Martha Stewart American Made 2014 Summit Lineup

This fall, crafters, makers and creative small business owners will gather at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia's headquarters in New York City for the 2014 Martha Stewart American Made Summit, a lecture and interview series planned and hosted by Martha herself. Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia's third annual American Made Summit will take place November 7-8, with sponsors including Hyatt House, Intuit QuickBooks, The UPS Store and Toyota.

Over the course of two days guests will learn from Martha and interact with some of the nation's most influential innovators and creative entrepreneurs. The 2014 American Made Summit (Early Access tickets: $495.00, Regular Price: $695.00) kicks off on November 7 with the ultimate maker meet up event at Martha Stewart Living headquarters where guests will be able to meet Martha, the editors of Martha Stewart Living magazine and the ten 2014 American Made Award winners; shop a handpicked and curated assortment of products from the Martha Stewart American Made Market; and network with successful small business owners from across America who are reinvigorating cities, towns and the American economy.

The Summit continues on November 8 with a full day of panels and exclusive sessions. The list of panels and speakers for the 2014 American Made Summit is as follows:

 

Part 1: The New American Dream: Stories that Inspire

• The Building of a Brand — from Dream to Reality

Martha Stewart, Carolyn Rafaelian, Founder, Creative Director and CEO of Alex and Ani, Kate Richard, Senior Operations Manager, Alex and Ani and Beecher Fritzmeier, Vice President of Design, Alex and Ani

• The New American Dream: Meet the Makers – Sponsored by Toyota Corolla

Sonja Rasula, Founder and Creative Director of Unique USA

• Tell Me a Story – Sponsored by Hyatt House

Rachel Schectman, founder of Story

Part 2: Finance Your Dream and Build a Following

• Show Me the Money: How to finance your business in today's market – Sponsored by Inuit QuickBooks

Jason Pollock, Filmmaker & Entrepreneur, Alejo Velez Ramirez and Nikhil Arora, Co-founders, Back to the Roots. Moderated by Lisa Carnoy, Managing Director, Division Executive, U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management

• Dreaming Big: Crafting a Beloved Brand in America

Hamdi Ulukaya, Founder and CEO of Chobani

Part 3: Ask the Experts

• Social Chatter: The role of social media in building brands today

Gina Bianchini, CEO and Founder of Mighty Bell, Co-Founder and Former CEO of Ning, Teddy Goff, Co-Founder, Precision Strategies. Moderated by Inbar Barak, SVP Digital Programming and Strategy, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia

• Ask the Experts — Sponsored by The UPS Store

Martha Stewart, Barbara Corcoran, Founder of Corcoran Group and Investor Shark on ABC's Emmy winning reality show Shark Tank, Tim Davis, President of The UPS Store, David Bobbitt, Executive Director of the SCORE Foundation. Moderated by Charlotte Beers, speaker, author and past CEO Ogilvy

Special activations throughout the day will include:

• An opportunity to win a VIP lunch with Martha Stewart
• Products available to shop from the Martha Stewart American Made Market
• DIY crafts taught by Martha Stewart Living editors
• Food sampling and demonstrations
• Vignette displays from each of the 10 Martha Stewart American Made winners
• Breakfast and lunch provided by hand-picked artisanal purveyors
• Closing cocktail party Sponsored by Hyatt House

About the Martha Stewart American Made Initiative:

Martha Stewart American Made is a nationally recognized awards program that celebrates stars of the growing maker culture who have turned their passions for handcrafted, well-designed goods into successful small businesses and proudly make their products in America. The 2014 American Made competition honors these creative entrepreneurs across the food, crafts, style and design categories, and awards a cash prize of $10,000 to each of the 10 winners, a trip for two to New York City to attend the American Made Summit, a spot in our Martha Stewart American Made Market, and the opportunity to be featured on MarthaStewart.com and in Martha Stewart Living, as well as marketing and public relations support to help move their businesses forward.

A panel of judges led by Martha and made up of members of the Martha Stewart Living executive editorial team will select nine grand prize winners; additionally, one grand prize winner will be chosen by popular vote. All winners will be announced on October 17.