Our Story
Tastemaker Conference was born out of a simple yet powerful desire: to bring together food creators in a meaningful, inspiring way. In 2017, founder Abbey Rodriguez dreamed up the idea from her bedroom home office, balancing life as a full-time food blogger, freelancer, and mom. She longed for a space that felt warm, intentional, and built specifically for creators like her — where industry education, collaboration, and connection could thrive. When she realized that space didn’t exist, she created it.
What started as a grassroots vision has grown into a cornerstone of the food creator economy. Tastemaker Conference now hosts multiple sold-out events each year, blending top-tier in-person experiences with dynamic virtual education. We’ve built a vibrant, inclusive community that empowers bloggers, influencers, and creators to level up their businesses and spark lasting relationships.
From immersive workshops and hands-on excursions to meaningful networking and thought-provoking panels, every Tastemaker experience is crafted with care — and a little magic. Whether you’re attending online or in person, you’ll leave feeling inspired, connected, and equipped to grow in today’s ever-evolving digital landscape.
Meet The Team
Abbey Rodriguez
founder & CEO
Abbey Rodriguez is the founder of Tastemaker Conference, and The Butter Half, a food blog that combines gluten-free recipes, herbal cooking, and holistic nutrition and wellness education for the whole family. After three years of growing her community online, she was inspired to create a real-life community where other creators could come together. Tastemaker Conference was born in 2017 out of this mission to empower bloggers and influencers to build sustainable businesses and relationships through food.
Abbey has worked with hundreds of brands and organizations, providing recipe development, food photography, and influencer marketing consulting. Abbey is also a certified herbalist and holistic nutritionist, and is the co-author of the cookbook, Root & Nourish: An Herbal Cookbook for Women’s Wellness.
In an effort to educate and empower the creator industry, Abbey is currently pursuing her Master’s degree in Sociology at George Mason University, where she is studying Digital Sociology, and using her background in the influencer marketing industry to inform her thesis, “The Politics of the Creator Economy.”
Abbey resides in the D.C. metropolitan area, with her children and their ever-growing pet family.
Chandice Probst
COO + SPONSORSHIP DIRECTOR
Chandice Probst is the bubbly personality behind both This Vivacious Life and Holiday Food and Fun. She is a food and entertaining blogger and the co-author of Gluten-Free on a Budget with her mom. Chandice’s work has been featured in print and online industry publications, as well as on television. As someone with Celiac Disease and a degree in exercise and health wellness, she has led the charge in hosting Celiac awareness nights with MLB and NBA teams around the nation as well as working with the Celiac Disease Foundation to raise money for research.
Chandice has been with Abbey since the first Tastemaker Conference in Salt Lake City and has loved getting to know the community at each subsequent event. Working with sponsors to help them achieve their marketing goals and planning fun experiences for guests is where she thrives. From conceptualizing booths and brand activations, to creating menus and organizing all excursions for Tastemaker Conference, Chandice loves creating moments that everyone will remember for many years to come. The best part? She gets to do it with the greatest team ever!
While Chandice loves to cook, entertain, travel and plan for Tastemaker Conference, she loves being a wife and mother most.
Leslie Jackson
DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS & EVENTS
Leslie first discovered her passion for events when she volunteered—without any prior experience—to organize a community fun run for over 500 people. The success of that project led to a role as race director for her city’s recreation department, launching a career that now spans over a decade of planning community, political, corporate, and influencer events.
She’s been with Tastemaker Conference since the beginning and has played a key role in shaping its growth. As the force behind the Virtual Tastemaker Conference and brand webinar series, Leslie creates engaging digital programming that brings food creators and brands together in meaningful ways. She’s known for staying closely connected to the pulse of the food creator community and designing content that speaks directly to their real-world challenges and goals.
At home, Leslie is married to her amazing husband and is a proud mom of three. When she’s not working, she’s likely fussing over her 50+ houseplants or cooking up recipes from her Tastemaker foodie friends.
Daphne Davis
Project Manager
Daphne is the Project Manager at Tastemaker Conference. With 4 years of experience as an educator, Daphne is well-versed in the art of using data to make informed decisions, as well as creating spontaneous solutions to adapt to the real-time needs of her audience. Daphne received her M.Ed in Teacher Leadership from Utah Valley University, and she is an advocate for applying relevant research in adult learning theory to the curriculum and structure of Tastemaker Conference.
In addition to her role on the operations team, Daphne also manages sponsor relations, manages event marketing, produces the Tastemaker Talk podcast, launched the Networking Roundtables and the Tastemaker Photo Contest at TC 2024, and assists attendees in having the best possible experience both from afar and IRL.
Daphne loves to read, try new coffee shops in Salt Lake City, and educate the TC team on the latest TikTok trends.
Advisory Board
Our advisory board helps guide Tastemaker Conference with heart, purpose, and a commitment to our community. Made up of diverse voices from across the creator space, the board offers insight and perspective to help us stay aligned with our mission and core values of community, education & experience. From championing inclusivity to shaping programs that reflect the evolving needs of our industry, our board ensures we’re building a supportive, forward-thinking space where all creators can thrive.
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