Denise Woodard

Denise is the Founder and CEO of Partake Foods, a natural food company that was inspired by her daughter’s experience with food allergies. Launched in 2017, Partake’s first product — delicious, better for you, allergy-friendly cookies — can now be found in more than 14,000 retailers including Target, Kroger, and Whole Foods Market. Partake’s offerings have since expanded to include graham crackers, vanilla wafers and pancake & waffle mixes.

Denise is the first Black woman to raise more than $1 Million publicly for a CPG food startup. To date, the company has raised over $25M from investors including HER, Rihanna, CircleUp Growth Partners, FF2032 and Marcy Venture Partners. Partake was named #151 on the Inc 5000 list in 2023.

Prior to launching Partake, Denise spent a decade in consumer packaged goods at various Fortune 100 companies. She is also the founder of 501c3, Black Futures Fellowship, an annual program that matches active HBCU students with paid internships in the CPG food & beverage industry. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, Jeremy, and daughter, Vivienne. She graduated with her BA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an MBA from Arizona State University.