InspireSF 2019

Get ready to be inspired and empowered by an eclectic mix of San Francisco entrepreneurs during InspireSF. Hear their stories of grit, determination and success and get ideas for starting or scaling your own San Francisco-based business. Don’t miss an evening of engaging content, networking and resource building all while snacking and sipping on local delights.

The 15th Annual San Francisco Small Business Week recognizes San Francisco’s 120,000 and growing, small businesses. Filled with networking opportunities, business-building workshops and inspiring content, the week-long event serves to educate and empower entrepreneurs who are starting, staying and growing in San Francisco. For more information about the week, please visit sfsmallbusinessweek.com.

And we'll have the Warriors game on a TV after the speaking program!

Welcome Remarks:

• Regina Dick-Endrizzi, Executive Director, Office of Small Business/Small Business Commission
• Sean Reid, Director of Sales, SMB, Comcast

Moderator:

• Rodney Fong, President & CEO of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce

Panelists include:

• Ron Benitez, Ron Benitez, Co-owner and Co-founder of ASMBLY HALL
  
• Robyn Sue Fisher, Founder and CEO of Smitten Ice Cream
  
• Jay Foster, Chef, CEO & Director of Black Rabbit Hospitality
• Heidi Gibson, Commander in Cheese, The American Grilled Cheese Kitchen

Important Things to Know:

• $40 admission fee.
• This event sells out - buy your tickets now!
• Please register in advance for easier check in.
• San Francisco Small Business Week does not offer refunds for InspireSF ticket purchases. Your ticket sale goes directly to supporting the free events we host during San Francisco Small Business Week.

Parking and Public Transportation:

• Only a few blocks from the Powell Street Station on the MUNI and BART transit lines.
• MUNI buses nearby include: 5, 7x, 19, 27, 31, 38, 47, 49. Take Muni to our SFSBW events! Get a trip planner on MuniMobile, the official ticketing app for Muni

Sponsored by: Comcast Business

Thank You to Our Catering Partner and Their Entrepreneurs:

La Cocina

Bini's Kitchen

El Meson de Violeta

Mixote

Noodle Girl

Onigilly

Thank You to Our In-Kind Beverage Partners:

Barebottle Brewing Company
Deluxe MD
El Major Anejo Tequila
Exotico Tequila and Margaritas
Gordon Biersch Beer
Lefty O'Doul's Bloody Mary Mix
Rebel Yell Bourbon

Speaker and Moderator Biographies

Rodney Fong, President & CEO of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce

A fourth generation San Franciscan, Rodney Fong has an extensive business and civic background, including serving on the San Francisco Planning Commission for eight years, with two years as President. He formerly served as President of the San Francisco Port Commission, Chair of the San Francisco Travel Association & on the boards of the San Francisco Bay Area Super Bowl 50 Host Committee, the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank, Fort Mason Center, Fisherman’s Wharf Merchant’s Association, Fisherman’s Wharf Community Benefit District, Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation, and the Bay Institute. As the president of Fong Real Estate Company, Fong oversees leasing and tenant concerns for properties including the 100,000 square foot Wax Museum Entertainment Complex building in the heart of historic Fisherman’s Wharf, as well as Broadway Apartments. He also served as a third-generation operator/owner of the world-famous Wax Museum at Fisherman’s Wharf until its sale in 2013.

Ron Benitez, Ron Benitez, Co-owner and Co-founder of ASMBLY HALL

Ron has worked in corporate retail for more than 15 years, having worked in various merchandising and product development roles for Bay Area retailers like Gap Levis, Gymboree and Pottery Barn. Ron has also worked in the Action Sports industry having held pivotal roles at Quicksilver, Oakley, Hybrid Appear and Paul Frank. Ron met his wife, Tricia, while working for Gap Inc. Tricia held various roles at Banana Republic and also worked in the Action Sports industry. After years of ‘chasing the gigs’ between San Francisco and Orange County, the two would take their background and expertise in retail, stores, merchandising and product development, and open their own store in San Francisco, ASMBLY HALL, in November 2011. ASMBLY HALL recently celebrated the one year anniversary of their Divisadero Street store this past February. Ron and Tricia are also proud parents to four-year-old Harlow Sloane, ASMBLY HALL’s current intern and future shop keeper.

Robyn Sue Fisher, Founder and CEO of Smitten Ice Cream

An ice cream fanatic with a knack for invention, Robyn Sue Fisher founded Smitten Ice Cream in 2007 to spread joy and create the freshest, most flavorful ice cream the world had ever known. After ditching her corporate career, she began immersing herself in all things ice cream and was increasingly bothered by the modern industry's complicated ingredients and focus on shelf-life. So, she invented her own patented machine to perfect the art of churning pure, fresh scoops to-order in about 90 seconds using liquid nitrogen and only the very best ingredients. She first put Smitten on the map when she placed her custom-built “Brrr™” machine atop a Radio Flyer wagon and started selling her churned-to-order ice cream on the streets of San Francisco to the crowds that gathered, soon building a cult-like following. From those humble beginnings came Smitten’s first shop in San Francisco’s Hayes Valley neighborhood in 2011. Now with 7 shops throughout the Bay Area and in Los Angeles, Smitten has been touted by Vogue as “The freshest, if not the best, ice cream on Earth,” and featured in a vast array of media, from Food & Wine and Forbes to Wired and TechCrunch - Smitten is setting the bar for mastery of the perfect scoop.

Jay Foster, Chef, CEO & Director of Black Rabbit Hospitality

Creates innovative businesses that revolve around hospitality and entertainment. Specialties: Creative Concepts, Seasoned Experience and Tasteful Design. His businesses include: BlueJay Cafe 2003, farmerbrown 2006, Little Skillet 2009 and Isla Vida 2018. Jay is blessed to have been founder, chef, owner and creator of San Francisco restaurants representing soul food and the Caribbean.

Heidi Gibson, Commander in Cheese, The American Grilled Cheese Kitchen

Heidi Gibson has lived in the Bay Area for over 25 years and splits her time between working in tech - where she builds software products for small businesses - and the American Grilled Cheese Kitchen. She took 5 years off her tech career to open a local restaurant chain, The American Grilled Cheese Kitchen, which she owns with her husband. Heidie has published two cookbooks and is on the board of The Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center, a local entrepreneurship non-profit, and has coached hundreds of aspiring local business owners on how to start and grow their dream business. Heidi holds a bachelor's and a master's in Engineering from MIT.

All programs are extended to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis. Reasonable arrangements for persons with disabilities will be made, if requested at least (2) weeks in advance. For more information, contact info@sfsmallbusinessweek.com.