2022 Summit Presenter Biographies

MARC GOODFRIENDCEO, WeShipExpress
Marc Goodfriend is an innovator, public speaker, and e-commerce industry expert with over 20 years of experience in logistics, SaaS, and supply chain innovation. In April 2020, Marc became Chief Executive Officer for the We Ship Express Group of Companies, working directly under Group Chairman James Delaney. As CEO, Marc has grown We Ship’s market share in the alcohol logistics space, while also expanding licensing and capabilities to provide 3PL services for other regulated e-commerce goods, including spirits, cannabis, tobacco, and e-cigarette vape products. With this expansion, the We Ship Express Group has become the U.S. market share leader in vape shipping, handling all DTC deliveries for brands like JUUL, RJ Reynolds, and Turning Point Brands. In addition to vape, the Group is now operating licensed hub-and-spoke intrastate cannabis delivery networks in several states. Prior to becoming CEO of We Ship Express, Marc led a multi-national global partnerships team at Narvar, the world’s leading post-purchase customer experience SaaS platform; working with brands like Nike, Sephora, Urban Outfitters, Gap, and others to re-imagine the buying experience for online shoppers. Marc has also served in leadership roles at DHL and Newgistics, in which he designed and launched two high-profile e-commerce shipping products (DHL Easy Return and Parcel Metro Same Day) and built custom reverse supply chain solutions for top global brands (Apple, Walmart.com, ASOS), respectively. When not at work, Marc enjoys spending time with his family at home in Kansas City, Missouri, and boating the Lake of the Ozarks with his wife, Kelly, two sons, Sam and Eli, and his dog Stark.

JOHN HINMANFounding Partner, Hinman & Carmichael
John is a founding partner of Hinman & Carmichael, LLP. John has been advising and representing alcoholic beverage industry clients (producer, importer, wholesaler, and retail) since 1976 (when, two years out of law school, he had his first distribution termination case) in all phases of industry regulation, including trade practice, distribution and importation, product fulfillment, retail licensing and wine and spirits licensing and production. Prior to starting his firm with Lynne Carmichael in 1991,  John spent over five years as the General Counsel of a publicly-traded company owning multiple wineries (and 2,000 acres of vineyards) and operating the then-largest direct to consumer winery in the US. John is a specialist in alcohol regulation in California, and throughout the United States, is a regular speaker and panelist at alcoholic beverage industry conferences throughout the US and has provided testimony in legislative and administrative proceedings in California, New York, New Jersey, and Tennessee.  John represents clients before the TTB, the California ABC and the counterpart agencies of other states. John is also a seasoned administrative hearing practitioner who has defended over 200 administrative accusations and hearings (including TTB, ABC and other states) during the last 35 plus years and has taken industry cases as far as the California Supreme Court and has participated in US Supreme Court litigation.  The offenses include sales to minors (including aggravated cases, and second and third strike cases), disorderly houses and law enforcement problem premises, entertainment violations and First Amendment cases, tied house violations, protests of new on-sale and off-sale licenses, violation of condition cases, violation of state DTC regulations and alcoholic beverage industry regulator audits.

CATHY HUYGHECoFounder, Enolytics
Cathy Huyghe is an entrepreneur, writer, and mindfulness proponent. She is the co-founder of Enolytics, a technology-centric disruptor, and provider of business intelligence for the wine industry. She writes about the business and politics of the wine industry in her column for Forbes online, and she also co-creates the content for A Balanced Glass, a community dedicated to wellness in the wine and spirits world. All three of those ventures have been recognized for their innovative contributions, and in 2021 Huyghe was named one of the industry’s Most Inspiring People by the Wine Industry Network.

ANDREW LEVYSenior Vice President, PROVI
Andrew Levy is senior vice president of strategic partnerships at Provi, the fastest-growing B2B e-commerce marketplace for the beverage alcohol industry. In his role, Andrew oversees Provi’s industry-leading brand partnerships and corporate development teams. Andrew brings extensive beverage alcohol experience to his role, having served for eleven years at Constellation Brands Beer Division, one of the largest brewers in the U.S. At Constellation, Andrew served as vice president and part of the sales leadership team where he was responsible for planning, technology, strategy, and sales enablement. Among his accomplishments in this role, Andrew championed and oversaw the development of integrated technology solutions for the sales team and its distributors. Andrew is passionate about unlocking value across all three tiers of the industry by leveraging technology, building actionable insights, and enabling people-based partnerships and investments. In his time with Provi, Andrew has developed the digital B2B advertising strategies that beverage alcohol suppliers can leverage to drive increased sales and distribution and has led Provi’s evolution into a biddable B2B advertising platform. Andrew earned his bachelor’s degree from the University at Buffalo. He also earned a juris doctor degree from Cornell Law School and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

PAUL MABRAYFounder, Pix.Wine
Paul Mabray is one of the wine industry’s foremost thinkers and doers concerning bringing wine into the digital space. He has worked at wine.com, WineShopper, and founded WineDirect. From there, Paul went on to found vintank.com before launching Pix.Wine—a new wine discovery platform that helps retailers put their inventory in front of qualified wine drinkers and helps consumers discover wines. Paul is a sought-after speaker at wine and industry events across the globe. He lives in Napa with his wife, Angelica de Vere Mabray, and their children.

SEAN O’LEARYO’Leary Law Group
Mr. O’Leary has become an authoritative source on the liquor regulatory system. He authored Amicus Curiae briefs at the Federal Appellate Court and State Supreme Court level supporting expansion of markets and innovation in the liquor regulatory space. His opinions and analysis are well respected and sought after by those in the liquor industry. Mr. O’Leary authors the influential blog, Irish Liquor Lawyer and has been cited numerous times in multiple influential publications such as Forbes, Decanter, and Wine Spectator and has made TV several appearances discussing liquor issues. Before beginning the O’Leary Law and Policy Group, LLC, Mr. O’Leary held the position of Chief Legal Counsel with the Illinois Liquor Control Commission. Mr. O’Leary played an important role in setting the direction and policy of the Illinois Liquor Control Commission. He acted as the policy liaison for the governor’s office and drafted regulations and statutes, including “of value” (trade practice) regulations and statutes which provided more opportunities for craft distillers. Mr. O’Leary attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received his law degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law. He lives in Indiana with his beautiful wife Crystal and their son Brendan.

ROBERT TOBIASSENPresident, National Association of Beverage Importers
Robert M. Tobiassen is the President of the National Association of Beverage Importers (NABI), Washington, DC, commencing this position on October 1, 2018. Prior to that appointment, he was the Principal at Tobiassen Consulting Plus Solutions LLC after a 34-year Federal service career with regulatory, taxation, and administrative and judicial enforcement experience with the domestic and global alcohol industry and served in the career Senior Executive Service (SES). As Chief Counsel at the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), U.S. Treasury Department, from 2003 to 2012, he headed a professional and support staff providing comprehensive legal support on taxation, regulatory and administrative law, constitutional law, trial and appellate litigation, international trade and globalization, personnel and equal opportunity, ethics, environmental law, and appropriations and fiscal law. He was responsible for the drafting and reviewing of regulations, administrative rulings, and legislation; developing and reviewing trade agreements; and evaluating enforcement actions under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and the Federal Alcohol Administration Act. He served as the legal liaison with state alcohol regulators, trade associations, public advocacy groups, other federal agencies, and Members of Congress and their staff, including the Joint Committee on Taxation, and foreign governments and international organizations. He is a frequent speaker at alcohol law seminars and a published expert on legal issues concerning alcohol. Mr. Tobiassen holds an A.B. in Political Science with distinction.

DAVE PARKERFounder, Benchmark Wine
While working in Silicon Valley, David Parker owned commercial vineyards in the Alexander and Willamette Valleys and also sold wine under his own brand. He founded Brentwood Wine Company in 1998. He bought and expanded The Wine Market Journal and founded Benchmark Wine Group in 2002. Dave serves as President of The National Association of Wine Retailers.

JULIAN PERRYCEO, Wine-Searcher
Julian has been developing software for more than 40 years and active on the Internet since about 1985. After working at Hewlett-Packard Laboratories an interest in operating systems and networking lead in 1995 to starting a web development and hosting business in London. The first customers of that business were in wine and that started a 25+ year association with the wine trade – initially Sainsbury’s, Berry Bros. & Rudd and later getting Wine-Searcher online in 1999. Now living in Auckland with his dog Dom Perignon Julian has been CEO of Wine-Searcher since 2018. Wife and partner Nicky still runs the London web business and so with daughters at university in the UK the internet keeps them together when traveling isn’t feasible.

TOM WARKExecutive Director, NAWR
Tom Wark has served as NAWR’s Executive Director since 2007. In this role, Tom oversees NAWR operations, budgeting, communications, member recruitment, and services as well as manages the Association’s legislative and litigation support efforts.
Wark has been a part of the wine industry since 1990 as a publicist and media relations professional and marketer working with wineries, retailers, media companies, regional trade associations, and wine industry service providers. He is the publisher of The Fermentation Newsletter, which he has written since 2004. He is a forceful advocate for consumer rights and alcohol industry reform. Tom lives in Salem, Oregon with his wife, Kathy, and son, Henry George.