---
title: "Investment Summit returns to CREATE to connect emerging brands with investors"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/52a855dd-dfbd-4bd0-8b05-c92c0fe4121d
source: "Nation's Restaurant News"
original_url: https://www.nrn.com/emerging-chains/investment-summit-returns-to-create-to-connect-emerging-brands-with-investors
author: "Sam Oches"
category: "Finance"
topics: ["Finance & M&A","Emerging brands"]
published: 2026-06-02T19:52:11.000Z
modified: 2026-10-31T13:16:14.539Z
image: https://eu-images.contentstack.com/v3/assets/bltea7aee2fca050a19/blt0da3caba1bb39b45/6a1f34d30e9c930eae27b1e4/TERR_Food_and_Wine_Festival_1.jpg?width=1280&auto=webp&quality=80&disable=upscale
---

# Investment Summit returns to CREATE to connect emerging brands with investors

**TL;DR:** The CREATE Investment Summit will return this July to connect emerging restaurant chains with investors, featuring networking and educational sessions. The summit, supported by Savory Fund, includes a keynote fireside chat between Nation's Restaurant News editor in chief Sam Oches and Chipotle CEO Scott Boatwright.

*By Sam Oches, originally published in Nation's Restaurant News on 2026-06-02. [Read the original](https://www.nrn.com/emerging-chains/investment-summit-returns-to-create-to-connect-emerging-brands-with-investors).*

## Story

Nation’s Restaurant News and CREATE: The Event for Emerging Restaurateurs are excited to announce the return of the Investment Summit, a special content and networking opportunity for leaders of emerging restaurant brands and members of the investment community.

The annual Investment Summit — which kicks off this year’s CREATE, held July 20-22 at the Terranea Resort outside Los Angeles — features networking between emerging brands and investors, as well as a block of main-stage sessions designed to educate operators on the financial resources available to them.

“The Investment Summit has become a highlight of each CREATE, providing resources for emerging restaurant chains specifically looking for capital and growth insights that can help them scale,” said Sam Oches, editor in chief of Nation’s Restaurant News. “Hundreds of brand leaders have participated in our Investment Summit to date, and many have established valuable connections with potential investors — some of which have led to deals.”

This year’s Investment Summit, which is once again supported by gold sponsor Savory Fund and, like CREATE, is free for participating restaurant operators, includes a keynote fireside chat between Oches and Chipotle CEO Scott Boatwright, who will discuss Chipotle’s growth and the unique challenges of being a public company.

New to this year’s Investment Summit is 1-to-1 networking, in which participating brand leaders will have the opportunity to connect directly with investors in speed-dating-style, one-on-one conversations.

“The Investment Summit is an opportunity like no other, as emerging restaurant leaders rarely get a chance to connect with so many members of the investment community in one place,” Oches said. “If you have a growing restaurant brand and you’re interested in exploring the financial paths available to you, you can’t afford to miss this free event.”

## Entities

- private equity (topic)
- Nation's Restaurant News (publication)
- Finance (sector)
- Chipotle (company)
- emerging brands (topic)
- Scott Boatwright (person)
- Sam Oches (person)
- Savory Fund (investor)
- restaurant finance (topic)
- Terranea Resort (location)
- CREATE (company)
- investment summit (topic)

---
Originally reported by Sam Oches, Nation's Restaurant News (https://www.nrn.com/emerging-chains/investment-summit-returns-to-create-to-connect-emerging-brands-with-investors). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/52a855dd-dfbd-4bd0-8b05-c92c0fe4121d).