Published: October 17, 2022
UT To Host Three Local Business Leaders for Networking Event
The owners of Hampton Chocolate Factory and PHDermatology, as well as the CEO of Verséa Holdings, will be featured at The University of Tampa’s first Business Network Symposium event in the 2022-2023 series Tuesday, Oct. 18.
The event will be held in the Vaughn Center, and is free, though RSVP is required.
The event will be held on the ninth floor of the Vaughn Center on campus, and will begin with on-site networking at 7:15 a.m. before the program starts at 7:45 a.m. Complimentary coffee will be served. It’s a free event, but attendees must RSVP to events@ut.edu.
Austin Gappelberg '22 is the owner of Hampton Chocolate Factory in Tampa, a novelty confectionary shop located at Sparkman Wharf. The chocolate store was originally founded by his parents in New York, and Gappelberg spent his childhood working in the family shop. Last spring, Gappelberg and his younger brother, Austin '23, opened a new franchise in Tampa to own and operate themselves, while they were both still students at UT.
Amy Ross is a board-certified dermatologist and fellowship-trained Mohs surgeon with over a decade of experience as a clinician and healthcare executive. Upon completion of her surgical fellowship, Ross founded PHDermatology as a solo practitioner. She successfully expanded her practice to four locations and 12 providers serving the Tampa Bay community and grew into leading a multi-state dermatology support organization: Dermatology Medical Partners.
Sean Fetcho is the CEO of Verséa Holdings Inc., a global healthcare company committed to transforming scientific discoveries into applicable health and wellness solutions. Fetcho’s shared passion for the evolving healthcare industry and for building early-stage companies prompted him to drive explosive growth for Verséa over the past few years. Prior to Verséa, Fetcho’s roster of early-stage and start-up companies included multiple industries spanning from agrotech, online consumer magazines and finance.
The event is sponsored by The University of Tampa Board of Fellows and the Tampa Bay Business Journal. The presenting sponsor is TD Bank.
The Board of Fellows holds this networking event three times a year to allow industry leaders the opportunity to share their accomplishments and plans for businesses that are well-known, changing or new to the Tampa Bay area. The next Business Network Symposium will be held on Jan. 24, 2023, and the final symposium is scheduled for April 18, 2023.
For more information, contact Tiffany Garcia, director of volunteer engagement, at tgarcia@ut.edu or (813) 257-1700
