2018 Business Women's Forum (BWF) To Feature Keynote By Bethenny Frankel, TV Personality, Author

WATERBURY, Conn. - May 30, 2018 - PRLog -- On October 30, 2018, The Business Women's Forum (BWF) will feature keynote speaker Bethenny Frankel, creator of Skinnygirl cocktails, daytime talk show host, reality television star, five-time "New York Times" bestselling author, founder of B Real Products and B Strong Philosophy.

BWF keynote speaker Bethenny Frankel is the creator of the Skinnygirl Cocktails, the first low-calorie cocktail category. The Skinnygirl Cocktails portfolio also grew to include wines, flavored vodkas, and ready-to-drink cocktails. Skinnygirl has since expanded into a $100 million dollar lifestyle empire featuring products for women that offer practical solutions to everyday problems. Ms. Frankel's success led her to be named one of the Top 100 Most Powerful Celebrities by Forbes magazine.

Connecticut's largest and longest-running, full-day statewide conference, will celebrate its 36^th year. The 2018 BWF is anticipated to attract more than 500 attendees from across New England. It will be held from 8:00 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will offer a full day of dynamic networking, educational workshops, breakfast, lunch and a closing reception with door and raffle prizes at the Aqua Turf Club at 556 Mulberry Street in Plantsville, Connecticut. The thriving nonprofit organization is led by female executives dedicated to the professional and personal growth of working women.

The BWF will also be featuring motivational speaker Linda Larsen, BSW, MFA, CPAE, actress and bestselling author who was inducted into the Speaker Hall of Fame® in 2016.

"The mission of the Business Women's Forum," explained Lynn Ward, a BWF director and president and CEO of the Waterbury Regional Chamber, "is to raise funds for scholarships for female Post University students to pursue degrees in business. The BWF's continual commitment is to the equality of opportunity and advancement for women in business. During the past 35 years, the BWF has raised more than $200,000 toward those scholarships."

As runner-up on "The Apprentice: Martha Stewart" led Bethenny Frankel to a role on Bravo's "The Real Housewives of New York City" followed by the spin-off series, "Bethenny Getting Married?" and "Bethenny Ever After", plus she appeared on ABC-TV's "Shark Tank" as a guest shark. Ms. Frankel brought her distinct voice and candid point of view to "Bethenny," her nationally syndicated daytime talk program. She also founded her own TV production company, B Real Productions, producing two seasons of FYI's "Food Porn", and she created and is producing and starring in Bravo's new real estate show, "Keeping it Real Estate with Bethenny and Frederik."

Bethenny Frankel is the five-time New York Times bestselling author of Skinnydipping, A Place of Yes: 10 Rules for Getting Everything You Want Out Of Life, Naturally Thin: Unleash Your Skinnygirl and Free Yourself from a Lifetime of Dieting, The Skinnygirl™ Dish: Easy Recipes for Your Naturally Thin Life, and I Suck At Relationships So You Don't Have To. She has also authored Skinnygirl Solutions: Simple Ideas, Extraordinary Results, the children's book, Cookie Meets Peanut, and the cocktail book, Skinnygirl Cocktails.

The 2018 BWF motivational speaker Linda Larsen is one of only 232 people worldwide to be inducted into the Speaker Hall of Fame®, joining such notables as General Colin Powell, President Ronald Reagan, and Brian Tracy. Ms. Larsen has been a featured presenter for over 1,000 conferences and meetings worldwide for groups such as Jaguar Cars, the Kuwait Women's Leadership Summit, and McDonald's.

Linda Larsen combines her 20 years of experience as a professional actress with her education and training in communications and behavioral sciences to deliver entertaining, memorable, power-packed presentations that help people bring the very best versions of themselves to life and work. Author of the best-selling audio program, 12 Steps to High Self-Esteem, and featured in such publications as Investor's Business Daily, The Chicago Tribune and Opportunity World, Ms. Larsen is also a popular guest co-host on the ABC-7 Florida television show, The Suncoast View.

Sue Mellitt with MacDermid Performance Solutions, 2018 BWF Chairwoman, commented, "During the past 35 years, the BWF has provided thousands of attendees with access to phenomenal speakers, unparalleled networking opportunities, plus diverse training during a full, fun-filled day of activities. BWF conferences have featured such prominent, high-profile keynote speakers as Barbara Corcoran, Leeza Gibbons, Kathy Ireland, Elizabeth Vargas, Paula Abdul, Robin Roberts, Goldie Hawn, Jamie Lee Curtis, Suze Orman, Jane Seymour, Chris Madden, and Susan Saint James.

Our BWF Board of Directors believes attendees will truly benefit from the highly-informative and exciting day of dynamic and accomplished speakers, professional business trainers as workshop leaders, networking opportunities and a very exciting closing reception that features bountiful hors-d'oeuvres, beverages, and many raffle and door prizes including a notable grand prize vacation travel package."

Admission is $195/person. All admission prices include the keynote and motivational presentations, workshops, day-long networking, breakfast, lunch, and a closing reception.

To register, or become a sponsor, visit www.2018bwf.com, or call the Greater Waterbury Chamber of Commerce Foundation at 203-757-0701.