Anat Baron

Futurist, Tech Entrepreneur & Former Head of Mike’s Hard Lemonade

After more than three decades of leading major organizations through periods of internal upheaval, intense competition, and market disruption, Anat Baron has perfected the art of identifying, staying ahead of and shaping trends. A sought-after futurist and strategic advisor, Anat helps business leaders drive innovation, create trends and leverage technological disruption.

Anat is currently the Founder and CEO of StashWall, a technology startup. She is perhaps best known as the chief executive behind Mike’s Hard Lemonade. Within three years, she grew Mike’s into a $200+ million juggernaut, establishing a new product category in the ultra-competitive beer industry. She achieved this despite her allergy to alcohol.

Anat has intentionally tested new industries, pursuing her passion for creative innovation, meaningful stories and the bleeding edge of technological innovations. This journey took her from her early work with well-known hotel brands like Four Seasons, Holiday Inn and Radisson to her years as a Hollywood executive and producer, and through her career in the beverage industry. Anat wrote, produced and directed “Beer Wars,” an award-winning documentary film that examines the changing face of the beer industry as a metaphor for exploring capitalism and free enterprise in 21st-century America.

Her breadth of experience and passion for new ideas have enabled her to discern when a trend is a trend or when it represents actual disruption. From her childhood obsession with the Jetsons and Star Trek to her forays into AI and automation, she continually evaluates what’s real and what’s next, which empowers her to guide businesses.

Anat’s insights have been featured in over 500 TV, radio/podcast, print and online media outlets, including CNN, Fox News, CBS, ABC, NBC, WB, NPR, Inc., Entrepreneur, New York Post and the Los Angeles Times.

Joy Powers

Joy Powers is an award-winning journalist and a host and producer of Lake Effect on 89.7 WUWM, Milwaukee’s NPR. During her time at Lake Effect, her work has been recognized by the Edward R. Murrow Awards, Milwaukee Press Club, Wisconsin Broadcasters Association, and the Public Media Journalists Association.

Before joining Lake Effect, Joy was a director and producer for Afternoon Shift and other shows on WBEZ-fm, Chicago Public Radio. She earned a bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism from Emerson College, Boston, where she worked with several radio and television stations. Before starting her journalism career, she was a professional actor and most notably performed the role of “Katie/Kirsten” in Circle of Friends: An American Girl Musical.

Joy grew up in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, and now lives on the near south side of Milwaukee with her husband, Logan, and their many pets.