Chris LICATA

Chris Licata is a Leadership Coach at velocityHUB. He is the CEO of the Tecnica Group USA, a designer & manufacturer of ski boots, outdoor footwear, after-ski footwear, and in-line skating products for men and women.

Prior to the Tecnica Group, Chris served as the President & CEO of Blake’s All Natural Foods, a Concord, NH-based Organic and Natural food manufacturer. Since taking over as CEO of Blake’s in 2006 the business has grown from a small, regional New England brand to a national brand selling to more than 10,000 retailers in 50 states. Under Chris’s leadership, Blake’s has earned consistent recognition as the fastest growing brand in the Natural Foods category. The growth and success of Blake’s ultimately led to the acquisition of Blake’s by ConAgra Foods, one of the largest food companies in the world. In 2014 Chris was named the NH Small Business Person of the Year by The United States Small Business Administration.

Prior to joining Blake’s Chris spent his previous 20 years in the ski, outdoor and action sports industry, holding several leadership positions such as President of Tecnica/Blizzard, President of Dynastar/Lange/Look and Vice President of Salomon North America. He was also a member of the Board of Directors of the Snowsports Industries of America, the ski and snowboard industry’s governing body.

Chris holds a bachelor’s degree in Management from Western New England University, where he was a four-year member of the lacrosse team. In his free time Chris is an avid and mildly obsessive skier, snowboarder and year-round surfer. He is also an active board member to several other companies and enjoys working with other entrepreneurs as they scale their businesses. Chris is also involved in the lacrosse community, serving as a founding member, director and coach of the Hopkinton Lacrosse Club. He is also an active coach with the NH Tomahawks, an elite development lacrosse program.

Chris lives in Hopkinton, NH with his wife Amy and his daughters Blake and Lucy.

“There may be people that have more talent than you, but there’s no excuse for someone to work harder than you do”