Lauren Smith of Hugs Cafe to be featured at DallasMeetup
The team at DallasMeetup is proud to announce Lauren Smith, CEO of Hugs Cafe, Inc., is the latest Featured Networker Debut joining DallasMeetup at Texas Live!
Lauren Smith is the CEO of Hugs Cafe Inc., an award-winning nonprofit social enterprise creating meaningful employment and training opportunities for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Since joining Hugs as its first administrative employee, Lauren has helped grow the organization from a single café in historic downtown McKinney into a multi-program enterprise that includes Hugs Greenhouse, Hugs Training Academy, Hugs Home Cooking, Hugs Affiliates, Hugs Cafe Dallas, and the soon-to-open Hugs HQ campus.
Lauren's leadership has earned recognition, including being named a 2025 Dallas Business Journal 40 Under 40 honoree and helping Hugs Cafe earn D CEO's 2024 Social Enterprise of the Year award as well as a feature on the Kelly Clarkson Show. Her work has been featured in The Hugs Effect and NBC5 Texas Today for redefining what inclusive employment can look like in North Texas.
Lauren is passionate about helping nonprofits, businesses, and communities discover the power of inclusive hiring and social enterprise. She regularly speaks on leadership, disability employment, nonprofit innovation, and building organizations that create both financial sustainability and meaningful social impact. Lauren lives in downtown McKinney and serves as the Secretary/Treasurer of McKinney MainStreet. She spends most of her time off being a patron of local shops and restaurants across DFW with her husband, Brian, and goldendoodle, Merlin.
Make plans to meet Lauren and her team August 13th! Register Here.
