShiftPixy, brings over 25 years of expertise in Human Capital Management strategy and support for small business. Scott has had significant exposure to the unique challenges and pressures restaurant and hospitality operators face and offers a unique insight as to the origins of and new approaches to meeting these new challenges. Scott will address the strategy that drives ShiftPixy’s leverage of leading edge technology to help its operator clients navigate today’s human capital realities.