About

Ali is a speaker, founder, and storyteller who has spent nearly two decades designing gatherings, events, and environments that bring people, brands, and ideas together in ways that feel human and memorable. Her background in experiential marketing gave her a front-row seat to how spaces shape behavior, how atmosphere drives connection, and why the details most people overlook are often the ones that linger.

She is the CEO Strick Studios, an experiential marketing agency, and Founder of Refine Social Club, a community built around thoughtful connection and curated gathering.

On stage, Ali draws on that same perspective. She speaks about culture, discernment, and what it means to live and lead with intention in a world that rewards speed and noise. Her talks blend personal storytelling with sharp cultural observation, leaving audiences with language and frameworks they can actually use — whether they’re rethinking how they gather, how they lead, or how they pay attention to the world around them.

Ali is also a writer, interviewer, and the co-host of Refined & Unhinged — a candid podcast she hosts with her mom, Jen Dryden Hess. Together they explore identity, community, and modern life as a woman.

Her curiosity spans culture, design, music, travel, and the people who build community with care. She’s at her best in rooms that value substance over spectacle — and she always leaves people thinking differently about the details that shape how we live and connect.