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Julie Smolyansky President and CEO, Director Lifeway Foods

Julie Smolyansky has been President, CEO and Director of Lifeway Foods – NASDAQ (LWAY); the youngest female CEO of a publicly held firm in history since June 2002. Previously she was the Director of Sales and Marketing for Lifeway Foods, a position she held from September 1997. However, because she is also the daughter of Lifeway founder Michael Smolyansky, one could say Julie has actually been with this successful Chicago Company from the very start. She has vivid memories of being an early “guinea pig,” sampling new flavors and formulations, and traveling to food shows across the country to help her dad as he built his business into the only U.S. Company ever taken public by a Russian immigrant. Working with her father while he was alive and now to build on his successes and take Lifeway into the next generation is Julie’s focus. In her official position at Lifeway, Julie has begun working toward her ultimate goal to take Lifeway’s healthy, natural and organic kefir products from niche to mainstream with a new marketing, advertising, and public relations campaign that has been directly responsible for the growth of Lifeway Foods in the last 10 years. Under Julie’s
direction, Lifeway has seen an increase in sales of over 30 million dollars since she started with Lifeway Foods. Lifeway Foods was selected as Dairy Foods magazine's New Products Company of the Year in 2006. Lifeway Foods was also named 53rd Best Small Company by Forbes 2007, up from 127th in 2006 and 49th Fastest Growing Small Business by Fortune Small Business in 2008, one of only 4 companies to be named five straight years in a row. Recently named one of Crain’s Chicago Business 40 under 40 (2005), her success is the result of good genes and solid training. Julie is a graduate of the University of Illinois at Chicago (B.A., 1996), where she studied effects of advertising and cultural influences on consumer dieting behavior. She has presented research at the American Psychological Association’s Annual Meeting (1996), and has been a speaker at Nutracon’s Annual Anti-Aging Nutraceutical Conference, Chicwit – a woman’s networking group, and the Global Dairy Congress. Julie is on the Board of Directors for First Juice, a private company that sells organic juice for children and babies. Julie serves on the Board of Directors for several non for profit organizations including the Anti-Defamation League, Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society a division of Jewish United Fund, and the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center. She is also a member of the Economic Club of Chicago, The Chicago Club, Young Presidents Organization, Committee of 200, The Chicago Network, and the Chicago Olympics 2016 Committee and member of the board for the International Probiotics Association. She lives in Chicago and in her spare time, Julie plays tennis and is an avid marathoner and loves spending time near the water.

Edward Smolyansky

Chief Financial Officer of Lifeway Foods

Edward Smolyansky has served as the Controller of the Company since June 2002 and acted as an executive assistant to his father, Lifeway's founder, former President and Chief Executive Officer Michael Smolyansky since being receiving his baccalaureate degree in finance from Loyola University of Chicago in December 2001. Edward Smolyansky is the brother of Company President and Chief Executive Officer Julie Smolyansky and the son of Lifeway's Chairperson of the Board of Directors, Ludmila Smolyansky. Edward Smolyansky will now serve as the Chief Executive Officer of the newly acquired Fresh Made.

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Julie Smolyansky

President and CEO, Director Lifeway Foods

Edward Smolyansky

Chief Financial Officer of Lifeway Foods