Annie L Hughes

Annie Hughes is the Director for the Harrisburg LaunchBox powered by Penn State, where she leads its mission to support innovation and entrepreneurship among students, faculty, staff and the community, and to support economic development in the region. Annie brings 10 years’ experience in innovation practice and product development within small and corporate business environments. Prior to joining Penn State Harrisburg, Annie was a Manager of Disruptive Innovation at the Hershey Company, where she built new brands in new product categories, often piloting new innovation processes. Prior to Hershey she was Director of Sales and Marketing at Eco Lips, Inc., a small business in her home state of Iowa. Annie has a B.S. from Northwestern University's School of Communication, and an M.B.A. from the University of Iowa. She lives in Harrisburg, where she and her husband volunteer in civic projects that support community building and economic development.