Executive Director,
Culinary Visions® Panel and Y-Pulse®
Sharon Olson has been immersed in marketing for the food industry for more than 35 years. She was a Vice President at two leading foodservice agencies prior to forming Olson Communications in 1988 and the Culinary Visions Panel in 2002 that surveys opinion leaders and consumers on emerging trends in the food industry. She has served as Executive Director of Y-Pulse, since 2004. Y-Pulse focuses on young consumer eating habits and trends away from home.
Ms. Olson often speaks on trends in the food industry, most recently presenting new original research at the National Restaurant Association Show, Culinary Institute of America, National Association of College and University Food Services National Conference, Refrigerated Foods Association, and The Flavor Experience and Ideation Fresh Foodservice Forum. She is a frequent contributor to leading trade and business publications on the foodservice industry and consumer trends. She also regularly attends international trade shows to report on foodservice trends.
She is past president of the Chicago chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier and currently serves on board of Les Dames d’Escoffier International, an organization devoted to education and philanthropy that fosters the development of women leaders in the foodservice and hospitality industry.
She is a recipient of the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association (IFMA) Sparkplug Award and two awards from the National Association of College and University Food Services (NACUFS) that recognize outstanding service on a national level. She was also awarded a Child Nutrition Showcase award by the School Nutrition Association for ground breaking original research on Vending Trends in School Foodservice.
She holds an MBA with distinction from Keller Graduate School of Management and has served on the advisory board for the Hotel and Restaurant Program at Ashland University.
