Alessandro Biggi is the Founder and CEO of Avocaderia, a seasonally-inspired, fast-casual restaurant with 5 locations throughout New York City. Alessandro started his career at J.P. Morgan and The Boston Consulting Group before embarking on his entrepreneurial journey. He has built and grown successful tech businesses including 20lines, a storytelling app that was acquired by HarperCollins Publishers, and Zooppa, a global creative platform that was merged with TLNT Holdings. Alessandro holds a Master’s degree in International Management from ESADE Business School and a BS in Economics from Bocconi University.

Taylor Fischer, Vice President of the Fast Casual Division at FAT Brands, has led the Fast Casual Marketing Team since joining the company in August of 2019. Prior to her role with FAT Brands, she worked with companies such as Pressed Juicery, California Pizza Kitchen, PizzaRev, and other restaurant brands. She’s an experienced marketing professional with a demonstrated history of working in the food & beverage industry, specifically within the retail and franchise space. She is skilled in National & local marketing strategy, brand development, and collaborations & activations. Taylor graduated from the University of California Santa Barbara with a major in psychology and a minor in applied psychology.

Jessica Serrano is a seasoned marketing professional who joined DIG in 2022 as the VP of Marketing. With extensive experience in the quick-service restaurant (QSR) sector, Jessica played a key role in national marketing & calendar innovation at Burger King and Taco Bell. She also has experience in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) space having worked at brands including Dole and Kraft. She holds both an MBA and a BS from the University of Southern California.

Charles Watson was named CEO in December 2018. In this role, he is responsible for the brand’s strategic vision and overall franchise performance. He was previously Tropical Smoothie Cafe's Chief Development Officer since 2016 after serving as VP of Franchise Development since 2010. In these roles, Charles was responsible for all development of the Tropical Smoothie Cafe brand. A veteran hospitality professional, Charles has worked for several hospitality-related companies, including Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Intercontinental Hotels Group, US Franchise Systems, Inc. and Hospitality Real Estate Counselors. Charles is a graduate of The Hotel School at Cornell University and also holds a Masters of Business Administration from The Terry College of Business at The University of Georgia.

Emily Rugaber, VP of Marketing at Thanx is an expert in digital transformation, loyalty and data-driven restaurant marketing. She wrote the definitive guide on Restaurant Digital Maturity and authors the Loyalty Disrupt newsletter. Prior to joining Thanx, Emily consulted Fortune 500 clients such as SAP, Nestle, and Target on business intelligence, marketing and AI projects.