Stephen Gaither

Stephen Gaither has worked in various roles in the consumer and food industries since 1994. Stephen began their career as a Production Artist at MDI Graphics, where they worked on projects for McDonalds, Midway Games, Arby's and Kentucky Fried Chicken. Stephen then moved on to become an Art Director at GMR Marketing, where they worked on Miller, Kraft Foods, Jim Beam and Phillip Morris products. In 1998, they joined Jager Di Paola Kemp Design as a Senior Designer, and C.A. Branding as SVP Branding and Creative, where they founded JB Chicago. In 2019, they became Chief Marketing Officer at C.A. Fortune, and a Mentor at Food Foundry, a Chicago-based growth accelerator program by Relish Works. Stephen also joined Big Idea Ventures as a Mentor in 2020, and The Empower Project as Co-Founder. Most recently, they became Executive Vice President of Growth and Strategy at 1o8 in 2022.

Stephen Gaither attended Ball State University from 1990 to 1994, where they earned a Bachelor of Science in Architecture and Planning.