Iva Chen is an airport restaurant and retail developer, owner, operator, and community advocate advancing inclusive leadership in aviation, with a focus on women and AAPI representation. Chen is the Founder and CEO of Jetsetera Ventures, an ACDBE/DBE/WBE-certified firm specializing in airport concessions development and operations. In 2025, she won a competitive bid to open the first-ever Panda Express at San Francisco International Airport as an independent owner under a Panda Express license. Chen is also a Managing Partner at Lady Luck Gourmet, where she launched Mama Go’s Filipino Cuisine—the first Filipino restaurant in a U.S. airport—now one of the highest-rated quick-service concepts at SFO. Her career includes public accounting and corporate finance roles at Deloitte, Nestlé, CBS, and The Capital Group, as well as international entrepreneurship. In 2015, Chen spent eight months in Zhongshan, China building a chain of Italian restaurants, gaining firsthand experience in cross-cultural operations and global business development. Committed to community impact, Chen co-founded the Association of Asians in Aviation, serves as Vice President of Public Relations for the Airport Minority Advisory Council Los Angeles Chapter, and sits on the Boards of Directors for Pretend City Children’s Museum and TeachAAPI.
