Olivia Simpson | Age 29
Co-founder/partner, Ricky+Olivia Events, Jordan, Ont.
While pursuing a degree in food science and nutrition from George Brown College, Oliva Simpson fell in love with restaurant kitchens. She held roles at Bar Buca as garde manger, at O&B’s Malaparte, as events cook and at Hawthorne Food & Drink as a chef and culinary instructor. She also travelled and lived in New York City, staging and working in some of New York’s finest; including Dirt Candy, Mission Chinese, and Blue Hill Stone Barns.
In 2018 she started Ricky+Olivia Events with partner Ricky Casipe, hosting popup events in and around Toronto. Over the last four years Ricky+Olivia Events has built partnerships with Wine Country Ontario, the Ontario Culinary Tourism Alliance, the Dairy Farmers of Ontario, 100km Foods, Westcott Vineyards and Dillon’s Distillery to name a few.
