MEET OUR INDUSTRY LEADERS

From Gordon Food Service Executives To Entrepreneurs and Innovation Experts, Our Mentors Are Leading The Food Industry

Our chosen startups receive exclusive access to Gordon Food Service’s top leaders as well as Relish Works and 1871’s network of successful entrepreneurs, innovation experts, and seasoned investors through the accelerator program.

Our

Team

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Laura Habegger
Head of Food Foundry
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Paige Ellen
Associate, Food Foundry
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Mandy Tahvonen
Executive Director, Relish Works
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Mara Russo
Design Strategy Lead, Relish Works
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Stephanie Wethington
Design Strategy Lead, Relish Works
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Nick Florek
Advisor, Food Foundry

Mentors

Rich Wolowski
Chief Executive Officer – Gordon Food Service
Betsy Ziegler
Chief Executive Officer – 1871
Rebecca Sholiton Kahnweiler
Strategy Consultant, Entrepreneur in Residence
Rachael Feuerborn
Entrepreneur-in-residence, 1871
John Powers
Director, Donovan Food Brokerage, Entrepreneur in Residence
Chris Freeman
VP, Entrepreneurial & Growth, Colliers International, Entrepreneur in Residence
Shayna Harris
Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Supply Change Capital, Entrepreneur in Residence
Noramay Cadena
Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Supply Change Capital, Entrepreneur in Residence
Troy Henikoff
Managing Director – MATH Venture Partners
Alisha Cieslak
Chief Legal & Risk Officer - Gordon Food Service
Tyler Booth
Investment Lead, Relish Works
Rumaisa Mughal
Pilot Program Manager, Relish Works
Kyle Welch
President, Chicago Scoops LLC
Joe Mott
Senior Manager, Sales Support and Enablement
Stephen Gaither
Chief Marketing Officer, C.A. Fortune Message
Kelly Smallegan-Maas
Digital Marketing Manager, North America, Gordon Food Service
Luke Saunders
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Farmer's Fridge
Jeff Maddox
Chief Financial Officer, Gordon Food Service
Ashley Hartman
Senior Principal, Bluestein Ventures
Adam Niemur
Director of Digital Experience, North America, Gordon Food Service
Suneet Lad
Head of Client Engagement & Strategic Partnerships, Aclara Research
Audre Kapacinskas
Vice President, S2G Ventures
Bob Gillespie
Serial Entrepreneur
Nathan Cooper
Managing Partner, Barrel Ventures
Mark Eriks
Chief Supply Chain Officer – Gordon Food Service
Disha Gulati
CEO and Founder, Virtual Dining Chicago
Patrick Yovanov
Creative Lead, Relish Works
Steve Tompos
Managing Director, Strategic Partnerships, Cleveland Avenue
Carleigh Connelly
Hospitality Brand Strategist
Reid Lappin
Chief Executive Officer – Vokal
Greg Robbins
Managing Member, Erraza LLC
Joe Shenton
Partner, Summit Trail Advisors
Dinsh Guzdar
President, f' real foods
Andrew F. Dickow
Managing Director, Greenwich Capital Group
Tony Owen
Managing Partner, Frontera Hospitality Group; and President, DOM Capital Group
Pat Riley
Chief Executive Officer, GAN
Alex Castrounis
Founder and CEO, Why of AI and InnoArchiTech
Anna Sullivan
Founder & CEO, The Creative Exchange
Jared Cohen
Chief Operating Officer, Protein Bar & Kitchen