Nikos Ridge, grew up in Eugene and moved to the East Coast to pursue an education and career in finance. After graduating from New York University, working on the Stock Exchange floor, and living the hustle-and-bustle of city life, he heard the calling of the Pacific Northwest and returned to his hometown in 2003. In 2006, Ridge met brewer Jamie Floyd over a pint and soon after established Ninkasi Brewing Company. In the early days of Ninkasi, Ridge wore many hats. From drafting the very first business plan to providing a one-man local distribution service – loading up each and every keg and driving it to its final destination in his Ford Ranger – to selling in tap handles, brewing and packaging. Working closely with local restaurateurs and bar owners, Ridge quickly established Ninkasi as a craft beer staple of Eugene. Transitioning from his role of CEO to President in May 2017, Ridge helps lead the strategic direction of Ninkasi.

As the former CEO of Ninkasi Brewing Company, Cheryl Collins knows a few things about crafting a strong company culture in an ever-growing and evolving industry. Based right here in Eugene, Collins’ expertise in organizational leadership and development drives Ninkasi Brewing to be a nationally-competitive craft beer brand and a top state employer receiving recognitions like Best Places to Work (OUTSIDE) and 100 Best Places to Work in Oregon (Oregon Business Magazine). Collins’ work at Ninkasi has included spearheading employee recruitment, training and onboarding programs, implementing Continuous Improvement strategies and best practices across brewery operations, fostering teambuilding activities to nurture organizational culture, implementing safety protocols and initiatives, facilitating leadership development, contributing to employer branding, and helping oversee the leadership and implementation of company strategies. Collins was recently honored as Wine Enthusiast’s 40 Under 40 Tastemakers of 2017.

Jim Sabia is the Chief Marketing Officer of Constellation Brands' Beer Division, overseeing a portfolio of powerhouse brands: Corona Extra, Corona Light, Modelo Especial, Modelo Negra, Modelo Chelada, Pacifico, Victoria, Ballast Point, Funky Buddha and Tocayo Brewing Company. During Jim’s 8-year tenure with Constellation, the beer portfolio has been the #1 growth driver for the U.S. beer industry. Under his leadership, Corona launched its iconic “Find Your Beach” campaign and Modelo Especial has grown to be the #2 import in the country. Prior to Constellation, Jim was with Molson Coors Brewing Company for 17 years. As Vice President of Marketing and Media at Molson Coors, he was responsible for U.S. marketing of Coors Light and Coors Banquet. Included among his many accomplishments is leading the development and introduction of the highly successful Blue Moon brand. Jim earned his MBA in marketing strategy from Regis University in Denver, Colorado, and his bachelor’s degree in marketing from Iona College in New Rochelle, N.Y. He currently lives outside of Chicago with his wife and three sons.

As a Vice President, Lindsay is one of the firm’s leaders of Kantar Futures’ subscription-based consulting business and helps clients develop custom, future-led strategies via futures thinking processes. She oversees client relationships across a range of industries, with a focus in beverage alcohol, as well as retail, consumer health and fitness and fashion. Lindsay serves as one of the company’s experts in Millennials and Centennials, as well as women. Additionally, Lindsay has worked internally to develop forward-thinking perspectives in the health space, as well as consumer loyalty. Lindsay has been with Kantar Futures for over seven years. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Duke University.

Marty Birkel is president of Ballast Point Brewing Company and heads up Constellation Brands’ Craft & Specialty Beer Division, which also includes Florida’s Funky Buddha and Chicago’s Tocayo brands. Marty and his team lead the craft portfolio’s strategy and vision, as well as help to strengthen Constellation Brands’ position in the high-end beer industry. Prior to joining the Ballast Point team, Marty was senior vice president and global chief sales officer in the Wine and Spirits division at Constellation Brands, the president of Constellation Spirits and also the executive vice president of national sales for Barton Beers. Marty earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Notre Dame. He currently lives in San Diego.

Matt Bardill joined the Total Wine & More team in 2010 as a member of the Import Wine team. While on the wine business, he held various role and drove double digit growth for the import wine category.  In 2014, Matt joined the beer team which accounts for over $400M in annual sales He is now the Senior Manager of the Beer Buying Team, overseeing the Beer Business at Total Wine & More across 21 states and over 170 store locations.  Matt received his undergraduate degree from UNC – Chapel Hill and his MBA from the University of Maryland – College Park

Amanda Batchelet joined Total Wine & More in 2008 as the Senior Buyer for Non-Alcoholic/Food/Accessories. Since then she moved in 2010 to take on responsibility as the Senior Buyer of Beer, at a time when craft beer was exploding and seasonal beers were a fast growing part of the assortment. In 2012 she joined the Spirits team which accounts for over $750M in annual sales. She is now the Director of Spirits Category Management, overseeing the Spirits Business at Total Wine & More across 19 states and over 140 store locations (eligible to sell Spirits).

Jeremy Ragonese joined Utah’s largest craft brewery as Chief Marketing Officer in July 2016. Prior to his move to Salt Lake City, Jeremy had served as the Director of Marketing for Boulevard Brewing Company since 2006, where he led the marketing efforts for one of the craft beer’s most respected brands. Before joining the beer industry, he served in a variety of leadership, strategic, and creative roles within the advertising field, and in 1999 joined three partners to form CHRW Advertising, an award-winning creative agency located in Kansas City, MO. Jeremy is a graduate of Pittsburg State University and holds a Master’s degree from Syracuse University. He has proudly served on the boards of directors for AAF-KC, the AAF-KC Foundation, and the Children’s Mercy Hospital Cancer Center Auxiliary. Jeremy has also served on the Brewers Association’s Marketing and PR Committee, and is the former president and founder of the Boulevardia Festival in Kansas City.

Mike Kallenberger founded Tropos Brand Consulting in 2010 after many years in Marketing at Miller Brewing Company. Over that period he developed insights and strategies for brands from Miller Lite to Leinenkugel’s, including the 2003 “Good Call” campaign, which enabled Miller Lite to erase half of a 12-year sales decline in just 2 years. At Tropos, his primary focus is the development of positioning, marketing, and communication strategies that connect brand stories to drinker motivations. His clients include Sierra Nevada, Pabst Brewing Company, World of Beer, Heavy Seas, and Flying Fish. A frequent contributor to The New Brewer, Mike is also a six-time speaker at the Craft Brewers Conference. He has an MA in Economics from the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee and has taught Consumer Behavior at UW’s Madison campus.

Chris Furnari is the editor of Brewbound and focuses exclusively on the beer business. In addition to overseeing daily content, Furnari also plans and executes Brewbound's business networking events -- Brewbound Session and Brew Talks. He is a regular at industry gatherings and has been cited in mainstream media publications such as CNBC, USA Today, The Boston Globe, Mashable and Wired Magazine, among others.

Prior to Resolution Media/Omnicom Media Group, Darrell spent two decades on the client and agency side of the desk creating new and reinvigorating existing image-driven brands at Foote, Cone & Belding, The Coca-Cola Company, The Interpublic Group of Companies and the Goose Island Beer Company. He founded one of the first influencer/word-of-mouth marketing agencies, Liquid Intelligence, where he and a team of people much smarter than him created the most talked-about beverage comeback story in over 50 years: Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer. Hipsters became united the very next day. Most recently, Darrell has managed multiple agency capabilities that integrate search, social, content and analytic services at the scale of a global marketing agency holding company. In his new role, Darrell is responsible for integrating capabilities in the context of commerce and content services. He leads multi-functional communities that contribute to the design, launch and on-going enablement of solutions to solve for clients business challenges; bringing together best of breed talent, partnerships and technology to deliver competitive advantage for Omnicom Media Group and drive results for our clients.