Virtual Round Table Conversation - Mr. Tariq Farid , Founder & CEO of Edible Brands - Moderated by Dr. Richie Karaburun

Tariq Farid is the founder and CEO of Edible Brands, the parent company that includes Edible Arrangements, the pioneer and worldwide leader in innovative gifts and treats including fresh fruit arrangements, baked goods, savory snacks and more. Tariq has founded or acquired companies in the fields of technology, distribution and supply chain management, and he also established the charitable Tariq & Asma Farid Foundation. Additionally, Tariq is a member of the International Franchise Association (IFA) Board of Directors, was named IFA’s Entrepreneur of the Year in 2009, and was inducted into IFA’s Hall of Fame in 2018.

Dr. Recep “Richie” Karaburun, aka “Dr. K”, is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Hospitality and Tourism at the NYU School of Professional Studies Jonathan M. Tisch Center for Hospitality and Tourism. He has his doctoral degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing at the Lubin School of Business at Pace University in New York. He earned an MBA from the George Argyros School of Business and Economics, Chapman University, in Orange, California, in 2001 and a BBA in International Relations from the Uludag University, in Bursa, Turkey, in 1991.

With more than two decades of experience in the travel industry, Karaburun is recognized as an industry expert in helping travel companies start and develop a growth strategy and business. He has served on numerous industry panel presentations across a number of disciplines - sales leadership, marketing, hotel and other supplier negotiations, team building, leadership, and travel operations.

He has been teaching many classes at the NYUSPS Jonathan M. Tisch Center of Hospitality since 2014. Karaburun is the recipient of the New York University School of Professional Studies Excellence in Teaching Award in 2018 and Outstanding Service Award in 2019. He last served as Managing Director, North America, of Roomer, an online peer-to-peer marketplace for travel. Prior to Roomer, Karaburun was Vice President of Global Supplier Relations at RADIUS, President at GTA North America, and Vice President of Product Development and Contracting at American Tours International, achieving high-value revenue and profit gains, gaining large-scale cost savings, improving organizational productivity, and performance at each.

Dr. Karaburun’s research interests include cultural differences in service quality, social contentedness in social media, how hotels use social media in customer engagements, the impact of nationalism in consumer ethnocentrism and the impact of culture in International Marketing and hotel distribution strategies in international markets. Karaburun lives in New Jersey with his wife and two sons.