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Founded In 2010 By Mike Thelin
Bolted is an organizational design, experience and partnership consultancy with a record of building and growing organizations in the civic, cultural, culinary, urban design, and hospitality ecosystems.
We help our clients and partners identify and express their unique point of view through organizational strategy, inventive programming, effective partnerships, skillful communication, and compelling immersive experiences--uniting individuals and organizations in ways that build community, increase connection and mutual benefit, and reinforce vision and purpose. Our work has resulted in world-class culinary festivals, immersive experiential and storytelling campaigns, food-centric urban design projects, and strategic road maps that have enabled organizations to grow revenue, attract and retain partners, create wonderful programming, and earn global recognition in media and culture.
Services
Organizational

Project and Program Design, Revenue Modeling

Culinary

Strategy, Talent, Engagement, Programming

Media and Community

Messaging, Engagement, Campaign Direction

Sponsorship and Partnership

Strategy, Implementation, Engagement

Immersive Experience

Concept and Activation Design, Talent Strategy, Engagement

Programming

Editorial and Narrative Design

Mike Thelin
After a decade of living and working around the US and Europe, Mike returned to Portland and became a food writer and culinary event producer as that city’s food scene was about to take flight. After leading a successful conference of the International Association of Culinary Professionals (then the largest culinary association in the world), bringing hundreds of media and food-world insiders to Portland in 2010, Mike was tasked to launch the Eater Awards in New York City later that year, and recruited to oversee programming, talent and sponsorship for the largest food and wine festival in Texas–these projects launching Bolted Consulting.

The following year, Mike co-founded his own festival Feast Portland, which debuted in 2012. With deep local support and a title media partnership with Bon Appétit, Feast was an immediate success, once dubbed “perhaps the best food festival in the world” by legendary UK Guardian writer Marina O’Loughlin. In 2017, Mike joined Austin BBQ pitmaster Aaron Franklin and partners to create Hot Luck, a multi-day food and music festival in Texas.

Through Bolted, Mike has helped organizations large and small creatively solve organizational and business challenges. As a festival executive producer, he’s helped launch two of the most beloved culinary events in America. Mike has been a food critic and columnist for two prominent Portland publications, a talking head in 42 episodes of  the popular Cooking Channel show Unique Eats, a commentator for the 2022 Netflix Street Food Portland, writer of the Oregon chapter of the Phaidon America cookbook, founding co-editor of Eater Portland, and has served as a judge for the James Beard Foundation. His events have donated more than $550,000 to local and national charities. He lives in Portland and is active in civic and community organizations.
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