Kat Cole

Background

About Kat Cole

Seasoned executive and leader with deep expertise building global brands, consumer businesses, and high-performing teams. Board member, investor, and advisor with broad experience in leading consumer brands, food, retail, and scaling franchise organizations through various stages of growth. Growth leader who has built businesses at the intersection of Main Street and Wall Street, connecting big brands and businesses with small and mid-sized independent business owners. Seasoned President and COO with experience in strategy, operations, culture & communications, crisis management, development, M&A/reorganization, change management, integrating digital and physical brand expressions and communities, multi-channel brand extensions, consumer brands, marketing, PR & media, licensing, strategic alliances & partnerships, domestic and international franchising, operating model pivots - Business Advisor: High growth business strategies and teams, multi-channel brand architecture, licensing and partnership approaches, international expansion, executive communication skills, bridging and integrating worlds of startup thinking and innovation and large, established corporate structures, building effective cross-cultural and cross-generational teams and relationships, aligning communication, training, and incentives to drive business results, interpersonal skills to manage the strategic implementation of difficult change - Speaker & Facilitator - Change Management, Innovation, Leadership Development, Business Integration (Mergers & Acquisitions, Business Model Transition, High Growth, Hyper Competitive Markets), Resilience, Driving Sales and Impact - Board Member for private, public, and both VC and PE-backed companies (Milk Bar, HumanCo SPAC, Slice) as well as Trade Associations, Industry Groups, and Non-Profit Organizations (UN, CGI, WEF//YGL, YPO, NRAEF, WFF, GRA)- Angel Investor in over 70 early-stage companies across various sectors with a focus on SMB tech and better-for-you consumer products - Volunteer and volunteer group leader for organizations that support the development of underserved populations around the world through skill training, entrepreneurial mindset, and sustainable practices