Sara Carhart is a seasoned professional with an impressive track record spanning over 25 years in the restaurant industry. Before holding the esteemed Vice President of Operations role at SPIN! Pizza, she spent several years opening franchise locations for the company. In her role, Sara Carhart stands as an embodiment of operational excellence with authentic, people-centric leadership. Her leadership revolves around empowerment. Sara’s career is characterized by her dedication to people and resolute commitment to nurturing their growth and achieving success. Her passion for her craft extends well beyond culinary arts and business strategies; it resides in the authentic connections she forges with individuals, both within her organization and beyond its borders. Firmly rooted in her belief that people are the cornerstone of any venture, Sara has dedicated herself to positively impacting the lives she encounters.

Troy Hooper joined Pepper Lunch as one of the three global business unit CEO’s for the brand, and oversees Pepper Lunch’s parent company in North America, Hot Palette America. Troy brings 30 years of unparalleled experience in hospitality, operations management and executive leadership to this role, which has fueled Pepper Lunch’s infrastructure development, growth efforts, and brand deliverables, creating a fruitful franchise model for the North American market. Throughout his career, Troy has successfully built new concepts, rebranded existing restaurants, and improved well-established venues for iconic brands. Troy’s decades of experience and business acumen brings a breadth of knowledge to the rapidly growing global brand, Pepper Lunch.

Rob McColgan is the co-founder and CEO of Modern Restaurant Concepts, a rapidly growing restaurant company based in Colorado. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from The University of Notre Dame in 2002 with degrees in Finance and Film and then spent six years in New York with Goldman Sachs. Rob left Wall Street in 2008 to co-found Modern Market Eatery, a restaurant company focused on serving healthy fare in a fast casual setting. Since opening its first location in Boulder, Colorado in late 2009, Modern Market Eatery has grown to almost 30 locations around the country. In 2019 Modern Market merged with Lemonade Restaurant Group, a California-based fast casual chain, to form Modern Restaurant Concepts.