Lobster industry veteran Annie Tselikis joins Cousins Maine Lobster

Cousins Maine Lobster (CML) announced on Thursday, 29 April that it is bringing Maine Lobster Dealers Association (MLDA) Executive Director Annie Tselikis on board as its newest hire.

The appointment will help deepen the nine-year-old company’s “connection to the industry in Maine,” it said in a press release. Tselikis, a 15-year Maine lobster industry veteran, will take on a newly-created role focusing on marketing, education, and franchisee engagement for CML.

Alongside her new role with CML, Tselikis will continue her work as executive director for MLDA, a position she has held since 2014, she confirmed to SeafoodSource. Most recently, Tselikis and MLDA members launched a 10-week workforce training program to recruit people into lobster supply chain jobs in Maine. Her career so far has seen Tselikis deeply involved in marketing Maine lobster, industry advocacy, government affairs, and economic development, as well as working with commercial fishing associations and for lobster wholesalers.

“Annie joins our team at a critical time in our growth,” Cousins Maine Lobster Co-Founder Sabin Lomac said. “Not only will she help us expand our strategic marketing initiatives and relationship management, she will develop and sustain deeper outreach and training with our franchisees nationwide.”

Tselikis said she is looking forward to joining her cousin, Lomac, and brother, Jim Tselikis, who is the company’s other co-founder, in running the family's lobster food truck and restaurant enterprise.

“This position with CML is a perfect combination of the skills and experience that I have gained while working in the Maine lobster industry,” she said. “I am excited to translate my passion for the lobster business – from the fishing sector to the customer – into valuable assets and resources that help the entire CML operation.”

The CML founders’ new Food Network TV show, Food Truck Rehab, premiered on 11 April. The reality series follows Lomac and Tselikis as they share their expertise and ideas with struggling food truck owners hoping to bring their businesses back from the “brink of financial ruin.” It’s not the first time the founders been on TV – in 2016, Tselikis and Lomac, who are cousins, pitched their food truck business concept on the hit ABC series “Shark Tank,” and received backing from American businesswoman Barbara Ann Corcoran.

The company started out as a single food truck in Los Angeles, California, and has expanded to operate 20 trucks in 13 cities throughout the U.S. today, according to the CML website.  

Photo courtesy of Annie Tselikis/Counsins Maine Lobster