Mandi Buckner

Mandi Buckner, is a serial entrepreneur, risk taker, and branding expert. She is the founder of SLICE Academy, a culinary media firm providing education, resources, and support for culinary entrepreneurs and food based businesses. She has contributed her expertise to several online publications including Eating London, Black and Married with Kids, and most recently and currently, Southern Living Magazine; and has worked in partnerships with trusted brands such as Tyson Foods, Toyota, and Coca-Cola. Often seen wearing pearls and heels, even when she's working the grill, the spirited foodie has found the balance between executive chef and digital influencer, and is a skilled educator in teaching others how to navigate that fine line. Through running the award-winning blog Chewsy Lovers, and a successful local catering company (Buck A. Roux's) with her chef-husband Buck, Mandi has discovered a love for helping Black chefs and culinary entrepreneurs grow their digital influence, create signature products, and serve their communities on larger platforms. In 2014, her business Potstickers, a cooking subscription box for kids, was selected as a Wells Fargo Perfect Pitch Finalist. Always innovating, Mandi is planning to add a mobile unit to her culinary collective in the next year. The expansion will help create income for her goal, to open a teaching kitchen and entrepreneurship academy for underprivileged youth. When Mandi isn't teaching branding to chefs, or helping food businesses create their signature, you can find her on the beach dreaming with Buck, having brunch, or "momming it up" to the three most awesome kids on the planet.