Meet The Leadership Team

Cathy Deano, co-founder of Painting with a Twist, began her mission of bringing joy to her hometown through volunteering in her community. After Hurricane Katrina devastated the area and her home, she knew there was something she could do to bring people together. She, along with co-founder Renee Maloney, came up with the idea of an art studio where women could gather, paint and relieve the stress of the day, while drinking wine! Painting with a Twist was born and is the largest paint and sip concept in the nation today. Cathy is the current President of the St. Tammany Art Association, a position she also held from 2006 – 2009. The Association provides quality programming and cultural enrichment to St. Tammany, supports established and emerging artists, and produces educational arts related activities for adults and children. Cathy also is on the Board of Friends of the Dew Drop.  The Dew Drop is the oldest unaltered jazz venue in the world. Cathy volunteers with a number of other organizations including The Franchisor Forum for the International Franchise Association. She is a lifelong resident of Mandeville and has one son, Ryan. Her hobbies include traveling, reading, cooking and laughing.

Todd Owen is a co-owner and CEO of Painting with a Twist.  Todd owns multiple Painting with a Twist studios in Tampa, FL and founded TD Art Supply, a major supplier of art supplies.  After leading a large business for Walmart and a 31 year career,  he retired to immerse himself in Painting with a Twist.  As a franchisee since 2014 and small business owner, he has intricate knowledge in the arts and craft as entertainment space. He is also a former member of both the Painting with a Twist Franchise Advisory Council and IFA. Todd is passionate about our franchisees’ success and is based in Tampa, FL.  He firmly believes our franchisees are “the boss” and helping them achieve a return on their investment is all of our responsibilities.  Todd has four children (3 boys and a girl) ages 17-29, enjoys family time, playing golf, and fishing.

Trey has an unbridled enthusiasm for technology and Painting with a Twist. After honing his software development craft in the energy and aerospace sectors, he met with the Twist team on a fateful rainy evening in December of 2009. An agreement was struck, and the innovation began posthaste. From all the iterations of the Twist website, to developing our internal systems, tools, and integrations, Trey oversees it all. He lives in Littleton, Colorado with his two daughters. He is a world renowned whiskey connoisseur and a nationally ranked semi-professional cyclist with a small but fervent fan club.

Brittany Graff joined the Painting with a Twist team in February of 2019. With over 13 years of experience in marketing, Brittany brings a wealth of knowledge to the brand. As Director of Marketing, she leads the marketing strategy of Painting with a Twist with a goal to both build national brand awareness and deliver support programs and tools to increase sales at the local studio level. Brittany lives in Mandeville, LA with her husband, two daughters and French Mastiff. 

Katie Richard joined the Painting with a Twist Headquarters team in April of 2012.  She oversees franchise operations and support, supply chain for the brand, as well as the corporate-owned Mandeville studio.  She graduated as a Certified Franchise Executive in February of 2017 from the International Franchise Association.  She has a passion for this amazing paint n sip business and working with our franchisee family.  Katie is married with 2 boys and is an avid runner.