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SAVE the DATE

FRIDAY, OCTOBER, 18, 2019

HILTON LEXINGTON/DOWNTOWN

Join us for a day of empowerment and training as we host the 7th Annual Women in Business Expo & Conference.  Keynote speakers, informative breakout sessions, exhibitor booths, networking with other entrepreneurs and business owners, and the highly anticipated business pitch contest; this year’s expo is a can’t miss event! 

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HOSTS & SPONSORS

CONFERENCE HOSTS

MORE TO BE ANNOUNCED SOON!

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We are grateful for our conference sponsors who generously support the work of the Women Business Center, and who are committed to providing new opportunities for growth for women entrepreneurs throughout Kentucky.  If your company or organization would like to be a sponsor for this year's expo, click the link below to contact us!

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Sponsors

BRONZE SPONSOR

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FRIENDS OF THE WBC SPONSORS

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SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES STILL AVAILABLE!

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BUSINESS PITCH COMPETITION SPONSOR

SILVER SPONSOR

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GET YOUR TICKETS TODAY!

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REGISTRATION

CONFERENCE TICKETS ARE ON SALE NOW!

Conference Attendees: $150 General Admission

Exhibitor Fee: $500

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Purchase includes:

  • Admission to the 2019 Women in Business Expo & Conference

  • Conference Materials and SWAG Bag

  • Complimentary Breakfast

  • Complimentary Lunch

  • Chance to participate in Business Pitch Contest!

 

Click below to register for the conference!

Registration

Conference Participants can register for the event, sign up for workshops and learn more about  the event through the Whova App!  Download the Whova App today!

 

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CLICK to DOWNLOAD
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Speakers
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Exhibitors
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Accommodations
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The annual Exhibitor Expo is one of the great features of the conference, providing attendees with a chance to connect with different business and organization vendors.  Each year, vendors bring literature, swag items, and giveaways for conference attendees, and those same vendors leave with a substantial list of potential clients and collaborators.  This Exhibitor booth is a great way to grow and expand your brand with the conference attendees!   

EXHIBITORS

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parking

  • Conference attendees can access a limited number of complimentary parking spaces in the Downtown Lexington  Hilton parking structure.  There are two entrances to the structure, one on the Vine St. side of the hotel, and a second on the Main St. side of the hotel.  

  • Overflow parking is available at the Fifth-Third Bank parking structure on Main St., or the Victorian Square parking lot on Short St, at the individual's expense.

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LODGING

  • Conference attendees may reserve a hotel room at the Downtown Lexington Hilton.  BOOK NOW

 

DIRECTIONS

  • From Louisville

    • Follow I-64 E to KY-922 S/Newtown Pike in Lexington.   â€‹

    • Take Exit 115 from I-64 E.

    • Continue on KY-922 S/Newtown Pike.

    • Drive to W. Vine St.

    • Arrive at 369 W. Vine St. Lexington, KY 40507.

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  • From I-65 N

    • Follow I-65 N and KY-9002 E/Bluegrass Parkway/Route 9002 E to Woodford County.

    • Take Exit 72A from KY-9002 E/Bluegrass Parkway/Route 9002.

    • Follow US-60 E to W. Vine St. in Lexington.

    • Arrive at 369 W. Vine St. Lexington, KY 40507.  ​

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  • From I-75 N

    • Follow I-75  N to US-27 S/US-68 W/N Broadway in Lexington.

    • Take Exit 113 for US-27/US-68 toward Paris/Lexington.  ​

    • Turn right onto US-27 S/US-68 W/N Broadway.

    • Turn left onto Short St.

    • Turn right onto Mill St.

    • Turn right onto W. Main St.

    • Enter Parking Structure on Main St. 

    • Alternate Parking Structure entrance on Vine St.

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ACCOMMODATIONS

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General Admission Exhibitor Fee: $500

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Purchase includes:

  • Admission to the 2019 Women in Business Expo & Conference

  • Table / Booth for Exhibitor Setup*

  • Conference Materials and SWAG Bag

  • Complimentary Breakfast

  • Complimentary Lunch

  • Chance to participate in Business Pitch Contest!

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*Expo exhibitors shall provide their own table decor and materials for their setup.   Hosts will only provide the table and chairs.   Exhibitors will be permitted to arrive early on the day of the conference to setup.  Exhibitors are asked to plan on having someone present throughout the day.

 

Click below to register for the conference via Whova!

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SYLVIA LOVELY

OWNER & CONSULTANT, SYLVIA LOVELY & ASSOCIATES

BREAKFAST KEYNOTE SPEAKER 

Sylvia Lovely has been a student of leadership and helping finding Resilience all her life. Born in eastern Kentucky but raised in Dayton, Ohio, she was just three months old when her parents realized they could not make a living farming their beloved Kentucky land and rocky hillsides. As did many poor and uneducated Kentuckians, they they headed for factories in the north where her dad worked as a drill press operator at National Cash Register, and her mother kept the home fires burning in one of the many Kentucky diasporas spread across the northern then industrial states.

 

A first generation high school and college graduate, Sylvia learned just about everything as she went along. She describes herself as adaptable to a fault. Overcoming the shock of her announcement that she wanted to attend college, her parents imposed one condition – that she attend Morehead State University in Morehead, Kentucky, a place that to them was “back home” and safe in a culture that keeps family close by. She describes herself as the turnip that fell off the truck when she arrived on campus. A favorite story was about eating out – at that point, one of the few times in her life– with a group of professors and students. When asked if she wanted soup or salad, her nervous reply, “Yes, I’ll have that supersalad.” Meeting Bernie Lovely, her husband at Morehead, she went onto Law School as she puts it, by accident. Though she didn’t know what lawyers did, she threw herself headlong into it. Bernie soon abandoned pursuit of a Ph.D. in literature to follow her into law school.

 

She went on to serve as Executive Director/CEO of The Kentucky League of Cities for 25 years. She left that position in 2009 to start a consulting business, Sylvia Lovely & Associates where she teaches people how to live well both at work and at play in crazy times. She is also a partner with The Azur Food Group, which owns Azur Restaurant and Patio, Lexington Diner and Mane on Main, Dupree Catering. She is co-host of Food News and Chews Radio on WVLK 590 a.m. and appears every Friday morning with Chef Jeremy Ashby, her business partner, on the popular Jack Pattie Show talking food. She lives in Lexington with Bernie and Heart, her extremely loving goldendoodle, who she calls the chief of staff of her home office. She has two sons, Ross and David, both lawyers and authors, and two wonderful daughters in law, Jennifer (Ross) and Lauren (David). Grandchildren include Jack and Nora (David and Lauren); Simon, Mary, Levi, Edy, Iona, and the newest Azelie (Ross and Jen). YES, you got it – I have eight grandchildren! 

FELECIA hatcher

AWARD-WINNING ENTREPRENEUR, MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKER & aUTHOR

LUNCHEON KEYNOTE SPEAKER 

Felecia Hatcher is on a mission to rid communities across the globe of innovation deserts by working with community leaders and government officials to create inclusive and diverse tech/startup ecosystems as an Author and the Co-Founder of Tribe Cowork and Urban Innovation Lab, Code Fever, and Black Tech Week. As a result of her work, Miami has become one of the most authentically diverse startup ecosystems in the country, helping minority led startup founder’s access opportunities and  capital pathways through their VC in Residence program, exposing over 3000+ students and parents to tech skills training for youth and young adults in the areas of technology and entrepreneurship, in partnership with Knight Foundation, Comcast, Morgan Stanley, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Ford and others. As well as an annual week long emerging technology conference called BlackTech Week that creates a magnetic force for attracting talent, resources and opportunities for minority communities to thrive within the innovation economy.

 

Prior to making the leap from the cubicles of corporate America Felecia worked as a marketing executive as the front office marketing manager spearheading the 10th anniversary campaign for the Minnesota Lynx/Timberwolves, and as an experiential marketing/brand manager for Sony, Nintendo and McKee foods. As an Author, Social Entrepreneur and the former “Chief Popsicle” of Feverish Ice Cream, Hatcher was named one of the Empact 100 Top 100 Entrepreneurs under the age of 30 by the White House and Kauffman Foundation in 2011, a 2014 Obama White House Champion of Change for STEM Access and Diversity, Harvard Young American Leader, Ruth Shack Honoree, 2017 Comcast/Nationswell Tech Impact Allstar, Echoing Green Fellow, a Black Enterprise 2017 TechConnext Game Changer and 2016 Innovator of the Week, Essence Magazine Tech Master, and featured on the NBC Today Show, MSNBC, FORBES, INC, The Cooking Channel, and; Grio’s 100 African Americans Making History.

 

CONFERENCE SPEAKERS