About Us
STEVE BIGARI: CEO
Steve Bigari is a tireless entrepreneur and innovator who has successfully started 14 companies and has made his mark on the quick service industry over the past two decades. As 19-year McDonald’s operator of 12 restaurants and innovation chairman at McDonald’s, Mr. Bigari inspired, instigated or innovated now familiar products such as Ronald’s Playplace, remote call center ordering, credit and debit card acceptance, and the Made For You™ production model. Mr. Bigari grew his McDonald’s restaurants from $1.5 million to $20 million in just 12 years. Mr. Bigari’s reputation in the restaurant industry that has catapulted him into the top 5% of all consultants in the restaurant industry with the Gerson Lehman Group (GLG) of 150,000 consultants. He is the winner of the 2006 Colorado Springs Business Citizen of the Year, the owner of three restaurant industry patents, and a graduate of United State Military Academy at West Point.
Mr. Bigari founded America’s Family out of his twenty years of experience as a McDonald’s franchisee in Colorado Springs. Across Mr. Bigari’s twelve restaurants, several thousand low-income families received assistance with health care, transportation, short-term loans, job skills training, and housing. After being inducted as an Ashoka fellow (www.ashoka.org) Mr. Bigari founded America’s Family to provide low-income families with access to capital, financial education, and financial coaching relationships to help move individuals out of working poverty. Mr. Bigari is the author of The Box You Got: Transforming the World You Live In. A highly sought-after speaker, Mr. Bigari has spoken before the Bankers Association International and the FDIC on the need for greater collaboration and innovation in lending directly to low-income families. In 2008, Mr. Bigari oversaw the creation of AF Solutions—wholly-owned subsidiary of America’s Family chartered as a supervised lender in the state of Colorado. AF Solutions has access to hundreds of thousands of dollars in lending capital provided by banks and credit unions for the purpose of creating new models of lending to poor families.
Kim Shugart: V.P. of Marketing
Kim Shugart has dedicated himself to becoming a contributor in the community, serving on the board of America's Family and helping to modernize the youth ministry at New Life Church. As founder of the Clear Ink Foundation, he has contributed to local nonprofits in support of their missions.
Kim Shugart has over 20 years experience in local, regional, and national advertising and marketing. He was one of the founding partners in Shugart Matson Young, Inc., and also served as the CEO and President of Clear Ink Corporation, an advertising agency based out of California. In 1998, he was named Northern California’s Advertising Person of the Year.
Matt Favier: V.P. of Technology
Matt has a proven track record of innovation and operations in many facets of the technology. As owner of Technovate, LLC, Matt has helped pioneer such technology as the fast food call center, online order taking, and other exciting innovations.
Matt has a Business Degree from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs.
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