# Rachel Ayotte

> Rachel Mays Ayotte is the Charleston-based founder and CEO of bread & Butter, a hospitality communications collective she co-founded in Los Angeles in 2007 after working inside restaurants and hospitality PR. She grew the firm through a distributed, local-market model, expanded it beyond public relations into social, digital, influencer, creative and web services, and later founded the food, drink, travel and culture publication Late Checkout.

- **Role:** Founder and CEO at bread & Butter; Founder and Editor-in-Chief at Late Checkout
- **Organizations:** bread & Butter, Late Checkout, Women's Hospitality Initiative
- **Nationality:** American
- **Known for:** Built bread & Butter from a two-person, living-room practice into a multi-office hospitality communications collective., Expanded the agency beyond traditional PR into social media, influencer marketing, digital advertising, branding, creative design and web services., Maintained several clients from the agency's earliest days while expanding into hotel, restaurant, bar, food, beverage and travel work.

## Career timeline

- **1999-2001** — Worked as an assistant to chef Michael Romano within Union Square Hospitality Group; the restaurant and cookbook publicity surrounding the role sparked her interest in food storytelling.
- **2004** — Met future business partner Meredith Vachon while both worked at hospitality PR firm Wagstaff Worldwide in Los Angeles.
- **2007** — Co-founded bread & Butter in Los Angeles with Vachon while both were freelancing from their living rooms, using a little over $1,000 in startup capital.
- **2013** — bread & Butter had grown to six offices, 25 staff and more than 50 clients, using a model that opened local offices around client needs.
- **2021** — The Los Angeles Times reported that the firm had reached 14 offices and had expanded from PR into social media, influencer marketing, digital advertising, creative design and web services.
- **2023** — Appeared on The Cheap Seats podcast to discuss building the agency from her apartment living room and the importance of failing forward.
- **2025** — Expanded Late Checkout from a popular LinkedIn feature into a daily newsletter and standalone editorial platform covering food, drink, travel, culture and design.
- **2026** — Joined the Rise of Independent Publishing panel at the TravMedia Summit in New York in her role as Late Checkout founder and editor-in-chief.

## Achievements

- Built bread & Butter from a two-person, living-room practice into a multi-office hospitality communications collective.
- Expanded the agency beyond traditional PR into social media, influencer marketing, digital advertising, branding, creative design and web services.
- Maintained several clients from the agency's earliest days while expanding into hotel, restaurant, bar, food, beverage and travel work.
- Led an agency recognized by Inc. Best Workplaces, The PR Net 100, Forbes' America's Best PR Agencies and multiple design and hospitality marketing programs.
- Founded Late Checkout, an owned editorial platform developed from a bread & Butter LinkedIn series.

## Latest updates

- **2026-01** — Scheduled to speak at the TravMedia Summit at New York's Javits Center on the Rise of Independent Publishing panel.
- **2025-10** — Discussed Late Checkout's growth, mission and social media strategy on A Hotel Podcast.
- **2025-10** — Outlined five non-traditional marketing strategies and bread & Butter's shift toward integrated, digital-first work in an Authority Magazine interview.

## Links

- Website: https://www.wearebreadandbutter.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-mays-ayotte-4512145

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/rachel-ayotte
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-09-22