In 2001 Scott founded Enjoy Life Foods, a company dedicated to developing, manufacturing, and marketing great tasting allergy friendly food products. In 2015 he sold to Mondelez International Inc. in an all-cash transaction, and retains a seat on the board to this day. In addition to starting Enjoy Life, Scott effectively created the “Free From” category through thought leadership, education, and certification standards, including his efforts in advising the creation of the gluten free certification organization (GFCO), the largest gluten free certification program in the world. Enjoy Life became the first company to have its facility and products certified by the GFCO.

Scott is the founder and Principal of Mandell Consulting Group and established Mandell Ventures, a family office partnership focused on investments in founder led early-stage food & beverage and CPG businesses.

Scott is also a co-chair of the FARE PACT Alliance Manufacturing Working Group, focusing on commercially optimizing manufacturing, operations, and consistent labeling practices industrywide.

In 2016, Scott was named by Food Processing magazine as one of five company leaders who are “revolutionizing Big Food”. In 2015, he was named as an EY Entrepreneur of The Year® Award Winner, was the Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE) Chicago Gala Honoree in 2014, was named to the Crain’s Chicago Business “40 Under 40” list in 2008 and was inducted into the Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame in 2006.

Scott is also a board member, strategic advisor, and former president of Cannabistry (2017-2023), a company that develops, markets, and sells cannabis infused products under the brands Tough Mama, Mistifi and The Root of it All in the legal California cannabis market.

From 1993-2001, Scott was a vice president in commercial banking at American National Bank / Bank One (currently JP Morgan Chase). Scott was a lender and relationship manager for middle market business clients throughout the Chicagoland area.

Scott has been a member of the Young Presidents Organization (currently YPO-Gold) since 2009, as well as a mentor to many upstart entrepreneurs. He was a board member for the SPOON Foundation (2016-2019), an organization that helps children suffering from malnutrition throughout the world.

Scott earned an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management (Northwestern University) in 2001 with concentrations in Entrepreneurship & Innovation, Finance, and Management & Strategy. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from Indiana University (Bloomington) in 1993 with a major in History and a minor in Business.

Scott is an avid sports fan and enjoys golfing, skiing, paddle tennis, and poker. He resides in the Chicago area with his wife and their three children.

Eric brings over 25 years of experience building and leading corporate business development teams in the software industry, including a 15-year career at Microsoft and 8 years at Google. Eric is also an active investor in a number of growth-stage packaged food businesses focused on serving the food-allergic community. He is also Co-creator of the FARE PACT Alliance focused on commercially reaching consumers with food allergies, and serves as Co-Chair of the Marketing Working Group. This personal mission is inspired by his own experience managing life-threatening food allergies since the 1970’s.

Eric is a Limited Partner (LP) in Allerfund, the only VC fund dedicated to accelerating the development of new treatments, diagnostics, and products for children and adults with or at risk of developing food allergies. He also served as an advisor to Alphabet’s independent venture fund, CapitalG, for a two-year term, during which he advised numerous portfolio companies on B2B growth and channel sales.

Eric’s educational background is a testament to his dedication and curiosity. He holds an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management, an MS in Data Science from Brandeis University, and a BS in Computer Information Systems from American University. During his two-year residence at MIT, Eric's focus was onunderstanding the opportunities and challenges in the $170 Bn “Free From” food market. He used every project to study the topic from multiple perspectives, including competitive strategy, entrepreneurial strategy, marketing, finance, and organizational process.

He lives in the Washington, DC area with his wife, and two teenage children who love his commitment to making Free From food more accessible to the masses.