Katie Rotella; Senior Public Relations and Digital Manager; Ball Horticultural
Katie is the Senior Public Relations and Digital Manager at Ball Horticultural. Ball Horticultural, head-quartered in West Chicago, IL, is a family-owned business and a world leader in plant development and distribution. George J. Ball started the business as a wholesale cut flower operation in 1905 and today the company has grown into a leader in all facets of horticulture. Today their global family of breeders, research and development teams, seed and vegetative producers, and distribution companies has a strong presence on six continents in 20 countries.
Scott Rusch; GM and Co-Founder; BloomStudios Cut Flowers
Scott is the GM and Co-Founder of BloomStudios Cut Flowers which is a new division of Ball Horticultural Company focused on new product development for the cut flowers segment. For over 50 years, PanAmerican Seed, who is partnering with BloomStudios, has been creating exceptional cut flowers and providing the highest quality seed to growers around the world. Scott has been working at PanAmerican Seed for 20 years and now with BloomStudios, focuses on providing quality products with breeding from PanAmerican, Ball and a collaborative network of private breeders.
Cindy Hanauer is the 4th generation of her family in the floral industry and has achieved 40+ successful years encompassing every retail channel of the business: traditional florist, mass market and e-commerce. Cindy has held executive positions with the largest retailers in the world such as Kroger, Winn-Dixie and 1-800-Flowers, successfully managing both the back-end supply chain for 25+ distribution centers and the customer-facing merchandising and operations teams for 2,500+ retail locations. Her core competencies include business strategies, team reorganizations, disruptive technology launches, operational training, innovative supply chain integrations, e-commerce development and award-winning bottom-line results.
In 2014, Cindy launched Grand Central Floral, a B2B education platform to provide knowledge and information to all sectors of the floriculture community. Cindy has gained international recognition as the most experienced influencer and futuristic visionary in the industry with her website, newsletter and social media platforms followed by 10,000+ members, worldwide.
Cindy shares her expertise with the public through television, radio and speaking appearances and writes frequent columns for numerous industry trade magazines. She offers consultation to global investors and analysts, is a trustee for the American Floral Endowment and volunteers on many industry boards and committees.
In her Northeast Florida community, Cindy works with a group of volunteers who help senior citizens age successfully and independently in their own homes. She is also a philanthropic vocalist and performs with three vocal organizations where 100% of the concert proceeds are donated to local organizations who provide free family services, medical support, dreams and comfort to children with terminal or life-threatening illnesses.
The recording can be accessed below. You will also get an email from us shortly with a link to the video so you can watch it any time.
