Billy Whalen is the Associate Marketing Director at TiNDLE Foods, a startup creating innovative, delicious, and sustainable foods from plants. Billy comes from an extensive food & beverage industry background, having held multiple marketing leadership roles with better-for-you brands that prioritize transparent ingredient and sourcing practices. At TiNDLE, Billy oversees the marketing department in the U.S., looking after its growing retail segment and supporting sales efforts through new product launches, shopper marketing, insights and analytics, and brand events. Before joining TiNDLE, he managed 360 marketing programs at both KIND Snacks and Glacéau (the company behind Vitaminwater and Smartwater), executing partnerships, events, and shopper campaigns that helped herald the brands from startups to national, household names. Passionate about growing early-stage companies, he moved on to lead the shopper marketing department for Seal the Seasons – a company conquering seasonal challenges for local farmers through quality frozen solutions – and acted as a strategic marketing consultant for SOMOS Foods during a significant period of scale for the emerging company. Billy is a native of North Dakota and currently resides in Minneapolis. Outside of work, he enjoys spending quality time with his family, visiting local breweries and restaurants, attending concerts, and exploring the outdoors.