Ivanka Kasynets Appointed as Head of Business Development at byFood
byFood has named Ivanka Kasynets Head of Business Development, bringing in an executive who served as Vice President of Sales and Vice President of People at Evolve Squads.
The Move
- New role
- Head of Business Development
- Company
- byFood
- Previously
- Vice President of People, Evolve Squads
- Announced
- October 30, 2026
By the Numbers: byFood
- Years at Evolve Squads
- 4
- Employees
- 38
- Funding raised
- $15.2 million
- Latest Series B
- $8.4 million
Data: Crustdata, as of October 30, 2026
byFood has appointed Ivanka Kasynets as Head of Business Development. The hire brings seven years of experience to the company, including four years at Evolve Squads, where Kasynets rose from Engagement Manager to Vice President of People.
Career Highlights
Kasynets spent four years at Evolve Squads, a company of 102 employees, and held three roles there, according to Crustdata people data. After joining as Engagement Manager in 2020, they advanced to senior leadership in 2022, serving as Vice President of Sales and, most recently, Vice President of People. Over the same period, Kasynets also worked on Strategic Accounts at Evolve US.
That career began in 2019 at LPP, where the new Head of Business Development worked as Retail Sales Manager and built early experience in customer-facing sales. Based in the Warsaw Metropolitan Area, Kasynets now brings that grounding to byFood.
Why It Matters For byFood
byFood is Japan's one-stop platform for foodie travelers. Visitors can book cooking classes and food tours, reserve restaurants without using Japanese and order gourmet products from local businesses, while a VIP Gourmet Concierge designs tailor-made food experiences. Founded in 2019 and headquartered in Sendagaya, Tokyo, the company also offers online experiences, articles and videos on Japanese food culture.
Crustdata company data shows byFood employs 38 people, up 2.7% over the past year, with team members in Japan, Türkiye and Indonesia.
Series B Funding
byFood has raised $15.2 million in total. Its latest round, an $8.4 million Series B, came in September 2026, following a $4.1 million Series B in November 2025. Backers include JTB Corp., Kemuri Ventures, PR Times, VELTRA and Monex Ventures.
What's Next
Kasynets joined byFood in September 2026 and takes charge of business development, with the appointment announced on October 30, 2026. The new role comes as the company continues hiring in Tokyo, where it lists an opening for an SEO Content Editor (Japan Food & Culture).
Hiro News tracks leadership moves across go-to-market teams every day. People, company and job data in this story comes from Crustdata.
Questions and Answers
Who is the new Head of Business Development at byFood?
Ivanka Kasynets joined byFood as Head of Business Development in September 2026. Kasynets most recently served as Vice President of People at Evolve Squads.
What is Ivanka Kasynets's background?
Kasynets has seven years of experience and spent four years at Evolve Squads, rising from Engagement Manager to Vice President of People and also serving as Vice President of Sales. That career began in 2019 as Retail Sales Manager at LPP.
What does byFood do?
byFood is Japan's one-stop platform for foodie travelers, offering cooking classes, food tours, restaurant reservations and gourmet products from local businesses. The Tokyo-based company employs 38 people and has raised $15.2 million.
· people and company records, retrieved October 30, 2026. Source: Crustdata.