Meet the 2025 Most Influential Women in Convenience Services Award winners

Carla Balakgie, a Fellow of the American Society of Association Executives, is the first woman to lead NAMA in its 90-year history. Carla joined NAMA in 2012 after serving for nine years as CEO of the Electronic Transactions Association. During her tenure, she directed the association through a unique period of growth and evolution. NAMA helped drive the rise of micro markets — now the fastest growing aspect of the convenience services industry — along with the expansion and integration of coffee, tea, water and pantry services that is fueling the industry’s $26.6B annual revenues. She’s credited with transforming the association’s government and external relations program, including relocating the NAMA headquarters from Chicago to Washington, D.C. in 2020, doubling organizational revenues, and reshaping the brand definition and context of convenience services among all stakeholders.

Taylor Bartholomew-Bibikan
Automated Retail Technology - Just Baked

Taylor Bibikan-Bartholomew is a seasoned industry leader with a proven track record of driving success and fostering meaningful relationships. Her career began at Evergreen Refreshments, where she gained foundational experience alongside Jim Britton. This was followed by pivotal roles at Avanti Markets, Sodexo and Canteen One, where she expanded her expertise and built key industry connections. At Just Baked, Taylor spearheaded the implementation team, strategically scaling it to support the company’s rapid national growth. She later developed and led the customer success team, further solidifying her role as a strategic leader. Currently, as director of customer success and process improvement at Just Baked, she continues to drive innovation and operational excellence.

An active Chair of NAMA WIN Advisory Committee and member of Emerging Leaders, Taylor is shaping the future of the industry. Her unparalleled leadership, commitment and impact have made her name synonymous with success and earned her widespread respect.

Christi Bond
Independence Coffee Co.

Christi Bond is the CEO and co-founder of Independence Coffee Co. Christi has been leading her team of 30+ for 21 years. Under her leadership, the company has grown into a fully diversified coffee provider that roasts over one million pounds of high grown Arabica coffee each year. ICC’s product portfolio includes 100% compostable, BPi certified Keurig, Nespresso and Newco brewing-system compatible single-serve pods. Christi feels that ICC’s long-running success in the OCS, food service and grocery sectors is based on ICC’s mission statement, which is to deliver exceptional coffee experiences while embracing the values of independence and family. ICC honors old-school roasting methods, provides genuine customer service and fosters a community of integrity and collaboration. Through a dedication to quality and passion for the art of coffee, the company aims to make a positive impact on the lives of our team members, customers, and communities.

Suzanne Boyer
Treasure Valley Coffee

Suzanne Boyer is the president of Treasure Valley Coffee, a family-owned company she joined in 1999. Under her father’s leadership, the company established itself as a significant
player in the coffee service industry, earning recognition as Idaho’s Small Business of the Year in 2000 while operating with fewer than 50 employees. Since its founding in 1984,  Treasure Valley Coffee has evolved from an OCS provider to a comprehensive operation that includes coffee roasting, bottled water delivery and in-house bottling. Throughout her 25-year tenure, Suzanne has overseen eight strategic acquisitions, integrating four vending companies, two bottled water companies, and two OCS companies into the Treasure Valley Coffee family. A significant decision during her leadership was the divestment from the bottled water sector, allowing the company to concentrate on its core strengths in micro markets and vending services in southern Idaho. The wholesale coffee service now offers private-labeled coffee and supplies to distributors and TVC licensees across five states. A pivotal moment for Suzanne and the company occurred in 2018 as they navigated the loss of founder Tom Boyer, her father, shortly after becoming a Canteen franchise. Under her guidance, Treasure Valley Coffee achieved record sales in 2019 and successfully adapted during the uncertain times of the global pandemic. Currently, her company’s sales have set a new all-time high.

Charlotte Callahan
Five Star Breaktime Solutions

Charlotte Callahan has harnessed her passion for excellence and innovation to excel in in refreshment and breakroom services industry for over 15 years. Charlotte is a dynamic leader driven by a strong sense of purpose and an unwavering commitment to continuous improvement. Her exceptional communication skills and ability to inspire and motivate others enable her to unite teams toward a common vision and achieve ambitious goals.

Charlotte began her career with The Family Vending Company and then Canteen Southeast. In her current role as vice president of refreshments for Five Star Breaktime, Charlotte focuses on fostering collaboration, enhancing employee engagement and driving strategic initiatives that deliver outstanding results. She is passionate about cultivating high-performing teams and creating environments where individuals thrive, combining empathy with strategic thinking in her leadership style. Outside of work, she enjoys a fulfilling family life with their husband and three children. Whether it's spending quality time at home, embarking on family adventures, or supporting their kids' activities, Charlotte cherishes these moments deeply.

Joanna Choi
Bevi

Joanna Choi is the national account manager at Bevi, an on-demand sparkling water system, where she oversees distributor partnerships across the U.S. and Canada. A graduate of Cornell University, Joanna began her career at Aramark and quickly immersed herself in the office coffee service industry. She gained invaluable experience working national accounts through Filterfresh Coffee Service. Following its acquisition by Aramark, she returned to the company before transitioning into vendor relations roles with Peet's Coffee, Irving Farm and Nespresso, where she supported OCS operators.

With a deep knowledge of the industry and a passion for driving growth, Joanna excels at developing sales strategies that foster long-term success for her partners. Though this is her first non-coffee OCS role, she thrives on the daily challenges it presents and takes great pride in helping reduce plastic waste by keeping bottles out of landfills, one refill at a time.

Haley Eggum
Hormel Foods Corp.

Haley Eggum is a brand manager at Hormel Foods Corp., responsible for leading household brands such as Skippy peanut butter, the Spam family of products, Columbus craft meats, Gatherings party trays and Justin's nut butters. She has an unrelenting passion for the convenience channel that includes both unattended retail and C-stores. In the last three years, Haley, along with the entire Hormel convenience team, have made significant advancements against the Columbus and Gathering snack trays, making them the fastest-growing brands in their respective categories each year. As a result of Haley’s leadership, Hormel has brought successful channel-specific innovation into the market across a multitude of brands. Haley’s positive personality, strategic decisiveness and work ethic fuel her passion and Hormel’s results in the convenience channel.

Jennifer Fox
Fox Vending

For 25 years, Jennifer Fox has managed a variety of responsibilities ranging from operations to sales and customer service at Fox Vending, a full-line vending, coffee and pantry service and micro market operator in the Chicago market. During this time, she has grown Fox Vending’s customer base, streamlined routes, reduced overhead and increased the bottom line. The accomplishment she is most proud of came in 2021 when she launched Dragonolia in honor of her late brother Justin, who died from a heroin overdose in December 2018. Dragonolia is a community of people sharing their stories of recovery to show the world that there can be beauty in the darkness of addiction. One dollar from every bag of Dragonolia coffee sold goes to Herren Project, a national nonprofit organization providing free resources and support for the treatment, recovery and prevention of substance use disorder.

Mary Lee Genes
Unified Strategies Group

Tarryn Gorre is the vice president of SaaS commercial strategy at 365 Retail Markets. She joined the company in 2023 following the acquisition of her food technology business. With over 20 years of experience in the global food service industry, Tarryn has expertise across three continents — South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Throughout her career, she built and led a technology company that delivered innovative solutions to businesses within the food service sector worldwide. At 365 Retail Markets, Tarryn is focused on driving go-to-market strategy, leveraging her deep understanding of the food industry and technology to deliver impactful solutions. Her passion for technology and market growth and her extensive global experience make her a valuable leader for ambitious SaaS initiatives.

Tiffany Harrison is a seasoned professional with almost 15 years of experience in the convenience services industry. After earning a bachelor of arts in communications, she began her career in this sector and spent 14 years with Crane Payment Innovations, where she honed her expertise in sales and client relations. In December 2024, Tiffany joined Nayax as a regional account executive, continuing her passion for consultative selling and helping operators thrive in their businesses.

Married for 15 years with a 10-year-old daughter, Tiffany lives in Aiken, S.C., where she enjoys family time and community involvement. Her focus remains on building strong, long-lasting partnerships and providing solutions that lead to success for my clients. She takes pride in helping businesses grow and succeed, using a personalized approach to meet their unique needs and challenges.

Theresa Haskins
Veterans Canteen Services team at Central Virginia VA Health Care System

Theresa Haskins was raised in a small town in Ohio on a farm and learned that with hard work and dedication, you can do anything. Theresa started her hospitality career at the age of 14 while working in the kitchen of her grandparents’ tavern, where she fell in love with the business atmosphere and the consistent passion from the customers on how it felt to come into a place that felt like home with a friendly smile and great home-cooked meal. Theresa continued her career path in the hospitality business to even have her own sports bar and full-service restaurant and lounge. For many, she was a local favorite.

After much thought, Theresa made the decision to get back into the workforce and join the Veterans Canteen Services team at Central Virginia VA Health Care System in Richmond, Va. When hearing of their mission, she  knew she had to be part of that. It is her way of giving back to our well-loved and respected veterans who gave so much for this country. Theresa started as an assistant food chief in 2018 and, with hard work, in 2022, she became the first female chief in of VCS in Richmond VA. As a chief, Theresa oversees the multi-million dollar operations of the Patriot Café, Patriot Store and Patriot Coffee, where we proudly serve Starbucks, along with the vending operation, barber shop, and optical department. She also recruits local vendors that supply crafts and other items for the veterans’ convenience. The VCS mission is to provide America’s veterans enrolled in the VA health care system, their families, caregivers, VA employees, volunteers and visitors, with reasonably priced merchandise and services essential to their comfort and well-being. 

Roxanne Joyal
&Back Coffee

Roxanne Joyal is a people-centered social entrepreneur with over 25 years of experience advancing the inclusion of women through social and economic empowerment initiatives around the world. Roxanne is the founder and CEO of &Back Coffee, a premium, purpose-driven coffee company dedicated to empowering women coffee farmers that promotes sustainability and scalable impact. “Women-Owned and Women Grown,” &Back Coffee also helps businesses align to their sustainability, inclusion and employee engagement goals through their choice of coffee, in addition to offering additional elevated digital content to connect people to their cup of coffee. &Back Coffee believes part of future success in C-stores is rooted in quality, convenience and community. Offering a premium coffee experience is part of an enhanced consumer experience, building customer and employee loyalty, engagement and connection.  

Roxanne is a Rhodes Scholar and Stanford graduate. She holds a law degree from Oxford and clerked for the Supreme Court of Canada. She is also a contributing author to Entrepreneur.com, where she shares her business insights to help women-owned companies succeed in a competitive landscape.  

Jeni Kisa
Press Coffee

Jeni Kisa is a dynamic sales leader based in Arizona. As vice president of sales at Press Coffee, she brings more than 25 years of experience in driving business growth and developing high performing teams. Jeni is passionate about making a positive impact on others’ lives, building strong customer relationships and creating strategies that deliver results. Her leadership style focuses on maintaining a positive mental attitude and fostering an empowering work environment. Outside of her professional life, Jeni is a dedicated wife and proud mom of three, believing in the importance of balancing career success with family. She values quality moments filled with laughter and continuous learning, always seeking personal and professional growth. In her free time, Jeni enjoys spending time in the sun, cooking, baking, team sports, and writing. Her mission is to “flourish, thrive, and live to make a difference.”

Nichole LaCour is vice president of unattended retail and special markets for broker Team Saverino / Saverino & Associates Inc., located in Carol Stream, Ill.She has been with Team Saverino for 23 years. Nichole started out in the corporate office, working with inside sales orders.Soon, her abilities and ideas to restructure the order processing and system applications quickly put the company in a leadership role in the industry.  She advanced to become assistant to the vice president and also making outside sales calls to customers.At that point, she realized that she loved the connections between the customers and manufacturers.Her knowledge and past personal experience with customers proved her ability to help them grow the business utilizing her outstanding product knowledge and programs that gave her an immediate advantage. Nichole’s high-volume sales and natural ability to supervise resulted in a promotion to vice president of vending and micro markets in 2017.Today she leads 11 sales team associates in 30 states.

Nichole’s inspiration to her “team” brings her this honor. She guides them in marketing their products with programs to grow their business. They regard her as an intelligent leader and motivator who strategically guides them along as she also listens to their suggestions and sales needs.

Rebecca Lotz is a sales leader with more than 20 years of experience in the food, beverage and convenience services industries. She excels at developing strategic sales initiatives, managing distributor relationships and driving market growth.

As national account manager, unattended retail and vending, at Red Bull North America, Rebecca has played a key role in expanding distribution and strengthening partnerships in the vending, micro market, and office coffee service sectors. Previously, she held key account management roles at Pepsi Bottling Ventures, leading business development for Compass, Sodexo, Aramark and the college and university segment. Her extensive background also includes experience in food service sales with Sysco and distribution management with Vistar.

Passionate about team leadership, innovation, and industry growth, Rebecca’s strategic mindset and collaborative approach make her a true influencer in the convenience services space.

Anita Marcoline Rose
Mill Creek Coffee

Allison M. Moore is the dynamic CEO of Foundational Vending, a majority woman-owned business based in southeastern North Carolina. After the successful sale of their janitorial business in western North Carolina, Allison and her husband ventured into the micro markets and vending industry, bringing with them a vision rooted in integrity, excellence and service to their community.

Raised in her family’s business, McArthur Supply, Allison developed a strong work ethic and a deep commitment to giving back — values that continue to guide her leadership today. Her  impact extends beyond business: as a passionate worship leader and pageant judge, she helps support scholarships for women through pageants like Miss Rhododendron and Miss Denton, enabling young women to pursue their educational dreams.

Allison’s outstanding leadership was recognized by her inclusion in Automatic Merchandiser’s 2025 “Most Influential Women in the Convenience Services Industry.” This prestigious honor underscores her dedication to empowering others and inspiring everyone she encounters. Above all, Allison’s unwavering dedication to her family, faith, and community has earned her widespread admiration. Through her exemplary leadership, she continues to make a meaningful and lasting impact in both her industry and her local community.

Cristina Noel
Canteen

Cristina Noel has grown up in the vending and micro market industry. In 2014, she became the general manager of Golden Age Vending, a Canteen Franchise in Houston, Texas. In that role, she played a key role in helping the company continue to grow by embracing technology such as implementing a vending management system (VMS) and installing its first markets. During her time at Golden Age, she was recognized in Automatic Merchandiser’s first class of 40 Under Forty Award winners. After the company was acquired in 2024, Cristina has spent the last year as district general manager for Canteen in Houston. She has served on the Texas Merchandise & Vending Association since 2018 and, due to her hard work and commitment, has risen through the ranks. In the association’s 74-year history, she is serving as TMVA’s first female president. Cristina’s passion for the industry is sure to have a positive impact for years to come.

As a dynamic and outcome-oriented professional, Nicole Sprenger has 15 years of experience spanning marketing operations, advertising, customer operations, and insights. Recognized for her ability to enhance customer operations and drive revenue growth, she excels in crafting innovative strategies that improve operational efficiencies. She leverages test-and-learn approaches to inform strategic decision-making and ensure impactful outcomes. Throughout Nicole’s career, she has successfully executed programmatic advertising initiatives and delivered marketing solutions designed to optimize business performance. Her results-driven approach is rooted in strategic planning, influential leadership and a strong commitment to refining customer experience.

Nicole is currently the director of customer operations, insights and activations at 365 Retail Markets. In this role, she oversees advertising programs and key strategic initiatives that have created new revenue streams for clients and the company. Nicole is driven by the opportunity to continue shaping the future of customer operations and business performance through forward-thinking strategies. After all, innovation is not just about new ideas — it's about turning insights into action and action into impact.

Elyssa Steiner
Cantaloupe Inc.

Elyssa Steiner is the chief marketing officer at Cantaloupe. She leads the marketing team in developing strategic campaigns that drive measurable results and support key business objectives. She joined Cantaloupe in 2017 through the acquisition of Cantaloupe Systems, where she served as director of marketing. Prior to this, she was vice president of sales and marketing at Avanti Markets, where she was an early pioneer in introducing micro markets to the unattended retail industry.

With over a decade of experience in unattended retail, Elyssa has become a well-respected mentor and award-winning executive. In 2013, she was voted Automatic Merchandiser Readers’ Choice Manufacturer Representative of the Year. She has also contributed to NAMA’s Government Affairs, WIN, and ELN committees, as well as the Frost & Sullivan Marketing community. Elyssa holds a master’s in communication and leadership from Gonzaga University and a bachelor’s in business and marketing from the University of Washington.

Ashilyn Sunderman
Smith Vending Canteen

Ashilyn Sunderman is the CEO and owner of Smith Vending Canteen. Ashilyn grew up in the business, learning from her dad, Rod Nester. After completing her bachelor's degree from Northwest Missouri State University for business management, she joined her father in the business. At the time, the business was just getting started with a VMS, had recently become a Canteen Franchise, employed nine people, and had five vending routes. Today, SVC employs 43 people, has three warehouses, and operates 15 routes. Over the years, Ashilyn helped SVC expand its footprint and implement many new processes and technologies. In 2021, Rod retired and Ashilyn took over the business.

Ashilyn completed the NAMA Executive Development Program in 2016. She attained her NCE in 2017 and her CCS in 2019. She is also the executive director and treasurer of the Iowa Automatic Merchandising Association and has also served on the ELN Steering Committee. Ashilyn serves on several local boards and committees, including the Clarinda Foundation, Cardinal Fund, and CRHC Patient and Family Advisory Council.

Lyndsey Wolfsmith
VendTech International

Lyndsey Wolfsmith is executive vice president of VendTech International. With a BSc in IT from the University of Salford, UK, she has extensive experience in franchising, business development, management consulting and entrepreneurship. As part of the Naturals2Go leadership team, Lyndsey develops training programs, mentors operators and champions diversity, applying background from multiple industries to drive growth and innovation. Since joining VendTech in 2013 as a sales consultant and launching her own vending business in 2014, Lyndsey has consistently improved customer satisfaction, enhancing operational efficiency and elevating women’s visibility in leadership roles. In 2022, she was promoted to executive vice president and joined the board of directors. She leads with authenticity, service and connection. Her expertise in strategic planning, team building and financial management inspires others while fostering a thriving entrepreneurial community. Her expertise in strategic planning, team building, and financial management allows a seamless balance of professional responsibilities with personal life.

Manuela Zoninsein
Kadeya