Full Name
Andre C Vener
Job Title
Founding Partner
Company Name
Dog Haus
Speaker Bio
André Vener is a seasoned executive and award-winning pioneer in the hospitality space, with more than 25 years of expertise in restaurant development and franchising, large-scale event production and promotion, creative brand building and revenue generation. Andreì co-founded Dog Haus in October 2010, with the mission to elevate stadium food classics into gourmet culinary creations. Dog Haus has since expanded from its Pasadena, Calif., base to more than 75 locations across 20 states, including 50+ brick-and-mortar restaurants. Andreì has helped spearhead the craft-casual brand's rapid expansion by embracing continuous menu innovation, cutting-edge technology and creative collaborations and partnerships, while consistently pushing both culinary and service boundaries in the ever-changing restaurant industry.
André has been interviewed as a restaurant industry expert on multiple national platforms, including CNN, FOX News Channel and MSNBC. He and his Dog Haus partners were featured on the cover of QSR Magazine’s April 2020 edition, and they have been profiled in Entrepreneur magazine, Food & Wine and more.

Prior to co-founding Dog Haus, André served as Executive Producer of Pasadena Entertainment, where he produced hundreds of events in venues of all sizes, including The Rose Bowl, Los Angeles County Arboretum, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and more. André founded and operated redwhite+bluezz, an award-winning restaurant and jazz club that served great food, wine and live music for eight years. Before entering the hospitality industry, André served as CEO & President of the California Philharmonic for 10 years. Under his leadership, the orchestra performed its annual concert series at noted venues such as Walt Disney Concert Hall, The Ambassador Auditorium and Santa Anita Race Track.

André earned his Executive MBA in 2007 from the Claremont Graduate School of Management, and his BA in Psychology from San Francisco State University. A competitive athlete, André played soccer in college and served as captain of the LA-based semi-pro soccer club Euro Stars. He has played across the US, as well as in Germany, Holland and Costa Rica. André enjoys sharing his passions for food, wine and world travel with friends and family. He, his wife Amanda and daughter Ava live in Pasadena and enjoy spending weekends on Catalina Island.