Pittsburgh's Sweet and Spirited Women in Business
Pittsburgh’s Sweet and Spirited World of Business Has Arrived!
GUEST AUTHOR: Katie Imler, J.D./MBA Candidate, University of Pittsburgh, MAZURKRAEMER LAW CLERK
Its Friday night and the ladies were out for Pittsburgh’s first CAKE&WHISKEY Gathering. Women entrepreneurs from all industries came together for a night of meeting new people, cake, and whiskey. On November 30th, over 40 women filled the Art Gallery of Bar Marco to share about their new businesses, entrepreneurial ventures, and future aspirations. From Graduate Students to Lawyers, Seasoned Entrepreneurs to Start-Ups, these women came together in community to exchange knowledge and experiences.I first heard of CAKE&WHISKEY while attending the MBA Women International Conference in Phoenix, AZ. CAKE&WHISKEY Magazine is a quarterly magazine that launches in March. The Magazine is becoming the leading business magazine for today’s women and companies that promote female participation, growth, and leadership in business. CAKE&WHISKEY Magazine is for women at all stages of their business journey and seeks to inspire women to dream bigger and reach higher. The first edition of the magazine has over 100 pages of inspiring stories of what businesswomen are achieving across the Nation.Looking around the flight back to Pittsburgh, I could tell which women had been at the MBAWI Conference
because each of them was reading the Fall Teaser edition of CAKE&WHISKEY Magazine. After reading the Magazine cover to cover, I turned to my friend sitting next to me and said, “Let’s bring this to Pittsburgh! I’ll do it if you’re on board.” So, we did. The next day I emailed the Editor of CAKE&WHISKEY and within a month, we had our first Gathering.Born out of a desire to connect businesswomen in a non-networking environment, these quarterly Gatherings are occurring all over the Nation. They began in Lexington, Kentucky and have spread like wildfire. True to its roots, CAKE&WHISKEY Gatherings are not your typical networking atmosphere. Pittsburgh's first Gathering was a laid back night with Ice Breaker games, Hot Topic Discussions, and of course – Cake and Whiskey! The night kicked-off with a toast to “Finding the balance between spirited strength and life’s sweet indulgences!” We introduced the CAKE&WHISKEY Magazine, raffling off a couple subscriptions to the women who had been in business the longest (30+ years!) and who had been in the news most recently (Sandra Cadavid, luxury handbag designer, Amanda Yarger, TrueFit, and Marie Perriello, Stir Society). After a game of Trivia, three Pittsburgh women were highlighted as “Women to Watch” including: Kristen Finamore - Owner, Kritta Co. Jewelry; April Gruver - Sugar Fairy, Vanilla Pastry Studio; and Justine Kasznica - Director/Professor, University of Pittsburgh and Innovation Practice Institute. The women are all movers and shakers making waves in their respective fields. The night ended with Raffle Baskets were donated by Fort Pitt Blockhouse, Kritta Co. Jewelry, Urban Landmarks Associates, and Maggie & Stella's.
Everyone pitched in to make the event possible! Appetizers were donated by Katz Graduate School of Business MBA Women International and Urban Landmarks Associates. The delicious desserts, including bourbon-filled cupcakes, were donated by Vanilla Pastry Studio. The Gathering would not have been possible without my team of organizers Luciana Arbach, Lindsy McDonald, Dru Simeone, and Toni Trew.All women have a valuable story to share. My biggest motivation for hosting a Gathering was to connect women across generations and to bring women together from all over Pittsburgh and all industries. There is nothing more inspiring than hearing what others are accomplishing to spring you into action and achieve your own dreams. Every woman has a unique passion that, once unleashed, is powerful to accomplish great things.So here’s to the Sweet and Spirited World of Business – Cheers!Hungry for more? www.cakenwhiskey.com.See Salene's flickr set.