Founder of Mrs. Fields Cookies to speak at Women Entrepreneurs Inspire Conference
Monday, March 4, 2013
Debbi Fields made the decision in 1977 to open a chocolate chip cookie bakeshop and store, and in 20-plus years she built her business from scratch into one of the most visible, successful dessert empires in the United States. The founder of Mrs. Fields Cookies, she will be sharing her story at the 2013 Women Entrepreneurs (WE) Inspire Conference.
WE Inspire 2013 is hosted by the Riata Center for Entrepreneurship at Oklahoma State University and will explore the unique obstacles, demands and challenges women face when creating and expanding ventures. The conference is scheduled for April 2 at the Cox Convention Center in Oklahoma City.
“This year’s WE Inspire event will really be the launch of a year-round initiative where women entrepreneurs will be able to inspire each other through workshops, networking events, webinars and much more. We want this to become something where it is not only one day but an ongoing flow of information. We are thrilled to have women like Debbi Fields sharing their experiences and offering encouragement to the women who will be attending this year’s conference,” said Craig Watters, Carl Thoma Distinguished Clinical Professor of Entrepreneurship and acting director of the Riata Center.
The goals of the one-day event are to equip women with the resources they need to turn their business ideas into realities, help them create their own companies, and teach them to make their ventures sustainable.
At the age of 20, Fields was a young housewife with no business experience but she had a dream, a recipe and a passion for sharing her chocolate chip cookies. She managed to do what most people considered impossible. She convinced a bank to finance her business concept which had never before been proven and which appeared on the surface to have little likelihood of success.
On Aug. 16, 1977, Mrs. Fields Chocolate Chippery opened its doors to the public in Palo Alto, Calif. In the next 20-plus years, Fields’ role expanded from managing one shop to supervising operations, brand name management, public relations and product development of her company’s 600-plus company-owned and franchise stores in the U.S. and 10 foreign nations.
Founder, baker, chief cookie lover and former chairman of Mrs. Fields Cookies, a $450 million company she founded, Fields has since sold her company, which is a market leader among fresh-baked cookie stores.
Fields’ business accomplishments and capabilities reach far beyond managing Mrs. Fields, Inc. Today, she sits on the Le Bonheur Foundation and has served as the 2010 “GO RED” chair for the American Heart Association in Memphis. She was the recipient of the Golden Gavel Award, Toastmasters’ highest honor, which is awarded annually to an individual who demonstrates consistent self-improvement, success and leadership.
She is hard at work in her kitchen creating her newest cookie book, The Best of Debbie Fields Cookie Jar, a collaboration involving each of her five daughters to make this a family infused all-time favorite.
WE Inspire 2013 will feature presentations, including breakout sessions that will examine a range of practical issues facing startups and enable women to act on their dreams.
Registration includes a continental breakfast, lunch, networking reception, resource materials and access to highly successful entrepreneurial speakers and experts from throughout the United States, including several Oklahomans. Seating is limited, so women are encouraged to sign up before the deadline.
The early bird registration fee for the WE Inspire Conference is $45 and is available to those who register now. The regular conference registration cost is $75. Register online at www.weinspire.net
Sponsorships and exhibit tables are available. For more information, call the Riata Center for Entrepreneurship at 405-744-7552. Companies interested in sponsorships or exhibit tables for the conference should call Stacey Brandhorst at 405-744-7871 or e-mail her at weinspire@okstate.edu