Be who you are—and everything else will fall in place
This year is all about authenticity, transparency and mindfulness.
I learned from a young age that if you want something, you must ask for it. That’s how I technically started in this business: During my senior year of high school I approached the newspaper advisor and asked him if I could write a style column focusing on food, fashion and “the coolest events in town.” InfoFashion was what co-columnist Ryan Daniels and I called it, and it was an immediate hit with students.
Fast forward to my career today. I couldn’t be happier as content director for this fabulously growing media brand spotlighting food and beverage development. The best part is learning something new about the food industry every day, whether I’m virtually interviewing key experts, traveling abroad to check out trade shows and innovation centers, or moderating a discussion on where the industry goes next. Many of these opportunities happened because I asked for them.
Nevertheless, like everyone else, I am a constant work in progress. I enjoy covering the hospitality industry, yet I am truly passionate about what’s going on in the food-and-beverage development world. Merging those two industries in content is proving to be challenging and exciting. You’re getting two very different perspectives: the creative side from culinary teams and a more technical approach from food scientists and technologists.
Many of the issues happening in foodservice right now could be resolved if there were more mindful collaborations between the two industries. There is so much money to be made, plus more underserved communities would be helped and the global environment would improve.
This year, I plan on showing up strong and connecting the dots wherever and whenever I can to push forward such initiatives. Now, just what is the big ask? That’s still to be determined, but I have all year to figure that out.
Ciao—for now.
Good stuff! I hope you have a fantastic 2025!