Two Celebrated Industry Professionals Named CEO and President
NEW ORLEANS, LA – July 16, 2019 – It is with great pleasure that the Tales of the Cocktail Foundation’s Board of Directors announces the appointment of Jenny Butler as Chief Executive Officer and Caroline Rosen as President. Butler has played an instrumental role in the development of the Foundation on behalf of the Gary Solomon, Sr., Gary Solomon, Jr. and Neal Bodenheimer and its management since the transition to current leadership in 2018. Rosen joined the Foundation as Executive Director in early 2018 and since that time has helped to shape the organization’s global suite of events, including philanthropic programs.
“We are grateful that both Jenny and Caroline have elected to devote their immense talents and resources to the Foundation in this increased capacity,” said Gary Solomon Jr., Co-Chair of Tales of the Cocktail Foundation’s Board of Directors. “These incredibly talented women have been responsible for rapid growth, change and progress for both our organization and our larger community and it is incredibly rewarding to recognize their efforts and accomplishments.”
Both women bring strong backgrounds to their new positions. After spending 13 years in the wine industry, Butler became Director of Operations for the Business Council of New Orleans, an organization of 79 CEOs focused on public policy and economic development in the metropolitan New Orleans area. It was there that she met the Solomon family, with whom she has worked in recent years to ensure the impact of their philanthropic endeavors with organizations including the Emeril Lagasse Foundation, the Link Stryjewski Foundation, New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts, and the University of New Orleans. Additionally, a significant portion of Butler’s time has been dedicated to furthering the Solomon Family’s long term commitment to adults and children with exceptionalities – namely St. Michael Special School in New Orleans and St. Lillan Academy in Baton Rouge. Butler played a key role in the family’s purchase of the trademarks for Tales of the Cocktail as well as its successful reintroduction as the Tales of the Cocktail Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit committed to educating, supporting and advancing the global spirits community and hospitality industry and creating lasting impact in its host communities while ensuring its now $18 million economic impact on the city of New Orleans. As CEO, she will be responsible for the overall operations, continued growth and impact of the Foundation as it grows its role as a global leader in spirits and identifies solutions to issues that impact those who work within the industry.
Caroline Rosen’s deep rooted background in both hospitality and non-profit work has already enabled her to have a deep impact on the Foundation’s philanthropic efforts including the widely celebrated Beyond the Bar initiative which brings free mental health and physical wellness activations to the annual Tales of the Cocktail conference, as well as the implementation of a grants program that has committed over $300,000 to funding and furthering projects designed to educate, advance and support the international spirits community. In 2016, Rosen was named as a “Person Changing the South” by Southern Living and in 2018, she was cited as one of “Food and Drink’s 55 Most Influential People” by The Observer in their annual “Dining & Nightlife Power List.” As President of Tales of the Cocktail Foundation, Rosen will work to further the Foundation’s mission on a global stage and continue to expand the organization’s philanthropic footprint.
For more information on Tales of the Cocktail, please visit www.tocstaging.wpengine.com.
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About Tales of the Cocktail Foundation
Tales of the Cocktail Foundation is a non-profit organization that educates, advances and supports the global hospitality industry and creates lasting impact in our host communities. Tales of the Cocktail Foundation is the global leader in spirits education and a platform to tackle issues facing the industry. The pillars of the Foundation are to Educate, Advance and Support the hospitality industry through programs that benefit individuals and organizations in the community and to make a lasting impact in communities that host our events. For more information on Tales of the Cocktail, please visit www.tocstaging.wpengine.com
About Tales of the Cocktail
Founded in 2002, Tales of the Cocktail has grown from a small gathering of cocktail lovers into the world’s premier cocktail festival. Each year the international spirits industry is welcomed to New Orleans for a week of seminars, tastings, networking events and much more. With 300+ annual events developed specifically for bartenders, distillers and other spirits professionals, Tales of the Cocktail is the industry’s annual meeting place for the exchange of new ideas, products and techniques.
