General Session / Tuesday / October 7, 2025 / 3:45 PM

Happy Hour with Fast Casual CEOs

Grab an adult beverage or a soda and join several fast casual CEOs discussing the important issues restaurant operators face today and what it will take to succeed in 2026 and beyond.


PANELISTS

Flynn Dekker | CEO | Shipley Do-Nuts
Sherif Mityas | CEO | BRIX Holdings
Sherif Mityas serves as Chief Executive Officer of BRIX Holdings and as an Operating Partner for JAMCO Interests LLC. He focuses on supporting the group in the areas of strategic positioning, growth, and M&A, while leading the shared services and brand teams of the current portfolio companies of BRIX Holdings, LLC and Amici Partners Group, LLC. Prior to this role, Mityas has held various executive positions in consulting and the retail-restaurant industry sectors most notably as the chief experience officer for TGI FRIDAYS and as the chief executive officer for Hollywood Video/Movie Gallery. Mityas received a B.S. degree in aerospace engineering from Boston University, a M.S. in mechanical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and an M.B.A. from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.
Kelly Roddy | CEO & President | WOWorks
Kelly Roddy is Chief Executive Officer and President of WOWorks, a position he has held since the company’s inception in 2020. Before assuming this role, Kelly held C-suite and other leadership positions as Chief Executive Officer and President of Saladworks, LLC and Garbanzo Franchising Co., LLC; President of Schlotzsky's Franchisor SPV, LLC; and President of Schlotzsky's Franchise, LLC. Kelly has 21 years of additional executive management experience at HEB, Scholastic, and Walmart. Kelly is an active member in the restaurant industry and has spoken multiple times at International Franchise Association (IFA), International Foodservice Manufacturers Association (IFMA), Franchise Springboard, Fast Casual, Restaurant Finance and the IFMA Chain Operators Exchange (COEX). Under his vision, WOWorks has grown to six thriving better-for-you restaurant brands that share the value of fresh, clean, healthy-halo ingredients that can be customized to any taste: Saladworks, Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh, Frutta Bowls, The Simple Greek, Barberitos, and Z!Eats.