Abasto Food and Beverage Business News and Advice for the Hispanic Retailer 
Alfonso García
Originally from Monterrey, Mexico, Alfonso serves as the Manager of Marketing of Mexilink Inc., the leader in imports and distribution of Mexican brands. He holds a degree in marketing from the Tecnológico de Monterrey. Alfonso has more than eight years in the food industry.
Alfonso Berthier
Alfonso is a Mexican businessman who is known for his ability to develop successful new projects, for more than 20 years. His specialty is technology applied to the marketing of the food industry. Alfonso is CEO of LatinBag.com company focused on distributing food around the world.Cindy Sorensen
Founder and CEO of The Grocery Group developing leadership in purpose, people and products. Member of the Board of Directors of Women Grocers of America and former Vice President of Business Development for the Midwest Dairy Association. A professional with 30 years of experience in the grocery industry with an extensive knowledge of the dairy sector.Doreen Colondres
Doreen Colondres is a tireless world traveler with a fresh and charismatic vibe. Her mission is to convince us that cooking is a heritage and a tradition that is fun, relaxing, easy, romantic, but more importantly, healthy. Her background of family cooking values motivated her to create La Cocina No Muerde and The Kitchen Doesn’t Bite. Doreen’s first book was published by Random Penguin House (2015) achieving the #1 best seller regional and international and she is also the food and wine editor for more than 10 Hispanic publications. She frequently hosts cooking segments on “Despierta América” from Univision and hosted cooking shows on FoxLife/Utilísima, airing in 16 countries for 4 years. Since 2013 Doreen is also a Chef for Novo Nordisk pharmaceutical, a leader in diabetes care. Yearly, she hosted more than 30 live cooking shows around the US, to increase awareness about obesity and diabetes. In 2013 she became the first Hispanic Celebrity Chef for the Bordeaux Wine Council, the most prestigious wine region in the world. She studied in culinary schools in NY, CA, graduated in FL and also has a BBA in Business & Marketing.
Eva Gonzalez
Executive Director of Diverse Consumer Insights & Multicultural Marketing at Nielsen North America. With over 20 years of experience in marketing, communications, and consumer insights, she transferred to the United States in 2011, where she carried out Consumer Insights for diverse groups and the promotion of initiatives on multicultural consumers.
Faustino Sánchez
Faustino is the creative and graphic designer with over 20 years of experience in branding and packaging design. He has created and directed design projects for large chains such as Wal-Mart and Gigante of Mexico, among others. Currently he is implementing creative strategies for leading companies in the Hispanic market in the United States.Grace Carter
Grace Carter is a tech editor at Assignment Writing Service and OXEssays websites. She manages team of tech writers, reviews online submissions and curates marketing process. Also, Grace is a tutor at Paper Fellows academic portal.Jane Sandwood
Jane Sandwood is a professional freelance writer and editor with over 10 years’ experience working across both print and online. Jane has a particular interest in issues relating to disabilities and special educational needs. When Jane isn’t writing, she is busy spending time with her family. She also enjoys music, reading and traveling whenever she can.Jennifer Crandall
Jennifer Crandall is a qualified person (QI) trained in PCQI, FSVP, BRC Internal Audit, SQF Professional and Certified in the Gluten Free Certification Program. She has a degree from Purdue University in Food Science and over 21 years of experience in the food industry, including food manufacturing and warranty and compliance with corporate quality and now in consulting. Most of Jennifer's career has been monitoring the compliance of private label providers for a Fortune 25 company and one of the world's largest grocery retailers. Jennifer is also a co-founder of the Global Food Blockchain Initiative in the US, and of the US Country Partner to Primority, LTD, the developer of 3iVerify Solution.
Juan Ramón (Jay) García
A specialist in sales of high-performance and career development. Juan is a speaker and trainer who has won the prize in "Excellence higher quotas for sales, management, training and equipment support and impetus to regional growth".
Juan Tornoe
An expert in marketing and advertising, based in Austin, Texas. Juan's blog juantornoe.blogs.com is an indispensable tool to learn more about the Hispanic market. John made his debut as a contributor to cope with two articles: in the first encouraged Hispanic entrepreneurs how to win the heart of your customers better positioning its products or services; in the second, written in English, John gives tips on how to better understand Hispanic consumers.
Julio Ibañez
Retail Executive, specialist in Supermarket Management and Big & Box formats. Consultant and international speaker. President of the Hispanic Retail Chamber of Commerce of the United States.Karthik Reddy
Karthik Reddy is the Community Manager at redbrain.com and author of India’s Number 1 travel blog. With an MBA in computer science, he decided to get away from the office desk life and take a journey around the world. He is eager to use the power of the global network to inspire others. A passionate traveler and photography enthusiast, he aspires to share his experiences and help people see the world through his lens.Kimberly Olivera
Bilingual Social Media Coordinator of Abasto Magazine. She is a recent graduate with a Bachelors of Science in Journalism, as well as a freelance writer and photographer.
Mariela Dabbah
Author of several books that help Latinos navigate the US system successfully. Mariela is frequently invited as an expert on national television programs in both Spanish and English, in addition to regularly being subject to interviews by the publications of more prestige in the United States.Mario X. Carrasco
Mario X. Carrasco is Co-Founder and Principal of ThinkNow, an award-winning, technology driven cultural insights agency based in Burbank, CA. Carrasco is a regular contributor to trusted publications such as Forbes, eMarketer, Quirk’s Magazine, Online MR Magazine, and MediaPost. He is the SBA 2017 Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award recipient, an SBA Emerging Leader Recipient, Stanford Latino Entrepreneur Institute Graduate, and USC Marshall School of Business Graduate. To learn more go to www.thinknowresearch.comMarisela Villamil
Mrs. Villamil has served as both a Marketing and Training Coordinator, as well as a Business Counselor at the Maryland Small Business Development Center’s Capital Region, University of Maryland. Mrs. Villamil has been a Business Counselor focusing on the Hispanic Business Community for over 11 years. During her time at the Maryland Small Business Development Center, Mrs. Villamil has guided clients through opening new businesses, helped them acquire a number of loans, assisted them in expanding their businesses, helped them increase their numbers of qualified employees, and counseled the clients in successfully navigating the business world. Mrs. Villamil’s education includes a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science in Finance from the University of Havana, in Cuba. She also has a Master’s in Administration of Research and Economics from Mexico, and a Master’s of Pedagogy-Education from Pacific University in Paraguay. Mrs. Villamil has written two books and has developed educational materials, including curriculums for projects with the Inter-American Development Bank and the European Union.
Martha Montoya
Martha Montoya is at the forefront of the dialogue regarding diversity contracting with Corporate America, particularly in the media and agricultural industries among others, Ms. Montoya is the owner of Los Kitos Entertainment and El Mundo Communications.Merilee Kern
As a branding pundit, wellness industry veteran, consumer health advocate and influential media voice, Merilee Kern spotlights noteworthy marketplace innovations, change makers, movers and shakers. Also, a two-time fitness champion, her ground-breaking, award-winning “Kids Making Healthy Choices” Smartphone APP for children, parents/caregivers and educators is based on her award-winning, illustrated fictional children’s book, “Making Healthy Choices – A Story to Inspire Fit, Weight-Wise Kids.”
Meriterese Racanelli
is a Food Scientist and Clinical Nutritionist working with Goya Foods internationally. A Celiac and popular international speaker, she has almost 20 years as a renowned expert on cultural foods, nutrigenetics, botanicals, phytonutrients, and their effects on the body, disease, allergies and conditions like Celiac. Besides her Master’s of Science degrees in Nutrition and Food Science, Suma Cum Laude from Montclair State University, where she serves as an adjunct professor in Nutrition and Food Sciences, Meriterese completed her Clinical Dietetics and Medical Nutrition Therapy training Magna Cum Laude from MSU, via hospitals in New Jersey, and majored in pre-med/biology in her under-grad degree.Michael Del Gigante
Michael Del Gigante is the president, creative director and owner of MDG Advertising, the 6th largest in South Florida. He studied in the Pratt Institute, one of the top design schools in the country. After graduating with honors from Pratt, Michael began his career as a designer at one of New York’s premier package design studios. He went on to start the art department for a Fortune 500 company, and after that spent eight years working with Sony, American Express, and Volvo as the creative director at a New York design firm. In 1999, Michael’s entrepreneurial spirit led him to establish MDG Advertising. His commitment to delivering concept-driven creative, the ability to mentor and inspire those he works with, and a strong sense of family have been instrumental in building a foundation for the collaborative culture at MDG.
Mike Periu
Hispanic business leader with experience in the areas of finance, business development, marketing and business management. Mike's goal is to put within the reach of the Hispanic Community financial knowledge necessary to succeed in the United States. Using a clear, simple and direct communication style, Mike has helped thousands of Hispanic entrepreneurs better manage their money. He debuted in Abasto explaining to Hispanic Entrepreneurs why they must accept credit cards at your business.Natalia Gamarra
Natalia Gamarra M.S.M. is Manager, International Member Relations at United Fresh Produce Association. She has a master’s degree in international business and graduated in Business Administration from Pierce College in Philadelphia.
Nielsen
Whether you're eyeing markets in the next town or across continents, we understand the importance of knowing what consumers watch and buy. That's our passion and the very heart of our business. We study consumers in more than 100 countries to give you the most complete view of trends and habits worldwide. And we're constantly evolving, not only in terms of where we measure, or who we measure, but in how our insights can help you drive profitable growth. Whether your business is a multinational enterprise or a single storefront, we believe innovation is the key to success, in both what you create and how you market your products and ideas. That's why we continue to develop better solutions to help you meet the needs of today's consumers, and find out where they're headed next. So let's put our heads together. We'll bring our insight to your business and help you grow.Norma y Jerson
Norma Moscoso and Jerson Blanco are creators of motivational content for innovative entrepreneurs, focused on the formation and strengthening of a successful mindset to achieve clear and challenging goals and objectives and on the use of the internet as the best platform to build new and effective opportunities of business.Ricardo Gaitán
Publicista. Magister en Dirección de Marketing y Ventas, Escuela de Negocios de la Universidad de San Pablo, de Madrid, España. Mas de 25 años de experiencia como creativo en importantes agencias multinacionales como: JWT, Leo Burnett, Ted Bates, Young & Rubicam y Hoguín & Asociados. Analista de marca y columnista de varios medios.Rick Parra
Jaime Enrique Parra "Rick" is Executive Director of Multicultural Consulting for Winston Weber & Associates. He has been working in the CPG / Retailers sector for Latin America and Hispanics in the USA for more than 30 years. His experience focuses on the areas of marketing strategies, business development and market research. He is a Business Administrator graduated from the University of Florida with a major in Latin American Studies.
Rosario Zavala
Rosario is a consultant in market research based insights. She has seven years of experience in planning and implementation of qualitative studies. Rosario has participated in the decision-making and development strategies of marketing in several categories. She is currently Project Manager at LEXIA.Steve Marin
Steven Marin is the owner and marketing consultant at SparkPPC. SparkPPC helps direct to consumer food & beverage brands dominate ecommerce with Facebook & Google advertising.
Susana Fortunati
Journalist and photographer for several latino magazines including popular "Para Todos" and "Impacto Latino". Has traveled extensively on special assignments like covering Pope Francis at the Vatican. Graduated from UCLA in Broadcast & Print Journalism. Experienced in personal and business executives stories within the Hispanic markets.
Susana G Baumann
A multicultural expert, award-winning business writer, public speaker and published author, Susana G Baumann is the Founder and Director of LCSWorldwide, a multicultural marketing consulting firm currently located in New Jersey, USA, and the Editor-in-Chief of her company’s new initiative, LatinasInBusiness.us.
Victor Martinelli
An expert in the industry of Contact Centers with more than 16 years of experience serving Latinos in the United States. Victor specializes in business development, helping companies expand and consolidate in the Hispanic and Latin American market with different strategies.
