Bodega Taqueria y Tequila Co-Founder and CEO, Jared Galbut, is the leading force behind the success of the iconic South Florida-based brand, which recently initiated its first-ever national expansion with two locations set to open in Chicago in 2023. Since inception, the brand renowned for its fast-casual taco joint-by-day and speakeasy-style lounge-by-night concepts. Galbut, who also serves as Managing Principal of Menin Hospitality, a management and operations firm that oversees a portfolio of luxury hotel and restaurant properties from Miami to Chicago, parlayed an astute business acumen into a noteworthy career trajectory that began immediately upon his graduation from the University of Miami with a bachelor’s in accounting and finance and continues today with the bold programming he initiates at Bodega. Under his leadership, the burgeoning brand currently operates five locations in South Florida and recently signed a 12-year lease to open two locations in Chicago.

Andrew Glantz is the Founder & CEO of GiftAMeal, a cause-marketing platform for restaurants that has provided over 1 million meals to those in need through its novel “food for photos” concept. For each photo shared through GiftAMeal, a meal is donated to a local food bank. An outspoken champion of social entrepreneurship, Glantz began his hunger-fighting venture while still a student at Washington University in St. Louis in 2015. Now with hundreds of partner restaurants across QSR, fast-casual, and full service brands, Glantz and his creation, GiftAMeal, have become recognized as major forces for good by hospitality industry and hunger-relief organizations alike, winning 1st Place at the Global Impact Awards. Glantz lives in St. Louis, where he was named to the Business Journal’s “30 under 30" List and regularly lectures at universities. He serves as Chair for Washington University’s entrepreneurship committee and sits on the Arch Grants Leadership Committee.

Bill Phelps got his start as a brand marketer at Nestle in the early nineties. Since then, he’s pulled off a franchising hat trick by being involved with the creation of three great brands: Wetzel’s Pretzels, Blaze Pizza, and now Dave’s Hot Chicken. Bill’s specialty is building and scaling great franchise brands. In 1994, he founded Wetzel’s Pretzel’s with his business partner, Rick Wetzel, and was the CEO of Wetzel’s for 26 years growing it to over 300 locations. Bill is currently the CEO of Dave’s Hot Chicken, which started as a parking lot pop up just five years ago and now has nearly 100 restaurants open, with many more in development. In addition to Wetzel’s and Dave’s, Bill was also one of the founding investors that started Blaze Pizza 10 years ago.

After visiting Zunzi’s in Savannah in 2008, Chris Smith said "someday I am going to buy this place and franchise it." At the time, he was 23 years old and an early Five Guys franchisee just opening his second of seven locations in Georgia and South Carolina. His words became a reality in late 2014 when he purchased Zunzi's from the original founders, and he knew that to achieve the success and fulfilment he wanted in business and life, he would have to figure out his life purpose and align it with Zunzi's mission. In the process, he realized the importance of Zunzi's controversial "SHIT YEAH!" motto and made it the promise to the brand’s six stakeholders: TEAM, FRANCHISEES, FANS, COMMUNITY, VENDORS and INVESTORS—in that order. After refining the brand's South African-inspired menu and defining its culture, Smith opened a second fast casual location in Atlanta in 2018. This process set into motion the third iteration of Zunzi's model that now includes Zunzibar.

Alicia DiStefano is InMarket’s VP, Practice Leader for the QSR and Dining verticals. Alicia has worked in media and advertising for over 15 years, with experience in location marketing, data as a service (DaaS), programmatic, and self-service media. She previously worked in the restaurant vertical for 10 years, and has shared conference stages with brands like Panera, Subway, KFC, McDonald’s, DoorDash, and more. In 2018, Alicia oversaw the team, campaign, and submission to win the I-COM Data Creativity Award for a cost per visit campaign for Outback Steakhouse. Alicia is based in Atlanta, GA.