As Chief Marketing Officer at Nekter Juice Bar, Jon Asher leads brand development and marketing, brand partnerships, franchise marketing, technology enhancement and innovation, menu innovation, and product development with a core focus on ensuring a fresh, frictionless and fun omnichannel marketing experience across all customer touchpoints in-store, online and out-of-home (OOH). He was responsible for transitioning Nekter’s loyalty program from punch cards to a pioneering mobile app with more than 2 million members and recently led a successful rebranding effort that helped propel Nekter Juice Bar to its position as one of the most successful next-gen juice bar brands in the country with more than 210 locations. Jon began his career as an Aerospace Analyst before switching over to marketing in the biotech, outdoor and fitness retail sectors, and now enjoys promoting a healthier lifestyle in the QSR space.

Nathan Breneman is the VP of Leadership at R&R BBQ, with over a decade of experience in restaurant management and scaling. He excels in fostering employee development to drive sales growth and brand success. Nathan has led innovations, such as streamlining inventory systems, optimizing staffing, and launching digital tools that have significantly enhanced operations. His leadership has been instrumental in overcoming challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic, and his contributions have reshaped processes while achieving financial growth. With a forward-thinking mindset and strategic acumen, Nathan continues to make a significant impact on the organization and the food and beverage industry.

Casey Hilder, Director of Marketing for Starbird, has led the brand to become a defining force in the super-premium QSR segment since joining in 2018. Under his leadership, Starbird has expanded from three to fourteen restaurants, achieving over 25% comp sales growth for four consecutive years. Hilder spearheaded successful LTOs and the development of Starbird's virtual concepts. With over 12 years of experience, Hilder launched Starbird’s TikTok, growing to 125,000 followers in under two years, and implemented a loyalty program, increasing app usage to 200,000 users. He holds a bachelor's degree from Xavier University.

As president and CEO, Sean Kennedy has been instrumental in establishing Cowboy Chicken as the premium fast casual restaurant brand that pioneered wood-fired rotisserie chicken. Sean has worked to refine the menu, build operational systems, grow system-wide sales and strengthen store financial performance. He launched Cowboy Chicken’s franchise program that helped to pave the way for today’s national expansion and has built a strong corporate team to support franchise development, real estate, construction, training, marketing and franchise support efforts. During his leadership, the brand has been included in Fast Casual’s Top 100 Movers & Shakers list every year since 2011 and in 2017 won the Emerging Chain of the Year award from Restaurant Business.

Anand Tumuluru is the CEO and co-founder of Loop, a SaaS co-pilot for delivery profitability helping 1000s of locations across the nation's top brands like Dave's Hot Chicken, Freddy's and Mo'Bettahs. Over the past decade, he wore several hats as a restaurateur, AI researcher and was most recently at Uber witnessing the growth of delivery. He believes that the future of food is going to be shaped heavily by data driven insights on consumer behaviour and an AI based co-pilot for operators to take control of everything from guest experience to finances.