Julie Raye

Julie Raye serves as Chief Marketing Officer for The Bartolotta Restaurants, a role in which she leads all strategic marketing and sales efforts, including marketing communications, advertising, promotions, and market research, for the award-winning Milwaukee-based restaurant and catering organization. Since 2016, Ms. Raye has been instrumental in growing the company’s food and beverage portfolio, achieving significant, progressive sales growth on an annual basis while leading the launch of new The Bartolotta Restaurants brands, including Mr. B’s Mequon, Kohl’s Corporate, and The Italian Community Center. Additionally, she has significantly increased The Bartolotta Restaurants’ digital presence, allowing the company to engage more closely with a growing family of customers through its websites, rewards membership program, and Care-A-Lotta community outreach efforts.

“I have always been drawn to companies that serve a greater purpose and I enjoy helping them make a step change in performance,” Ms. Raye explains. “I began my working life at the age of 14 as a dishwasher in a restaurant and I found it incredibly rewarding to come back to this industry and have the opportunity to make such a meaningful impact.”

Prior to joining The Bartolotta Restaurants, Ms. Raye served as Vice President of Brand Strategy for Brandgarten, a brand research and strategy consulting firm based in Madison, Wisconsin. She also served as Brand Strategist for American Family Insurance and spent eight years as Director of Marketing for the Wisconsin Historical Society, leading the organization through a major rebranding initiative and its first-ever capital campaign.

Ms. Raye began her professional career at Kimberly Clark Corporation, where she spent 10 years managing the marketing programs for a variety of businesses, beginning as a Marketing Assistant and rising to the role of Marketing Director in the organization’s Family Care sector.

Ms. Raye holds a Master of Business Administration from the State University of New York at Buffalo and a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Canisius College. Through her work and volunteer efforts, she is particularly drawn to organizations that serve a greater purpose and enjoys helping them make a step change in their performance. Ms. Raye has been actively involved with a number of nonprofit organizations, including A Fund for Women, United Way Fox Cities, and the Wisconsin Historical Foundation; and she serves as Vice President of Communications on the board of Milwaukee-based Professional Dimensions, a leading women’s professional organization.