I moved to California right after graduating from Purdue University and found myself at home immediately.  I fell in love with hospitality from the start, from innkeeping to restaurant management, to event planning, and eventually to marketing and sales. I found that I really thrived in leading management teams to launch social media plans, create engaging websites, produce successful PR campaigns, analyzing financials for optimal sales, and creating overall marketing plans to launch new products and businesses.

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My endeavor with Kokomo Winery created a brand that initially sold around 1600 cases per year out of the production room,  into a brand that now encompasses events, logo wear, a robust wine club, and production of 19+ varietals, including award-winning Pinot Noir. 

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While consulting with Truett-Hurst and VML Winery, they brought in a record $23MM in sales in 2016 and helped to usher in the organic grape growing movement into mainstream farming practices across Sonoma County.

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I went on to work at boon, LLC where I increased sales over three different properties by 18% (bar, restaurant, and hotel), increased the profit margins on sales by 32%, grew all three social media profiles across two platforms by 22%, and helped to shape the PR efforts to include owner, Crista Luedtke’s appearances on Guy’s Grocery Games and with her documentary short, Empire on Main Street, which won in its category at the Cannes Film Festival in 2018. 

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During my career in hospitality, I also served as Administrative Director for CANVAS (Concierge Alliance of Napa Valley and Sonoma), which hosted networking and educational events and served as a marketing tool for its 3000+ members.  I worked diligently to develop their website and social media profiles, organized events, lead membership efforts and developed sales and marketing strategies on a volunteer basis for over 6 years.

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I stayed in CA for the next 20 years building a career working with businesses primarily focused on hospitality, which led to collaborations with some of Wine County’s top wineries, restaurants, and hospitality organizations.  I eventually took that knowledge base into hemp/cannabis marketing as it emerged as a promising industry.

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After a very long, happy engagement and three children, my partner and I decided to slow down and move back to the Midwest to be near family.  I now bring my West Coast approach to luxury, sustainability, and community collaboration to local businesses in Michigan and Indiana.  Managing operations, web design, product branding, social media, product development, and overall marketing with a handful of successful small businesses and not for profits in the midwest has been a great leap of faith.