A graduate of George Brown Culinary Management and Italian Culinary Arts program, Kathlyne is a chef by trade and has worked in the restaurant industry for several years. As a chef, Kathlyne was able to travel and live abroad in Italy and Australia for several years before returning home Toronto.
Shortly after her return, Kathlyne became the R&D chef at Summerfresh Salads. In this role, she began to understand more about food science and started to develop her expertise in food manufacturing. In 2001, there was an opportunity to move into a product development role at Loblaw Companies which she happily accepted.
In the following years, Kathlyne developed products for multiple house brands, including President’s Choice, across such categories as dry grocery, frozen meat & seafood, hors d'oeuvres, deli, bakery and readymade food items (HMR).
After a maternity leave in 2006, Kathlyne returned to Loblaw as a category manager ready to take on new challenges. She managed the deli cheese desk for three years and in this time dedicated herself to becoming a true cheese expert.
Kathlyne took several courses through the Cheese Education Guild and was recognized by La Guilde Internationale des Fromagers in France as a Garde et Juré member. In 2010, after gaining much insight and experience within category management at Loblaw Companies, she returned to the Loblaw Brands group as Sr. Director of Deli, Bakery and HMR.
In order to gain additional experience and add to her growth and development, she was given the opportunity to do a six-month secondment at Marks and Spencer in England. Upon her return, Kathlyne took over the role of VP Product Development and Innovation.
Kathlyne has been recognized by the industry, receiving a Star Women in Grocery Award from Canadian Grocer in 2016 and nominated by George Brown College for a Premier’s Award in 2018. An executive board member of the Canadian Food Innovation Network, Kathlyne continues her journey and great passion for the food industry in Canada and abroad.