2025 Women of Influence

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  2025 Women of Influence

  Kathy Talamante

  Director of Sales, C.A. Fortune

  Kathy Talamante recently assumed a leadership role at C.A. Fortune, guiding the account management team for Southern California and Arizona. In addition to making an impact every day, she is a leader in the industry.
  Kathy is a member of the premiere CPG organization, the Illuminators. In 2025, she set attendance records leading the WAFC SoCal pre-convention rally, which drew more than 250 participants.
  Kathy also is a member of the leadership team for the Food Industries Sales Managers Club, serving as chief information officer. She is well respected in the industry and within the C.A.Fortune organization, delivering solid sales results for her clients.

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  2025 Women of Influence

  Katie Duff Lattanzi

  VP and General Manager – Sales Large Stores, Swire Coca-Cola

  In his nomination, Katie Duff Lattanzi's nominator wrote that he has "witnessed her success as an adept sales leader who employed strong interpersonal, communication and collaborative negotiation skills that fostered trust with her internal stakeholders and customers." He continued, "She was also highly organized and focused on driving results. It was a pleasure working with Katie and I look forward to seeing her continued success."

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  2025 Women of Influence

  Kayleigh Swift

  U.S. Brand Manager, St Pierre

  Kayleigh Swift is at the heart of executing the St Pierre brand in the U.S. She is the lynchpin of all marketing efforts, working to align all multi-channel campaigns with strategic direction. She oversees execution of the brand at every touchpoint in the country – from trade to consumer – with best-in-class in-store executions, where she is also instrumental in building and strengthening retailer relationships, conducting meetings with national retailers. Kayleigh embraces the entrepreneurial mindset for which St Pierre is known. She is tenacious and unwaveringly positive with a can-do attitude. Her commitment to the brand is unquestionable having relocated – along with her husband and two dogs – from Manchester, UK, to Tampa Bay, Florida, in October 2022 in order to drive the brand forward in what is a pivotal time for St Pierre. Her data-driven approach has helped to launch the new global creative platform "Eat Avec Respect" to the U.S. market in February 2025 – the brand's first-ever TV campaign. From managing significant budgets, to presenting the brand to retailers at national headquarters, or sampling the product with a smile on trade show stands, Kayleigh is a magnificent example of making the most of every opportunity. The St Pierre manifesto state "rejecting ordinary in relentless pursuit of extraordinary," and few can bring this to life in the way that Kayleigh does.

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  2025 Women of Influence

  Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks

  President and CEO, ECOS

  As the head of ECOS plant-powered cleaning products, Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks is passionate about human and planetary health. She leads four manufacturing facilities across the U.S., as well as a European manufacturing platform.
  Kelly is recognized for her effective leadership and influential voice in corporate social responsibility, safer chemistry and sustainable manufacturing. Under her leadership, ECOS became the No. 1-selling green laundry detergent in the U.S.
  Kelly has led ECOS to become a Climate Positive company, achieving carbon neutrality, water neutrality and TRUE Platinum Zero Waste certification. ECOS also is the first manufacturer to receive LEED Zero certifications in net-zero energy, carbon and waste. The company has received many awards for its innovations in safer green chemistry, including the U.S. EPA's Safer Choice Partner of the Year eight times.
  As a woman of African-American and Greek descent, Kelly has made environmental and social justice a cornerstone of ECOS's mission. She promotes a corporate culture of diversity and empowerment – 60 percent of her C-suite and top executives are women and 40 percent are BIPOC.
  Kelly is proud to lead a company that is a WBENC-certified women-owned business and an NMSDC-certified minority-owned business.

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  2025 Women of Influence

  Kelsey Atkinson

  Marketing Project Manager, Lazy Acres Natural Market, New Leaf Community Markets

  Kelsey Atkinson has strong energy and an eagerness to grow and learn. She has so much love for her family, friends and the people in her span of care. She finds a way to light up the room with her passion for life.

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  2025 Women of Influence

  Kendra Westmoreland

  Director, Business Intelligence – Whole Foods Market and Sprouts Farmers Market, Acosta Group

  Kendra Westmoreland's leadership is defined by forging partnerships and driving data automation excellence. In November, she introduced a major client to Acosta's revenue growth management capabilities, leading to a collaborative project that optimized the client's marketing strategies. This initiative is expected to enhance ROI and product placement in 2025, positioning Acosta for future RGM work with the client. Kendra also streamlined data management for Acosta's natural division, reducing dependencies on the IT department and improving agility, data accuracy and strategic decision-making. Her efforts resulted in seamless integration across key functions, boosting overall business performance. In 2024, Whole Foods Market's unexpected data structure changes caused disruptions for other brokers. Kendra's team was quick to implement solutions. This demonstrated the ability to navigate uncertainty with confidence. Kendra pioneered a forecasting application that helps brands estimate retail sales volume based on pricing and promotion scenarios. This tool, first used in July, eased the annual sales planning process and became essential for many clients. Leadership development is another key aspect of Kendra's role. She is committed to environmental and community initiatives, advocating for honeybee preservation, regenerative farming and non-GMO labeling. She maintains a 13-colony apiary in Texas and volunteers at the Austin Food Bank and PAWS Animal Shelter.

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  2025 Women of Influence

  Kim Stephens

  Senior Customer Success Manager, Upshop

  Kim Stephens demonstrates leadership by managing a diverse portfolio across the United States and New Zealand. Her strategic oversight of 16 SaaS accounts, including major grocery chains such as Albertsons, Stater Bros. and Foodstuffs, highlights her ability to drive innovation in the food retail technology sector. Kim's impact was evident in April 2024, when she led the launch of Upshop's first cloud-receiving customer, an implementation that unlocked growth opportunities for the company and its partners. Her promotion in June 2024 recognized her contributions to strategic growth and customer retention. A relationship builder, Kim serves as the liaison between customer success, sales, product development and support teams. Her approachable leadership ensures cross-functional alignment, while her tailored success plans maximize value from Upshop's AI solutions, driving measurable results. Kim's problem-solving acumen has enhanced support processes, improving efficiency. Beyond her professional achievements, Kim is committed to the community, volunteering with Laurel's Legacy. She raises funds for people facing life-threatening illnesses, embodying the compassionate leadership that defines a Woman of Influence.

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  2025 Women of Influence

  Kirsten Barner

  Director of Shopper Marketing and Planning, Harris Teeter

  Kirsten Barner is responsible for the creation and coordination of all in-store and out of store HT/Vendor marketing planning and the activation of hundreds of programs partnering with vendors throughout the year. Kirsten pioneered the first shopper marketing organization for Harris Teeter. Her impact has created an increase in sales and contributed to a significant increase in sustainable vendor income. She formalized a process across hundreds of vendors to create programs that were tailored to drive customers to the store and increased conversion. She instituted the first in-store media program across the store and was instrumental in creating grand opening marketing, leading to some of the most successful openings in company history. She revamped the process of planning with vendors and merchandising that lead to holistic, customer-centric programs such as Hatch Chili Fest, "Freshtival," Pumpkin/Apple & "Bowl" Season." The ROI and impact to Harris Teeter and the vendor community has been profound. She is member of Charlotte American Marketing Association and an active volunteer with Nourish Up, an organization working to end food insecurity

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  2025 Women of Influence

  Kris Kowalski Christiansen

  CEO, Kowalski's

  As the only child of the Kowalski's founders, Jim and Mary Anne Kowalski, Kris Kowalski Christiansen has been a key part of Kowalski's Markets since its inception in 1983. After more than two decades of training and education, she earned the position of chief operating officer and has since moved into the role of chief executive officer. Kris always keeps one eye on daily operations and the other on future company goals and needs. As CEO, Kris works daily with the COO, CMO and VP of operations to ensure all aspects of the company run smoothly. She attends strategy meeting with these executives, Kowalski's culinary and brand director and department directors for all departments and has a hand in all policy, equipment, union, labor, capital, financial, brand and product decisions made in every jurisdiction. She tastes nearly every exclusive recipe and product produced in the company's commissary facilities. In addition, she participates directly in the company's private label program, testing those products before approval. She reviews all external ads and has a heavy hand in the determination of their content. She devotes substantial resources to train stakeholders to organize, educate and set policy in accordance with democratic principles and standards through a proprietary program to teach employees that they have the capacity to know what is good and the responsibility to grow that knowledge and act accordingly to create sustainable solutions that serve common good.

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  2025 Women of Influence

  Kristen Riley

  VP, Northern Division, Food Lion

  Kristen Riley oversees 200 stores in the Food Lion Northern Division, spanning the states of Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia. She serves as a mentor and advocate for her team of 11 direct reports, larger teams and associates throughout the organization.
  With keen business acumen, Kristen's year-over-year achievements in 2024 included the Northern Division's sales growth, exceeding the entire company's average; reaching the best in-stock position in the company with an increase in product availability; and a decrease in shrink by double digit basis points.
  Fulfilling omnichannel goals, e-commerce sales in Kristen's division grew and set a delivery sales record, the strongest improvement in the brand. She also transformed the Baltimore region's overall performance, including sales growth and associate retention.
  Kristen attended Winston Salem State University, a member university of the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association. After graduation, the school connected her with Food Lion's Retail Management Trainee Program. Today, she represents Food Lion at the CIAA basketball tournament, connecting with students and participating in a hunger-relief project.
  A leader in her community, Kristen is the author of a self-help book, titled "From Journey Not Arrival." Her holistic leadership, character and care for community exemplify the essence of being a Woman of Influence.

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