Meet United States's 101 Top Founders in the Retail Space

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At Best Startup US we track over 1,000,000 US startups and over 3 million people who hold key positions in these companies. We use this directory of startups to highlight top employees, founders and board members we think deserve more appreciation than they are currently getting.

This list showcases the top United States based Founder operating in the Retail space. If you think a Founder is missing from this list, feel free to contact our editor on editor@beststartup.us.

The individuals on this list have been included because of exceptional performance in one of the following categories:

Innovation – Operating as a key part in an extremely innovative business or startup.
Growth – Operating as a key figure in the growth and upscale of a market leading business or startup.
Management – Showing exceptional management skills.
Societal impact – Putting their business on the map for their positive societal or environmental impact.

Our Data – We source our data from OSINT (open source intelligence) and public directories such as Crunchbase, SemRush and many more. The data from these sources should be treated with a degree of caution and verified yourself.

Ralf Wenzel

Founder and CEO of JOKR

Ralf Wenzel is the Berlin- and New York-based founder and CEO of JOKR, the global platform for instant grocery and retail delivery at a hyper-local scale. Email Johrenk7@gmail.com Ralf has an almost 20-year track record of building companies up from scratch, bringing their products to consumers globally, and leading diverse teams. Prior to founding JOKR, he built three companies, including foodpanda, one of the world’s most successful food delivery businesses across 40 countries, which he later merged with Delivery Hero and led through an initial public offering. He also built Skrill, the first e-wallet and leading online payments company in Europe, and Tocororo Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm. Ralf previously operated his businesses with a focus on emerging markets, particularly in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. He has also served as Managing Partner at Softbank. Wenzel holds a degree in computer science from Berlin University.

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About JOKR, SoftBank: JOKR is a grocery and delivery platform that provides hyper-local product delivery services.

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Neil Blumenthal

Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Warby Parker

Neil Blumenthal is a co-founder and co-CEO of Warby Parker, a transformative lifestyle brand that offers designer eyewear at a revolutionary price, while leading the way for socially-conscious businesses. Prior to launching Warby Parker in 2010, Neil served as Director of VisionSpring, a non-profit social enterprise that trains low-income women to start their own businesses selling affordable eyeglasses to individuals living on less than $4 per day in developing countries. In 2005, Neil was named a Fellow for Emerging Leaders in Public Service at NYU Robert F. Wagner School for Public Service. In 2012, he was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum and one of the 100 Most Creative People in Business by Fast Company. In 2013, he became a member of the United Nations’ Global Entrepreneurs Council and was named one of Crain’s “40 Under Forty”. In 2013, he received an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award. Neil serves on the board of RxArt and on the United Nations Global Entrepreneurs Council. A native of New York City, Neil received his BA from Tufts University and his MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he was both a Social Enterprise Fellow and a Leadership Fellow. Neil lives in Greenwich Village with his wife Rachel Leigh, the founder of Cricket’s Circle.

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About Warby Parker: Warby Parker is a lifestyle brand that offers designer eyewear while being a socially conscious business.

David Gilboa

Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Warby Parker

Dave Gilboa is the co-founder and co-CEO of Warby Parker, a transformative lifestyle brand offering designer eyewear at a revolutionary price while leading the way for socially conscious businesses. In 2015, Fast Company named Warby Parker the most innovative company in the world. Prior to Warby Parker, Dave worked at merchant bank Allen & Company and Bain & Company. Dave has worked extensively with non-profit organizations, and serves as a founding member of the Entrepreneur Board of Venture for America, an organization dedicated to mobilizing graduates as entrepreneurs in low-cost cities. He is a member of the Aspen Institute’s 2014 Henry Crown Fellowship class and the Aspen Global Leadership Network, received the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award, and was recognized as part of “The Next Establishment” by Vanity Fair. Born in Sweden and raised in San Diego, Dave graduated with a BS in Bioengineering with Honors from UC Berkeley and holds an MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. With the ultimate goal of making safe, routine vision tests more accessible and convenient for the millions of adults who wear prescription glasses, Warby Parker introduced Prescription Check in 2017, a mobile refraction service designed in-house that, if you are eligible, allows an eye doctor to assess your vision and provide an updated prescription within 24 hours.

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About Warby Parker: Warby Parker is a lifestyle brand that offers designer eyewear while being a socially conscious business.

Katrina Lake

Founder and CEO of Stitch Fix

Katrina is passionate about helping women achieve everyday confidence. She founded Stitch Fix to help women everywhere discover and explore their style through a truly client-focused shopping experience. Prior to founding Stitch Fix, Katrina developed extensive experience at the intersection of fashion, retail, and technology. She managed the blogger platform at venture-backed social commerce company Polyvore and consulted with a variety of e-commerce and traditional retailers during her time at The Parthenon Group. Additionally, she has invested in and worked with dozens of entrepreneurs and start-ups at Leader Ventures. Katrina holds a B.S. in Economics from Stanford University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

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About Grubhub, Stitch Fix: Stitch Fix is a personal styling platform that delivers curated and personalized apparel and accessory items for women.

Jack Dorsey

Co-Founder & CEO of Square

Jack Dorsey is the Co-Founder & CEO of Twitter Ventures

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About Cash App, Square, Twitter Ventures: Block is a merchant services aggregator and mobile payment company that aims to simplify commerce through technology.

Jojo Flores

Co-Founder & Vice President of Operations of Plug and Play Tech Center

Jojo is currently involved in the overall strategic planning and prioritizing of Plug and Play. Jojo’s immediate focus is on building strategic alliances in the Philippines and other reigns of South East Asia.

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About Launchgarage, Plug & Play, Plug and Play Brand & Retail, Plug and Play Tech Center: Plug and Play is an innovation platform bringing together startups and large corporations.

Wade Bitaraf

Founder and Director of Plug and Play Energy & Sustainability of Plug and Play Tech Center

Wade is the head of Energy & Sustainability practice at Plug and Play, an active early stage investor and global corporate innovation center. Wade holds master degrees in Chemical Engineering and Petroleum and Natural Gas engineering. His mission at Plug and Play is to bring innovation into the energy industry by bridging large corporations to the startup ecosystem. In the past 3 years, Wade has worked closely with the entrepreneurs that are building innovative products and solutions for the electric Utilities and Oil and Gas companies.

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About Plug and Play Tech Center: Plug and Play is an innovation platform bringing together startups and large corporations.

Saeed Amidi

CEO and Founder of Plug and Play Brand & Retail

Saeed has been a technology investor since 1996 and co-founded Amidzad with Pejman and Rahim in 1999. He is a serial entrepreneur and a seasoned executive with over 25 years of experience in founding, operating, and growing successful companies. He has been closely involved with more than twenty new emerging growth companies, of which 2 became public companies (PayPal (acquired by eBay) and Preview Systems). His investment includes Paypal ( acquired by eBay), Preview systems, Lending Club, Zoosk, Flipora, Affinity Circles, Techdirt, Sigmaquest, Scanscout, NextBio, Webs to name a few. Saeed co-founded the Amidi Group in 1980, a conglomerate of privately-held business enterprises consisting of several domestic and international entities with significant manufacturing, distribution, trading, retail, and real estate holdings. For the past 25 years, he has chaired and spearheaded the operations and management of a number of the Amidi Group entities, growing the aggregate value of its assets under management to over $250m. Saeed is an active member of the technology community and a frequent contributor to numerous charitable foundations. He is also an active member of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO), a world-class network of Fortune 500 CEOs, accomplished serial entrepreneurs, and veteran financial executives.

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About Amidzad Partners, Augmented Pixels, Mobilbank, Plug & Play, Plug and Play Brand & Retail, Plug and Play Spain, Plug and Play Tech Center, Young Presidents Organization (YPO): Solving the biggest problems top brands, retailers, and industry players face today.

Steven Yang

Founder & CEO of Anker

Steven Yang is the Founder and CEO of Anker Innovations. He holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Peking University and a master’s in computer science from the University of Texas – Austin. He was a senior engineer at Google in California before leaving to found Anker in 2011.

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About Anker, Hunan Ocean Wing: Anker is a multinational team of techies that provides a range of products from batteries and chargers to hubs and readers, and more.

Davis Smith

Founder & CEO of Cotopaxi

Davis is the CEO of Cotopaxi, an outdoor gear brand with a social mission at its core. Davis was named CEO of the Year 2016 by Silicon Valley Community Foundation and is a member of the United Nations Foundation’s Global Entrepreneurs Council. He was previously the Co-CEO of Baby.com.br and Dinda.com.br, Brazil’s Startup of the Year in 2012, which raised over $40M in venture capital. In 2004, he also founded, and later sold, PoolTables.com, America’s largest pool table retailer. Davis holds an MBA from the Wharton School, an MA in International Studies from the University of Pennsylvania’s Lauder Institute, and a BA from Brigham Young University.

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About Cotopaxi: Cotopaxi is an outdoor brand with a humanitarian mission at its core.

Stephan Jacob

Founder & COO of Cotopaxi

Stephan Jacob has been serving as Chief Operating Officer at Cotopaxi since November 2013.

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About Cotopaxi: Cotopaxi is an outdoor brand with a humanitarian mission at its core.

Richard Balot

Founder & Executive Chairman of Victra

Rich Balot joined Victra as Chief Executive Officer in 2019.

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About FastLending, Victra, Victra: Victra an exclusive premium retailer for Verizon that connects technology to life in the most trustworthy, fun, and profitable way.

Andy Ruben

Founder & CEO of Trove

Andy Ruben is the CEO and Founder of Trove. The world’s most innovative brands trust Trove to run their resale platforms. Andy left his executive role at Walmart to pursue his dream of building the next generation of retail. Andy was hired by Walmart to work with the Board of Directors and build a strategy department for Walmart. He led a number of transformational efforts over his tenure, including launching Walmart’s heralded sustainability effort, re-imagining Walmart’s $20 Billion private brands business, and integrating online and stores.

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About Trove: Trove builds white-label technology and end-to-end operations that power circular shopping for premium and luxury brands.

Ryan Rafols

Founder & CEO of Newchip

Engineer, army veteran, and founder of 3 startups. Ryan graduated at 15, founded his first startup at 17 and has 10+ years experience building international teams, 7+ years in public and private sector fundraising, corporate boards, working with regulators and lobbying.

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About Astralabs, Newchip: Newchip is a global Remote Startup Accelerator.

Michael Amar

Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Ifeelgoods

Seasoned entrepreneur with solid experience in global alliances, business development, executive management, channel development and organizational leadership. Business expertise across the worldwide marketplace including US, France, Israel, and Japan. Prior to founding Ifeelgoods, Michael founded and successfully sold DAOODA, a thriving ad network in the EU, and AGORAD, which was the number one independent French media company at the time he sold it in 2007. As CEO of Ifeelgoods, a U.S company he started in 2010, Michael is leveraging his leadership, experience and insights in e-commerce and online advertising to disrupt the promotion, advertising and loyalty industries. Michael is an Operating Partner at Cathay Innovation, a VC fund based in China, US and Europe, a Board Member of StationF – the largest incubator in the world – and Ambassador for La French Tech in San Francisco. Michael is a graduate of Institut Superieur de Gestion business school. Michael lives with his family in Palo Alto, California.

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About Chain Accelerator, Ifeelgoods, Paris Blockchain Week Summit: Ifeelgoods is a digital promotions platform helping marketers incent, convert and reward their audiences with desirable gifts in real-time.

Jeffrey Kolovson

Co-Founder and COO of Faire

Jeffrey Kolovson is the co-founder and COO of Faire.

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About Faire: Faire is a company that helps retailers find and buy wholesale merchandise for their stores.

Marcelo Cortes

Co-Founder & CTO of Faire

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About Faire: Faire is a company that helps retailers find and buy wholesale merchandise for their stores.

Max Rhodes

Co-Founder and CEO of Faire

Prior to starting Faire, Max was the first product manager for several key initiatives at Square, including Square Capital ($1Bn+ deployed) and Square Cash (Square’s only Top 50-ranked app in the iOS App Store). He first came up with the idea for Faire while introducing the Blunt Umbrella to the United States.

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About Faire: Faire is a company that helps retailers find and buy wholesale merchandise for their stores.

Daniele Perito

Co-Founder and Chief Data Officer of Faire

Prior to starting Faire, Daniele led Risk and Security for Square Cash, where he designed and implemented the anti-abuse and anti-fraud systems that have made Cash possible. He holds a PhD in Computer Science with a focus on security and machine learning.

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About Faire: Faire is a company that helps retailers find and buy wholesale merchandise for their stores.

Sara Blakely

Founder of Spanx

Sara Blakely is an American billionaire businesswoman, and founder of Spanx, an American intimate apparel company with pants and leggings, founded in Atlanta, Georgia. In 2012, Blakely was named in Time magazine’s “Time 100” annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. As of 2014, she is listed as the 93rd most powerful woman in the world by Forbes.

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About Spanx: Spanx is an apparel brand that designs and manufactures women’s undergarments and underwire accessories.

Martin Gedalin

Founder & Partner of Lumia Capital

Martin is Founder of Lumia Capital, an expansion-stage VC partnering with leading tech companies in under-invested emerging markets and forward-thinking US companies targeting these markets to accelerate growth. Previously, Martin was one of five investment professionals at Focus Ventures, a technology-focused venture capital firm in Palo Alto with ~$850M under management and ~110 expansion-stage investments across three funds. Prior to Focus, Martin was a Product Manager at Oracle Corp., where he was responsible for core components of Fusion CRM, Oracle’s next generation CRM strategy, and a $1B+ product line. Prior to these roles, Martin was a management consultant for both Siebel Systems (Customer Strategy Team) and, post acquisition, Oracle (Insight Group), where he provided strategic recommendations across people, process and technology domains to Oracle/Siebel’s top global customers. Martin began his career in Corporate Strategy at NCR Corporation. Personally, Martin is also an adviser to a number of private companies and funds.

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About Lumia Capital: Expansion-stage VC firm partnering with forward-thinking US and European innovators expanding internationally for breakout growth.

Tobin Moore

CEO & Co-Founder of Optoro

Tobin Moore is the Co – Founder & CEO of Optoro.Tobin co-founded Optoro in 2008 after discovering the little-known world of reverse logistics. Rather than dismissing this as a black hole of resources or even a liability, Moore had a mission to efficiently connect the excess inventory of retailers and distributors with the millions of online discount shoppers regularly looking for such items worldwide. He has led Optoro since inception, overseeing its expansion from a regional service provider to a major industry player with a goal to revolutionize the world of reverse logistics. Moore’s vision for a plug-and-play software solution to make excess goods efficiently and effectively leap from warehouses directly to every major online marketplace simultaneously became Optoro. Moore started Optoro’s predecessor, eSpot, during his senior year in college in 2004. This early foray into the world of asset management manifested itself as an online reseller’s dream that helped small businesses and individuals sell their unwanted valuables throughout the Washington, DC area. He lead eSpot for 4 years, driving his team to build the proprietary software and marketing infrastructure that would form the foundation of the cutting-edge enterprise solutions offered by Optoro today.payday loans. During Moore’s rare hours away from the office, he can be found mixing it up with his younger colleagues on the soccer field or doing his best Mick Jagger impression in the Karaoke rooms of DC. Tobin holds a B.A. from Brown University with a Double Major in Business Economics and American History.

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About Optoro: Optoro is a technology company that provides a way to liquidate returned, overstock, and damaged-box products.

Adam Vitarello

President / Co-Founder of Optoro

Adam Vitarello is the Co – Founder & COO of Optoro. Adam Vitarello co-founded Optoro in 2008 with Moore after working with him at eSpot, which he joined in 2005 as CTO and COO. While at eSpot, Vitarello meticulously designed, programmed, and implemented every feature of the proprietary software, systems and marketing algorithms that put eSpot at the forefront of its industry and created the core for Optoro’s software today. He provides an eye for streamlining the reverse logistics process and an uncompromising attitude always demanding excellence. Vitarello has been responsible for Major Design Elements and Implementation Strategies of Optoro’s proprietary software and systems. As COO, he manages Corporate Headquarters and Remarketing Solutions with a one-on-one approach that puts employees first with the goal of maintaining a small-business feel in a rapidly expanding environment. Vitarello utilizes that same personal interaction strategy with clients and partners in advancing the automation and remarketing technologies that serve as the driving force of Optoro’s service. When he’s not pulling all the strings for Optoro and our partners, he can be found training for marathons, triathlons, or mountain climbing. Even atop Mt. Kilimanjaro, reverse logistics is never far from his thoughts. Adam holds a B.A. from Brown University.

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About Optoro: Optoro is a technology company that provides a way to liquidate returned, overstock, and damaged-box products.

Melanie Travis

Co-Founder and CEO of Andie

Melanie Travis is a Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Andie.

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About Andie: Andie is a designer and manufacturer of one-piece women’s swimsuits and sells them to consumers through its e-commerce platform.

Jonathan Um

Co-Founder, COO of Hollar

Co-Founder & COO at Hollar.

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About Hollar: Hollar is an online dollar store that features toys, apparel, electronics, beauty, accessories, party supplies, to home essentials.

Eddie Rhyu

Co-Founder, Chief Creative Officer of Hollar

Co-Founder & Chief Creative Officer at Hollar.

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About Hollar: Hollar is an online dollar store that features toys, apparel, electronics, beauty, accessories, party supplies, to home essentials.

William Thayer

Co-Founder, CEO of Fillogic

William Thayer is the Co-Founder and CEO at Fillogic. Bill is a veteran in the worlds of retail, eCommerce, and logistics, with 25+ years at major retailers like Macy’s and Loehmann’s in C-level leadership positions. Bill is an advisor to large companies like Macy’s, Barney’s, Hearst, Century 21, and SDI Systems. He supports startups like University Beyond and Cargomatic, where he is an investor.

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About Arteria Network, Fillogic: Fillogic is a New York-based technology company that provides retail and logistics services.

Rob Caucci

Co-Founder, President of Fillogic

Rob Caucci is the Co-Founder and President at Fillogic.

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About Arteria Network, Fillogic, Pijon, SpaceSplitter: Fillogic is a New York-based technology company that provides retail and logistics services.

Jaxon Klein

CEO, Co-Founder of Keyo

Jaxon Klein is an American businessman, entrepreneur, investor and startup advisor. Klein is currently CEO of Keyo, Inc., where he is a co-founder and former CTO. Prior to his role at Keyo, Klein founded two companies in hosting technology and web services.

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About Keyo: We place people’s identities in the palm of their hands.

Cayetana Polanco

Co-Founder and Chief Brand Officer of Keyo

Cayetana Polanco is the co-founder and chief brand officer at Keyo. Prior to co-founding Keyo, Cayetana was the co-founder and COO of Invento Media. She was also the co-founder and COO of Reneweb Hosting Services. Cayetana holds a bachelor of applied science (B.A.Sc.) in public health from Beloit College.

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About Keyo: We place people’s identities in the palm of their hands.

James McCann

Founder of 1-800-FLOWERS

Jim McCann is a highly successful entrepreneur whose vision and energy have helped grow 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, the company he founded in 1976, into the world’s leading florist and gift company. McCann’s focus on customer relationships and his willingness to embrace new technologies and business channels helped change the way flowers and other gifts are marketed for birthdays, anniversaries, holidays and special occasions. McCann recognized early on the enormous potential in providing on-the-go consumers with the ability to express themselves and connect with the important people in their lives through top quality floral gifts combined with exemplary, personal service. McCann has also consistently managed to stay ahead of the curve in multi-channel retailing by embracing new technologies, such as 800 phone numbers and the Internet, often long before other retailers recognized the opportunities that these developments would provide both for business and consumers. In addition to being the first company to have its 800-telephone number as its name – a marketing insight that helped solidify the brand in consumer’s minds – McCann was a pioneer in online retailing – seizing the enormous reach of the Internet as early as 1991. Utilizing thorough knowledge of his customer base and market, McCann focused on expanding brand name awareness and instilling a sense of trust and convenience. McCann’s strategy for growth includes an effective combination of birthing new businesses and making acquisitions of businesses and brands that resonate with customers as great sources for exceptional gifts. One such new business is the BloomNet® wire service which provides retail florists with diverse resources such as website hosting, a comprehensive technology platform for retail store management and the industry’s first and only online digital floral directory. On the acquisition front, McCann has expanded his company’s gift offerings, and become a leading player in the Gourmet Food and Gift Baskets business, by acquiring such iconic brands as: Fannie May®, makers of gourmet chocolate and other confections; Cheryl&Co.®, creators of individually-wrapped fresh baked cookies, brownies and cakes; and The Popcorn Factory®, which offers gourmet popcorn and other snacks in exclusively designed collectible tins. McCann attributes much of his success to the lessons he learned in his first career, in the social services. At St. John’s Home for Boys in Rockaway, New York, McCann recalls, he helped underprivileged youths learn how to overcome the many challenges of their environment. His experiences greatly influenced his management style and prepared him to lead 1-800-FLOWERS.COM toward becoming one of the world’s most successful multi-channel retailers. McCann is a published author and award winning public speaker as well as a frequent guest on radio and television programs nationwide. In addition to serving as Chairman of the Board of Directors for 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, McCann is a member of the Board of Directors of Willis Group Holdings Limited and Gruppo Lottomatica.

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About 1-800-FLOWERS: 1-800-FLOWERS.COM is a floral and gift retailer offering fresh flowers, plants, gift baskets, gourmet foods, balloons and plush toys.

Jack McCollough

Co-Founder and Designer of Proenza Schouler

Jack McCollough is a Co-Founder and Designer at Proenza Schouler.

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About Proenza Schouler: Proenza Schouler is a designer and manufacturer of women’s wear and accessories in the U.S.

Lazaro Hernandez

Co-Founder and Designer of Proenza Schouler

Lazaro Hernandez is a Co-Founder and Designer at Proenza Schouler.

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About Proenza Schouler: Proenza Schouler is a designer and manufacturer of women’s wear and accessories in the U.S.

Arthur Veytsman

Co-Founder/CEO of Immerss

Co-Founder of Immerss.

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About Immerss: Anchored around live video, Immerss offers a suite of engagement and monetization tools designed for D2C brands.

Tom Shannon

Founder, President & CEO of Bowlmor AMF

CEO Tom Shannon joined Gregg Greenberg of “The Street” to discuss millennials, expansion, and making bowling cool again. “It’s going to be an iconic ad campaign because it’s fresh, unique and legitimate,” said Shannon regarding Bowlmor AMF’s highly-anticipated new ad campaign featuring elite bowler Jason Belmonte.

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About Bowlmor AMF: Bowlmor AMF in bowling and entertainment in North America.

Jennifer Hyman

Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Rent the Runway

Jennifer Hyman is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Rent the Runway, a fashion company with a technology soul that is disrupting the way women get dressed. In her role, she sets the strategic priorities of the business and leads the company in growing all areas of the business, including marketing, technology, product, and analytics. She co-founded Rent the Runway in 2009 with Jennifer Fleiss, and has since raised $126 million in venture capital, growing the business to over 6 million members, 950 employees and 400 designer brands. Jennifer has been honored with numerous recognitions including: Forbes’ “Women Entrepreneurs to Watch”, TriBeCa Film Festival’s “Disruptive Innovation Awards”, Fortune Magazine’s “Trailblazers, 11 People Changing Business in 2013,” “Most Powerful Women Entrepreneurs,” and “40 Under 40”; Inc. Magazine’s “30 Under 30”; and Fast Company’s “Most Influential Women in Technology.” She has been a featured speaker at Fortune Brainstorm Tech, the Forbes Women’s Summit, Tech Crunch Disrupt, and Marie Claire’s Power Trip, and has appeared as a guest on NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, and CNN Money, among many others. In 2015, Jennifer launched the Rent the Runway Foundation with Jennifer Fleiss to inspire and ignite the next generation of female entrepreneurs. The foundation’s first initiative, in partnership with UBS, is Project Entrepreneur, a venture competition and educational program designed to provide women entrepreneurs nationwide with the tools to build high-growth, high-impact businesses. Prior to Rent the Runway, Jennifer was the Director of Business Development at IMG where she focused on the creation of new media businesses for IMG’s Fashion Division. She also ran an online advertising sales team at WeddingChannel.com and was an in-house entrepreneur at Starwood Hotels, creating Starwood’s first wedding business which was recognized on the Oprah Winfrey Show for its innovation. She received her BA from Harvard University and MBA from Harvard Business School. Jennifer is a Bloomberg Fellow, a TechStars mentor, and a member of both the Entrepreneurship Board at the Fashion Institute of Technology and the Women in Business Board at Harvard University. She is an investor in and advisor to several high-growth startups throughout the U.S.

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About Brit + Co, Rent the Runway, Zalando: Rent the Runway is an online e-commerce website that allows women to rent designer apparel and accessories.

Jennifer Fleiss

Co-Founder of Rent the Runway

Jennifer Fleiss is the President and co-founder of Rent the Runway, the premier online destination for designer dress and accessory rentals. Jenny and her co-founder, Jennifer Hyman, have built the company to include a revolving roster of over 150 designer brands, 25,000 dresses, 120 employees, and over 2 million members. The company has raised approximately $31 million in venture capital funding from Bain Capital Ventures, Highland Capital, and Kleiner Perkins. In 2007, Jenny began at Harvard Business School where she met Jennifer Hyman. As sectionmates, the two women would meet frequently to discuss entrepreneurial ideas, one of which was Rent the Runway. Designed to solve the common “closet full of clothes but nothing to wear” problem, Jenn and Jenny launched Rent the Runway in November 2009. Prior to Harvard Business School, Jenny worked at Morgan Stanley in the Strategic Planning Group crafting long-term company strategy. She then moved on to Lehman Brothers’ Asset Management Group where she was responsible for analyzing business growth opportunities through acquisitions, international expansion, and new product strategies. Jenny received her Bachelor of Arts from Yale University in 2005 graduating Cum Laude, and her Master’s of Business Administration from Harvard Business School in 2009.

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About Rent the Runway, Volition Capital: Rent the Runway is an online e-commerce website that allows women to rent designer apparel and accessories.

Nevin Freeman

Co-Founder of Reserve

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About Reserve: Reserve is a universal store of value.

Michael Waxman

Co-Founder & CEO of Sundays for Dogs

Michael was born and raised outside of Cleveland, Ohio, and went to college at Yale. He dropped out after his freshmen year to start a tech company, but returned later and graduated. He now lvies in New York City. Michael has built Grouper (a social club), Biography (“life-graphing”), Qomments (a comments system based on Q&A), Paper Buff (a social news reader), and QNA (a mini Quora for your website).

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About Grouper, Sundays for Dogs: Sundays for Dogs engages in the online retail of dog foods that are made by an air-drying method.

Kevin Lavelle

Founder & Chairman of the Board of Mizzen+Main

Kevin Lavelle is the founder and CEO of Mizzen+Main, an innovative company transforming the landscape of the apparel industry by introducing advanced performance fabrics to traditional menswear. Mizzen+Main has changed the way men approach this staple of their wardrobe, creating a shirt that is moisture wicking and wrinkle-free, has four-way stretch, and requires no ironing or dry cleaning. Lavelle launched the company in July 2012 to create the next great American brand. The shirt has quickly become a favorite among a variety of customers with a strong adoption among professional athletes. Mizzen+Main is carried in 300 retail locations in addition to its rapidly expanding e-commerce presence. Prior to founding Mizzen+Main, Lavelle worked at the venture-capital group of the Hunt Consolidated focusing on emerging energy technologies. Prior to that, Lavelle worked for international consulting firm Oliver Wyman in the Middle East and the U.S. Lavelle graduated summa cum laude from Southern Methodist University with a BS in engineering. In 2016, Lavelle was named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year and Southern Methodist University’s Distinguished Alumni Emerging Leader recipient. Lavelle lives in Dallas with his wife and business partner, Jen, Mizzen+Main’s CMO, and their son, Jack.

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About Mizzen+Main: Mizzen+Main creates a next great American brand and bring innovation to classic menswear.

John Reed

Co-Founder and Chairman of Arhaus

John Reed co-founded Arhaus, LLC and served as its Chief Executive Officer. He also serves as Chairman of Arhaus, LLC.

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About Arhaus: Arhaus is a premiere retail chain that designs, manufactures, and sells home furnishings both at retail locations and online.

Diishan Imira

Founder & CEO of Mayvenn

Diishan Imira is the founder and CEO of Mayvenn, a technology company that re-shapes how sale retail products are distributed. Graduating from Georgia State’s business school in 2010, Imira has a vast background in international trade, logistics, and investment. Straight out of college, Imira lived in China for two years and built a successful import/export company, running it profitably for about four years. Imira has lived and worked in several countries, including China, France, Brazil, and Ethiopia. Imira also speaks conversational Mandarin. Imira founded Mayvenn in 2012 with co-founder Taylor Wang. The company empowers the 95 percent of African American salons that do not retail products. Their commerce solution eliminates a salon’s inventory cost and opens a new revenue stream for their business. In April 2013, Mayvenn was accepted into the 500 Startups accelerator program. When they got to the program, other entrepreneurs were confused — questioning the probable success of the startup in Silicon Valley. It was unlike anything they had seen before. But that was only half the battle for the startup geared predominantly towards black consumers. During the summer of 2013, Imira and Wang stayed in Mountain View, Calif. where they immersed themselves into the cut-throat culture of the Valley and introduced their product to several investors. By August, they had raised $750,000 in investment funding and in October 2013, Mayvenn was officially launched. As of 2015, the company had raised $3 million in venture capital funding and has a network of over 25,000 stylists. With the continued mission to involve hair stylists in the process of buying and selling products, Imira and Wang’s goal is to eventually expand Mayvenn into an online platform that sells not only hair extensions but other hair care products, as well.

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About Mayvenn: Mayvenn enables Stylists to sell products directly to their clients without the upfront costs and burdens of holding inventory.

Taylor Wang

Founder & COO of Mayvenn

Taylor Wang is Founder at Mayvenn.

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About Groop Swoop, Mayvenn: Mayvenn enables Stylists to sell products directly to their clients without the upfront costs and burdens of holding inventory.

Don Kingsborough

CEO&Founder of OneMarket

Don has been a serial entrepreneur for 30+ years and is Managing Director GM/VP Payments & Ventures at Capital One. He was formerly Head of Retail at PayPal, CEO of Worlds of Wonder and President of Atari. He was also the Founder and former CEO of Blackhawk Network. Don lives in Silicon Valley and likes to vacation in Hawaii.

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About OneMarket: OneMarket offers customer data management and activation that empowers mid-sized and emerging retailers to acquire new customers.

Sam Walton

Founder & Admin of Walmart

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About Sam’s Club, Walmart, Walmart Canada: Walmart is a multinational retail corporation that operates several chains of discount department and warehouse stores.

Elias Guerra

Founder & CEO of Popwallet

Elias is the Founder and CEO of Popwallet, a mobile wallet marketing automation platform.

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About Popwallet: Mobile Wallet Marketing Automation and CX

Wes Biggs

Founder & CTO of Popwallet

Wes Biggs is the founder and CTO of Popwallet.

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About Popwallet: Mobile Wallet Marketing Automation and CX

Don Thompson

Founder and CEO of Cleveland Avenue

As President and Chief Executive Officer of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD), Don Thompson leads the world’s largest foodservice company. McDonald’s serves 70 million customers everyday in more than 100 countries and employs 1.8 million people across the globe in corporate and restaurant positions. During his 23 years at McDonald’s, Thompson has helped drive business results and global strategic innovation across the organization. Since joining as an electrical engineer in 1990, he has held a variety of key leadership positions within the company including Regional Vice President, Division President and Chief Operating Officer. Between 2006 and 2010, Thompson served as President of McDonald’s USA, the company’s largest business segment. Most recently as President and COO of McDonald’s Corporation, Thompson and his leadership team established three global growth priorities in support of the McDonald’s Plan to Win: to optimize the menu, modernize the customer experience and broaden restaurant accessibility. In July 2012, Thompson became President and CEO and is leading the company on its mission to become “our customers’ favorite place and way to eat and drink.” A true advocate of collaboration and believer in the strength of the McDonald’s three legged stool, Thompson and his leadership team work closely with the 5,000 independent owner/operators, corporate staff and restaurant employees around the world as well as countless McDonald’s suppliers. A leader in the business community, Don serves on the Board of Directors for McDonald’s Corporation, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Catalyst, Northwestern Memorial Hospital and Purdue University. Thompson also serves as a member of the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club, The Economic Club, World Business Chicago and the Brazier Foundation. Thompson has been recognized for his leadership and passion by the Illinois Holocaust Museum (2012 Humanitarian Award), the Executive Leadership Council (2010 Corporate Award), the Trumpet Foundation (2008 Corporate Executive Award), and Black Enterprise (2007 Corporate Executive of the Year). Thompson received a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University and an honorary Doctorate in Science degree from Excelsior College. Thompson resides in the Chicagoland area with his wife and two children.

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About Cleveland Avenue: Cleveland Avenue is a Chicago-based venture fund and accelerator that invests in food, beverage, and tech businesses.

Donald Thompson

CEO and Founder of Cleveland Avenue

Don celebrates people and drives results. His 25-year ascension through the ranks of McDonald’s Corporation to become its President and CEO is one of the most respected career trajectories in corporate America. An electrical engineer by education and trade, Don approached his leadership of the world’s largest restaurant chain in a strategically methodical manner, while still embracing the warmth and enthusiasm of the dynamic teams around the world. He’s a heart leader with a head for serious business, as evidenced by his achievements such as developing the global platforms for the company’s beverages, sustainability and digital initiatives. In 2015, Don left McDonald’s to form Cleveland Avenue, LLC, bringing together his vast restaurant expertise and engineering experience with his passion for innovation, digital trends and startup concepts. Don leads the CA team in bringing creative and consumer-focused restaurant, food and beverage ideas to reality. Don is committed to mentoring others, fueled by his foundation in faith, family and community. Not to be outdone by the culinary geniuses he regularly encounters, Don occasionally dons a chef’s hat of his own, and enjoys cooking for family and friends.

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About Cleveland Avenue: Cleveland Avenue is a Chicago-based venture fund and accelerator that invests in food, beverage, and tech businesses.

Shawn Dougherty

Founder, CEO of EXOIO

Shawn co-founded mophie in June 2005, just prior to the release of the first iPhone. It grew to become the #1 selling battery case manufacturer for mobile devices in North America. Working as a founder, COO, President & Board Member, mophie created the first juice pack battery case for the first-generation iPhone in North America and built an exclusive partnership with Apple. I led a team which built a solid business structure at mophie, allowing the company to thrive and withstand rapid growth, both in the U.S. and internationally. Shawn became a skilled operator and raised millions of dollars in multiple rounds of capital and debt facilities. Under Shawn’s guidance and strategic vision, the company grew from 3 employees in her barn in Kalamazoo, Michigan to a multimillion dollar business, mophie sold products into 38,000 retailer partners in 130 countries with 300+ employees with facilities in California, Michigan, China, Hong Kong and Amsterdam. As a leader, I established longstanding relationships with national and global retail partnerships and collaborations with top industry icons including Apple, Amazon, Verizon, AT&T, Best Buy, Product Red, Valentino, and Supreme. I am passionate about developing products and growing a business from the ground up was one of the most challenging yet satisfying experience of my life. By 2015, mophie revenue has reached $250+ million, and resulted in company being sold in February of 2016 to a strategic acquirer. Shawn was also a seed investor, Board Member, and Co-founder of Paw Paw Brewing company in Paw Paw, Michigan. The company was originated in 2010 and Shawn exited in March 2017. Since the sale of mophie Shawn has catching her breath, tending to personal relationships, and has also started a new company called EXOIO that allows her to spend time networking, consulting, and acting as an advisor to company of all sizes.

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About EXOIO: We help accelerate growth.

Greg Fleishman

Co-Founder & CEO + Board Member of Foodstirs

Greg Fleishman is the Co-Founder and CEO at Foodstirs.

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About Fata & Fleishman Mentorship, Foodstirs, Modern Alkeme, Purely Righteous Brands LLC, Springdale Ventures: Foodstirs is an omni-channel junk-free baking brand that helps people connect through the power of better-for-you sweet baked goods.

Sarah Michelle Gellar

Co-Founder & Chief Creative Officer of Foodstirs

Sarah Michelle Prinze (née Gellar; born April 14, 1977) is an American actress, producer, and entrepreneur. After being spotted by an agent at the age of four in New York City, she made her acting debut in the made-for-TV movie An Invasion of Privacy (1983). Gellar went on to make several guest appearances in television series, and play small roles in films such as Funny Farm (1988). Her first leading part was in the 1992 miniseries Swans Crossing, for which she was nominated for two Young Artist Awards. Gellar’s television breakthrough came in 1993 when she originated the role of Kendall Hart on the ABC daytime soap opera All My Children, winning the 1995 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series. Gellar received widespread recognition for her portrayal of Buffy Summers on the WB series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003), which earned her five Teen Choice Awards, a Saturn Award and a Golden Globe Award nomination. The character was widely popular during the airing of the show and became recognized as one of the 100 greatest female characters in U.S. television. Gellar also gained significant attention for her appearances in the slasher movies I Know What You Did Last Summer and Scream 2 (1997), and for her portrayal of Kathryn Merteuil in Cruel Intentions (1999). She appeared as Daphne Blake in Scooby-Doo (2002), her biggest live-action commercial success. In 2004, Gellar starred in the sequel Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed and the horror remake The Grudge, both of which grossed more than US$180 million worldwide. She subsequently appeared in smaller scale movies such as The Return (2006) and Southland Tales (2007) and provided her voice for TMNT (2007). Her later film credits include The Air I Breathe (2008), Possession (2009) and Veronika Decides to Die (2009). She headlined the short-lived television series Ringer (2011–2012) and The Crazy Ones (2013–2014), which co-starred Robin Williams. In 2015, she joined the cast of the animated series Star Wars Rebels for season two. In October 2015, Gellar co-founded Foodstirs with entrepreneurs Galit Laibow and Greg Fleishman. Foodstirs is a startup food crafting brand selling via e-commerce and retail easy to make organic baking mixes and kits for families. By the beginning of 2017, Foodstirs products were available in about 400 stores; by the end of the year a surge of interest from retailers increased its distribution to 8,000 stores. In 2018, the brand entered into a deal with Starbucks to carry Foodstirs mug cake mixes across 8,000 of its stores.

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About Foodstirs: Foodstirs is an omni-channel junk-free baking brand that helps people connect through the power of better-for-you sweet baked goods.

Neha Singh

Founder & CEO of Obsess

Neha Singh is the Founder & CEO of Obsess, a platform for Immersive Mobile Commerce.

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About Obsess: Obsess is a platform for immersive mobile commerce.

Leonard Green

Founder of Leonard Green & Partners

Leonard Green & Partners, L.P. was founded in 1989 by Leonard I. Green. Leonard was a pioneer in the development of the leveraged buyout industry. In 1969, Leonard and two partners established Gibbons, Green van Amerongen (GGvA), one of the first New York-based merchant banking firms whose sole activity was management-led, non-hostile leveraged buyouts. In 1981, Leonard opened GGvA’s Los Angeles office and later that year, helped organize GGvA’s first capital pool that would later serve as a model for our first fund. While at GGvA, Leonard participated in buyouts of 30 firms. Among the transactions he directed were the purchase of Budget Rent-A-Car Corp., Foodmaker, Inc., Horace Mann Educators Corporation, Kash n’ Karry Food Stores, Inc. and Purex Industries. Our founding partner, Leonard I. Green, died in October 2002

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About Leonard Green & Partners: Leonard Green & Partners operates as a private equity firm.

Andy Ellwood

Co-Founder & President of Basket

Andy Ellwood is cofounder and president of Basket, the first ever shopper powered smart shopping list and grocery business intelligence platform. Prior to Basket, Andy ran Business Development for Waze until their acquisition by Google in 2013 and before that, for Gowalla until their acquisition by Facebook in 2011. Andy is also cofounder of Exosphere, a learning and problem solving community headquartered in Catalonia, Spain. Andy is a graduate of Texas A&M University and serves as an officer for the New York Aggies alumni club, most recently as President of the club for the past two years. Andy frequent speaker, contributor, and serves as an advisor to early stage companies around the world. For more of his adventures, follow along on Twitter: @andyellwood.

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About Basket: Basket believes you should never overpay for groceries and is the largest community of Shoppers working together to save time and money.

Tai Lopez

Co-Founder, Chairman of Retail Ecommerce Ventures

Tai Lopez is an investor, partner, or advisor to over 20 multi-million dollar businesses. Through his popular book club and podcasts Tai shares advice on how to achieve health, wealth, love, and happiness with millions of people worldwide. Over the years, Tai sought out the secrets to the “Good Life” by setting up his life as a series of experiments. He began by reading thousands of books from the most impactful figures in history: Freud, Aristotle, Gandhi, Charlie Munger, Sam Walton, Darwin, Confucius, and countless others. He spent two-and-a-half years living with the Amish, worked at a leper colony in India, and helped Joel Salatin pioneer grass-fed, sustainable agriculture on Polyface Farms. He then joined the long list of entrepreneur college dropouts and ended up completely broke (sleeping on his mom’s couch) until he talked five, multi-millionaire entrepreneurs into mentoring him. Tai went on to work in the world of finance before becoming a founder, investor, advisor, or mentor to more than 20 multi-million dollar businesses while settling in the Hollywood Hills. He appeared on various TV and radio shows, spoke at top global universities like The London Business School and the University of Southern California, and created one of the top downloaded podcasts and YouTube channels, “The Grand Theory of Everything.” In order to get feedback from an even larger audience, Tai started what is now one of the world’s largest book clubs that reaches 1.4 million people in 40 countries with his “Book-Of-The-Day” free email newsletter. Tai recently summarized all he has learned from his mentors and compiled them into a series of ‘mentor shortcuts’ he calls, “The 67 Steps.” He also created an alternative to the traditional business school. This “Business Mentorship” program combines the best of self-learning with the best of a University degree without all the downsides of burdensome costs and inefficient methods.

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About Retail Ecommerce Ventures: Retail Ecommerce Ventures create thriving online stores where physical-first operations previously struggled.

Alex Mehr

CEO, Co-Founder of Retail Ecommerce Ventures

Alex Mehr is the co-founder and co-CEO of Zoosk.com.

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About Mentorbox, Retail Ecommerce Ventures, Zoosk: Retail Ecommerce Ventures create thriving online stores where physical-first operations previously struggled.

David S. Shapira

Founder , Chairman & CEO of Giant Eagle

David Shapira is executive chairman of the board of directors of Giant Eagle, Inc. and is president of the David S. and Karen A. Shapira Foundation. In his role at the Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business and College of Business Administration, he is responsible for enhancing ethics and leadership at the school. He is also responsible for engaging with Katz and CBA students across a spectrum of business areas including entrepreneurship, supply chain management, and organizational behavior. During his thirty-plus years as chairman, chief executive officer and president, David Shapira positioned Giant Eagle, Inc. as an industry leader, and grew the company from a local chain of 50 grocery stores to an organization now employing more than 34,000 with more than 420 locations and $9.5 billion in revenue. A Pittsburgh native with an undergraduate degree from Oberlin College and a Master’s Degree in Economics from Stanford University, Mr. Shapira joined Giant Eagle in 1970, a company founded by his grandfather with four others. Today, the same five families own Giant Eagle, and remain actively involved. Named president and CEO in 1980 and Chairman of the Giant Eagle Board of Directors in 1992, David led the company during its peak years of growth and transformation, which included his application of a world-class customer loyalty program with the development of the Giant Eagle Advantage Card and fuelperks!. Mr. Shapira has implemented numerous industry-leading technologies and marketing concepts, including: gift card development and sales, in-store pharmacy and banking, multi-format retailing, and a truck fleet that is being converted to run on compressed natural gas. Since stepping away from day-to-day operations of Giant Eagle in 2013, David has applied the entrepreneurial approach developed at Giant Eagle to the world of philanthropy. Through the Foundation he leads with his wife Cindy, David has led the development of a number of projects that demonstrate real and meaningful positive impact on civic challenges of our day. These entrepreneurial philanthropic ventures include Onward Israel, which transforms young adults through professional summer internships with Israeli businesses and organizations, and the Comprehensive Excellence initiative at Hillel International. David’s civic involvement reflects his and Giant Eagle’s commitment to advancing and investing in the many communities the company and Foundation serve. David has served on numerous corporate and civic boards, including EQT, Mellon Bank, the Allegheny Conference on Community Development and the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance (Past Chairman). David is the Immediate Past Chairman of Carnegie Mellon University’s Board of Trustees, and the current Chairman of Carnegie Mellon’s Investment Committee, as well as a Trustee at Oberlin College, and a Founding Co-Chairman, along with Cindy, of The Pittsburgh Promise Campaign. David’s philanthropic board service has also included the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh (Past Chairman); Jewish Healthcare Foundation (Past Chairman); United Way of Allegheny County (Past Chairman of the Annual Campaign); Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (Past Chairman); Extra Mile Foundation; and Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. David is currently a member of the Hillel Foundation International Board of Governors.

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About Giant Eagle: Giant Eagle is a national supermarket chain with some of their own brands of products.

Stephan Schambach

Founder & Chief Executive Officer of NewStore

Stephan is a serial entrepreneur with a proven track record of creating and growing successful tech companies in the United States and Europe. Under his leadership and vision, he brought Intershop and Demandware to IPOs with multi-billion dollar market caps. As Founder and Chief Executive Officer of NewStore, Stephan is setting out to change the market once again. This time by solving the omnichannel problem facing so many retailers and brands. He has won numerous awards around the world for his technology and entrepreneurial leadership. He is also an investor in several software and green-tech startups.

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About NewStore: NewStore operates a platform for retailers to run their stores on the iPhone.

James Bailey

Founder and Managing Partner of Velos Partners

James Bailey is the Founder and Managing Partner at Velos Partners.

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About Velos Partners: Velos Partners is a consumer growth capital firm investing in retail innovation, health & wellness, and luxury & entertainment.

Nick Dozier

Founder/CEO of ATLAS Technology Group

Nick Dozier started his own small business in 2001 as a fix-break company in Fayetteville. Since then, his business(es) have grown and gone through many changes. from being a one-man army, to hiring multiple people, to selling a branch of his company, to entertaining venture capital, and much more along the way. In its current iteration, Nick now owns and operates Dozier Technology Group, Inc. (http://www.dozierinc.com/), a technology company focused on software development, small datacenter/cloud-based hosting, and managed services. Nick also owns and operates ATLAS Technology Group, Inc. (http://atlasdsr.com/), one of the leading technology solution providers for the Walmart supplier community. ATLAS has experienced 5X growth in the past year. On the side Nick and his team work with GameXChange to provide all of the inventory, point of sale, analytics, and technology solutions for the 60+ store retail chain. Nick is also a partner in stubs.net (http://stubs.net/), a provider of advance ticketing solutions. He attended the University of Arkansas.

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About ATLAS Technology Group: ATLAS is a suite of business intelligence applications and services that assist Consumer Packaged Goods companies.

Roly Nesi

Founder & CEO of Roar Organic

Roly Nesi is the Founder and CEO of Roar Organic.

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About Roar Organic: Roar Organic is a natural line of vegan, low-calorie, low-sugar, electrolyte-infused beverages

Kim Stiefel

CEO & Co-Founder of Repeat

Kim Stiefel is the CEO and Co-Founder of PRZM.

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About Repeat: Repeat is a SaaS platform that enables consumer-packaged-goods brands to turn one-time buyers into repeat customers.

Michael Preysman

Founder and CEO of Everlane

Michael Preysman is the founder and CEO of Everlane. Prior to starting Everlane, he was an investor at Elevation Partners for both their New York and Menlo Park offices investing in media and entertainment companies. Michael enjoys sitting at the intersection of design and technology. He graduated from Carnegie Mellon with degrees in Computer Engineering and Economics.

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About Everlane: Everlane designs, manufactures, and sells clothing items for men and women via online e-commerce website.

Ryan Hudson

Co-Founder of Honey

Co-founder @ Honey

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About Honey: Honey is a shopping platform that provides access to exclusive savings, deals, rewards, and discovery.

Michia Rohrssen

Co-Founder, CEO of Prodigy

Michia Rohrssen is CEO at Prodigy, a growing Auto Startup.

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About Prodigy, Upstart: Prodigy digitizes the process to save customers’ time while improving trust and satisfaction.

Chris Clark

Co-Founder & CTO of Grove Collaborative

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About Grove Collaborative: Grove creates and curates high-performing, planet-first home and personal care products and is the leader in zero-plastic CPG.

Stuart Landesberg

Co-Founder & CEO of Grove Collaborative

Stuart Landesberg is the Co-Founder & CEO of Grove Collaborative, the leading digital-first brand & ecommerce platform for natural home and personal care. Stu has long been passionate about sustainability. He founded Grove, which has been a Certified B Corp since its founding, after learning that offline distribution meant that just a small percentage of families were choosing healthy, sustainable home care products. Grove now serves hundreds of thousands of households in the U.S. every month and has raised over $100 million in total capital. Stu was previously an investor at TPG Growth, where he was involved in over $400 million in consumer and technology investments. Stu and his wife Caitlin live in San Francisco with their daughter and dog, and spend as much time outside as possible.

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About Grove Collaborative: Grove creates and curates high-performing, planet-first home and personal care products and is the leader in zero-plastic CPG.

Jordan Savage

Co-Founder & VP, Creative of Grove Collaborative

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About Grove Collaborative: Grove creates and curates high-performing, planet-first home and personal care products and is the leader in zero-plastic CPG.

Ashvin Kumar

Co-Founder & CEO of Tophatter

Ashvin Kumar Co-founded Blippy Inc. in 2009 and serves as its Chief Executive Officer. Ashvin Kumar served as the Vice President of Engineering at Affinity Circles, where he managed an engineering team across Development & QA, Operations, and Technical Support. Ashvin Kumar graduated from Stanford in 2005 with a degree in computer science.

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About Tophatter: Tophatter is revolutionizing the e-commerce landscape with a discovery shopping app that’s truly one-of-a-kind.

Chris Estreich

Co-Founder & CTO of Tophatter

Chris Estreich Co-founded Blippy Inc. in 2009 and serves as its Chief Technology Officer. Chris Estreich served as a Senior Software Engineer at Oodle helping build the platform that powers MySpace, Walmart, and Facebook Classifieds. He graduated from Stanford in 2005 with a Degree in Computer Science.

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About Tophatter: Tophatter is revolutionizing the e-commerce landscape with a discovery shopping app that’s truly one-of-a-kind.

Aman Advani

Co-Founder & CEO of Ministry of Supply

Aman Advani is Co-founder and CEO of Ministry of Supply, a clothing brand inventing a new category: Scientifically Better clothes. The company was founded out of MIT in 2012 with the mission to incorporate fundamental engineering and performance principles into dress clothing staples, ultimately building a wardrobe that both looks good, and feels comfortable (think Nike meets Brooks Brothers). Prior to co-founding Ministry of Supply, Advani spent 4 years in management and non-profit consulting with Deloitte and TechnoServe. He holds a BSIE from Georgia Tech, and half an MBA from MIT’s Sloan School of Management, was a member of Forbes 30 under 30 list an BBJ’s 40 Under 40 list, and has been featured as the cover of both ASB and Boston Magazine.

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About Ministry of Supply: Ministry of Supply is creating a new category of clothing, performance professional performance clothes for the workday.

Gihan Amarasiriwardena

Co-Founder & President of Ministry of Supply

Gihan Amarasiriwardena is adorable. No seriously- he says the highlight of his day is seeing his office rabbit Thumper *insert cute noise here.* Besides being a kind soul, Amarasiriwardena is the founder of Ministry of Supply, a menswear brand that makes cool things like a dress shirt that helps regulate body temperature and shirts that fight.

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About Ministry of Supply, Ministry of Supply: Ministry of Supply is creating a new category of clothing, performance professional performance clothes for the workday.

Jonathan Shokrian

Founder & CEO of MeUndies

Jonathan Shokrian was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA.

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About MeUndies: MeUndies brings together sustainable fabric and innovative design to make soft underwear and loungewear for its customers.

Amrita Saigal

CEO & Founder of Kudos

Amrita Saigal is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Kudos.

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About Kudos, Zera Life: Kudos is a retail company that offers natural disposable baby diapers with cotton liners.

Andy Aranda

Founder and CEO of Breazy

Andy Aranda is the Founder and CEO of Breazy, Inc.

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About Breazy: Ecommerce, Alternative Wellness

Jonathan Chen

CTO & Co-Founder of Pathover

Co-Founder of FiscalNote, Inc., and Pathover. Inc. Specialized in AI & ML. Inc. 30 Under 30. D.C. 25 Under 25. Valedictorian University of Maryland, College Park.

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About FiscalNote, FiscalNote, Pathover: Pathover is an API-based intelligent optimization and logistics solution for the last mile.

Christiana Chen

CEO & Co-Founder of Pathover

This year, I was selected as one of the 40 Under 40 Women in Tech 2016. I am very excited that more and more girls are exposed to and excelled in the field of technology. I am passionate about using technologies to improve everyday life and experiences.

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About Pathover: Pathover is an API-based intelligent optimization and logistics solution for the last mile.

Doug Barry

Co-Founder, COO and CFO of PORTL Hologram

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About MSMCi, PopJax, PORTL Hologram: PORTL Hologram offers at-home hologram machines.

David Nussbaum

Founder and CEO of PORTL Hologram

David Nussbaum is the Founder and CEO at PORTL Inc.

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About PORTL Hologram: PORTL Hologram offers at-home hologram machines.

Hannes Wiese

Co-Founder & Co-CEO of ABOUT YOU

Hannes Wiese is the Co-Founder & Co-CEO at ABOUT YOU GmbH.

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About ABOUT YOU: ABOUT YOU is an eCommerce platform for clothing, shoes and accessories.

Jaclyn Fu

Co-Founder and CEO of Pepper

Jaclyn is now a proud member of IBTC, but has stuffed her bra once or twice in high school. Before Pepper Jaclyn led product marketing at community focused technology companies like Etsy, Grouper Social Club and Mozilla. She lives in Denver, Colorado, teaches yoga and loves a good pun.

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About Pepper: Pepper makes bras in AA to B cups with band sizes starting at 30 and going to 38 for small-chested women.

Marc Puleo

Founder & CEO of 1800 PetMeds

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About 1800 PetMeds, Karma International: At PetMeds we love your pets. Follow us to see pins about products we love, helpful pet resources, and of course cute pet photos.

Rich Fulop

Co-Founder & CEO of Brooklinen

Rich is a first-generation American, an avid skier, a huge Arsenal fan, and he just so happens to make the best sheets ever.     After graduating from New York University (NYU) in 2003, Rich spent four years working through the ranks in the finance industry until the pesky Recession redirected his path. Rich decided to go back to the drawing board, returning to NYU to hone his entrepreneurial chops within the Stern School of Business — on a full-ride scholarship, no less.

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About Brooklinen, Google: Brooklinen is a manufacturer and supplier of bed and bath linens as well as loungewear.

Gower Smith

CEO & Co-Founder of Swyft

Gower Smith is the founder of ZoomSystems and Co-Chairman of the Board. Prior to starting the company in 2002, Gower founded and led several other successful technology startups, including ComputerLand (a retailer of PC and technology products, acquired by Random Access), CGF Electronics (Australian distributor for Apple computer products), Archives Computers (a networking and software company, acquired by Impact Systems), and Boomerang Imaging Supplies (a leading printing supplies business, acquired by TCR). Gower completed his radio technician certificate with the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation, and studied microprocessors at the Melbourne Institute of Technology and Caulfield Institute of Technology.

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About Swyft: Swyft sells great products from leading brands in strategic high profile locations, serving customers.

Lincoln Smith

Swyft President & Co-Founder

Lincoln co-founded Lead Creation an Australian B-B digital marketing agency before co-founding Swyft.

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About Swyft: Swyft sells great products from leading brands in strategic high profile locations, serving customers.

Amish Tolia

Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Leap Services

Co-Founder & Managing Partner at Brand Innovators Labs & Co-Founder & Principal at Viking Investment Management. Co-Founder & Co-CEO at Leap.

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About Brand Accelerator, Brand Innovators Labs, Leap, Leap Services, Viking Investment Management: Leap develops a retail platform that enables brands to deploy stores and accelerate growth.

Daniel Chu

CEO and Co-Founder of MakersPlace

Daniel Chu is the CEO and co-founder at MakersPlace. He is a product and engineering leader with a passion for applying technologies to drive real-world change.

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About MakersPlace: MakersPlace is an authentic and unique digital creation platform powered by blockchain technology for digital creators.

Nick Auger

Co-Founder & CTO of RevZilla

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About RevZilla: The best Motorcycles, Motorcycle Gear & Awesome-sauce. Noteworthy Nuggets from TeamZilla.

Anthony Bucci

Founder of RevZilla

Anthony Bucci is an American entrepreneur who co-founded and led RevZilla.com to become the largest eCommerce store in the motorcycle aftermarket. After leading RevZilla’s successful exit to the private equity backed retailer Cycle Gear in 2016, he is now advising and investing in early to growth stage companies. He currently lives in the Philadelphia suburbs.

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About Comoto Holdings, National Retail Federation, RevZilla: The best Motorcycles, Motorcycle Gear & Awesome-sauce. Noteworthy Nuggets from TeamZilla.

Matt Kull

Co-Founder & CEO of RevZilla

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About RevZilla: The best Motorcycles, Motorcycle Gear & Awesome-sauce. Noteworthy Nuggets from TeamZilla.

Will Graylin

Co-Founder & CEO of LoopPay

Will has built several successful companies in the mobile computing space. With his background in electrical engineering, computer science and psycho-acoustics (how humans perceive sound), he founded OnVocal to tackle the fundamental problems with how we hear and are heard when interacting with our smartphones and other devices. Founder CEO of LoopPay sold to Samsung, now Global Co-GM Samsung Pay; Board of Directors Synchrony (SYF NYSE); MIT Connection Science Fellow; Founder/CEO of: ROAM Data (sold to Ingenico); WAY System (sold to Verifone); EntitleNet (sold to BEA/Oracle); MIT Dual Masters; Nuclear Submarine Officer;

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About Indigo Technologies, LoopPay, MIT Media Lab, Onvocal, OV Loop: LoopPay is an m-commerce platform provider that enables retail consumers to pay with their mobile phones.

Arvind Patel

CEO and Co-Founder of Rowzzy

Seasoned Silicon Valley executive and CEO with direct experience in managing multi-million dollar companies. Wide range of experience in tech management, raising capital, revenue growth and M&A. Tenure in technology has spread across many verticals to include Hardware, Contract Manufacturing and Software. His multilingual skills leverage his wide network. Current activity is to lead a next-gen AI platform to funding, product launch and rapid growth.

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About Rowzzy: Innovators of NVU™ a PaaS /A.I. Voice-to-Display solutions for eCommerce and beyond.