The co-lab career stories: Recent Episodes
the co-lab
Welcome to the co-lab career stories podcast, a collective of professionals dedicated to sharing their experiences working in the fashion, beauty, wellness, retail and consumer luxury industries. Hear from CEOs, early career professionals and everything in between as the co-lab members interview each other, sharing their career stories, big pivots, worst jobs, best career advice, and remind us no two career paths are the same. Visit jointhecolab.com to learn more, become a member, tell your story, and follow us @jointhecolab. We can’t wait to network with you. X Kristy, co-lab founder.
Rachel is a creative problem solver who thrives in collaborative environments. She's spent the last decade building products and leading teams, leveraging her background in design and data to bring digital and physical products to life. She is currently focused on a personal project, Happy Arranging, inspiring others to bring more joy into their lives by creating flower arrangements using grocery store flowers.
On this episode, Rachel talks with Mary about her jump from working at The Metropolitan Museum of Art to working in healthcare.
Mary Clark is a design and development lead with expertise in multi-category design, product development, and merchandising for apparel, home goods, and consumer products. Mary has worked with legacy brands such as Ralph Lauren, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Cutter & Buck, as well as startups Inphorm, GSTQ, and NYXL. With a passion for storytelling and user experience, she guides brands in identifying, strategizing, and executing their unique visions.
On this episode, Mary talks with Rachel Weisel about her extensive career in product development and shares some things she would have done differently in her career.
Meet Pamela Nogues, the Chief Growth Officer at Softedge. Driven by passion, she is responsible for accelerating growth and fostering enduring relationships with clients and leads. With a knack for crafting and executing innovative strategies that resonate internationally, Pamela leverages her extensive experience to add value to business.
On this episode, Pamela talks with Jessica about how being creative and ambitious has been key to her success as a marketer.
Jessica is a trailblazing global marketing leader renowned for crafting impactful go-to-market strategies and pioneering integrated marketing campaigns across financial services, fintech, and the ever-evolving landscape of web3. Her career, encompassing roles at Citibank, Mastercard, Gemini, and as a fractional CMO, has been defined by leveraging data, technology, and emotional intelligence as guiding principles.
On this episode, Pamela Nogues speaks with Jessica Olivera about her unconventional marketing career, which began in insurance and led her into the fintech industry.
Introducing Alex Schneider, a seasoned wholesale and planning executive from the fashion industry. With a track record of success at iconic brands like Casper, Canada Goose, and Marc Jacobs Intl., Alex has mastered the art of strategic planning and sales operations. Her innovative approach and collaborative leadership style have propelled her to exceed revenue targets and consistently optimize processes. Tune in as Alex speaks with Erik Jorgensen to share insights and experiences from her dynamic career, offering invaluable lessons in driving growth and fostering relationships.
On this episode, Alex talks with Erik Jorgensen about the advice she would give those trying to break into the corporate fashion industry.
Erik Jørgensen is a sales and retail strategy consultant building successful retail and wholesale businesses in the fashion and outdoor space. Passionate about helping emerging brands get their foothold in one of the most complex markets, Erik is helping build the future of fashion.
On this episode, Erik talks with Alex Schneider about the benefits and pitfalls he's experienced moving from the corporate world to running his own consulting business.
Mitali Banerjee is a strategic marketing and business advisor who has created a niche by leading 'firsts' (product launches, brand extensions, audience test and learns, new practice setups etc.) for iconic brands. She drives business impact for her clients by guiding brands that need to lead and pivot quickly, thoughtfully, and efficiently. Her leadership has led to the successful execution of brand campaigns, seasonal activations, and product and store launches, resulting in increased brand resonance, consumer love, and profitability for Iconic, global brands such as Rolex, Louis Vuitton, Amex, Tommy Hilfiger, Nuna Babycare among others.
On this episode, Mitali talks with Elizabeth Powers about the struggles inherent in developing and launching something that's the first of its kind.
From startup hustler to Fortune 500 trailblazer, Elizabeth Powers brings an unrivaled passion for transformational communications, intelligence, and AI. Over 15 years, she pioneered disruptive strategies that bridged divides between leadership and employees. Her innovative data and use of emotional intelligence training fuels outreach that resonates with modern stakeholders. Elizabeth continues breaking new ground today, empowering organizations to embrace change and boost revenue through inclusive, insight-driven messaging.
On this episode, Elizabeth speaks with Mitali Banerjee about how crisis PR has changed with the advent of the internet and social media, and her thoughts on how AI will change the playing field on writing crisis PR playbooks.
Originally from Seattle, WA, Danielle Nielsen moved to NYC after breaking into the beauty industry, despite her non-traditional background. With her passion for all things beauty and writing, Danielle is an SEO Copywriter at Front Row, in the Marketplace Partnership division, writing copy for some well-known brands such as Summer Fridays, Glow Recipe, Saie Beauty and more. In her spare time, she enjoys sharing product reviews on social media and has her own personal beauty blog.
On this episode, Danielle tells Cassandra Hoblitz about how her consumer habits became the silver bullet that helped her break into the fashion industry.
Cassandra Hoblitz is a Client Strategy Lead at Front Row group in New York City. Cassandra is passionate about beauty, design and sustainability. She’s led creative and branding projects for brands like WYN Beauty by Serena Williams, Josie Maran, Beautyblender and K18.
This episode was recorded in April and references the launch of Wyn Beauty by Serena Williams, which is now available at Ulta.
On this episode, Cassandra tells Danielle Nielsen about her winding path to building her wings in the New York City beauty industry.
Jonathan Bunten, a seasoned entrepreneur, and CEO of RecorGroup, brings over two decades of leadership across finance, trade marketing, and sales in the beauty and consumer goods sectors, along with a profound commitment to personal and professional growth. Having navigated substantial challenges and transformative experiences, he now focuses on empowering high-achieving professionals and teams towards self-discovery and actualization. Jonathan's journey, underscored by his roles in corporate leadership, military service, and as a mentor to entrepreneurs globally, offers invaluable insights into the resilience and diverse paths of success in our ever-evolving industries. Under Jon’s leadership RecorGroup has earned a place on the prestigious Inc. 5000 list three times and was awarded the Inc. Power Partner awards for Customer Experience Management and Customer Relationship Management.
On this episode, he talks with Syama Bunten about his unlikely career trajectory following a stint in the military.
Syama Bunten CEO of Scaling Retail and Host of Getting Rich Together, an expander podcast for women on money and wealth. For over a decade at she's been working with first time founders as a Co-CEO to launch scalable businesses. Prior to, Syama worked at Barneys New York, and Gucci building intrapreneurial divisions. Syama's won a number of awards including 2023 Positive Leadership Award from the Leadership Institute, 2022 Thought Leadership Award for Evangelizing Female Entrepreneurs and 2017 WWD Top Women in Business.
In this episode, Syama talks with her husband, Jon Bunten, about the formative childhood experiences that shaped her career accomplishments.
Ann Tham is a retail strategist obsessed with building smart, scalable and profitable brands. As a teenager, you would find Ann at the mall every week checking out the latest fashions and design inspirations from her favorite brands. Ann parlayed this obsession into a 20 year career at some of the most notable American brands – Ralph Lauren, Levi’s Strauss, Old Navy, Maidenform, and even taking the leap to build her own wellness brand called Before Noon. In today's episode, we'll learn more about her retail journey, her biggest lessons and what she's up to now.
For more than 20 years, Sam Zebian has stewarded iconic brands as a marketer inside world-class organizations and agencies including Nike, Disney and CAA. From her earliest days as a talent agent to her work as an executive and consultant, she’s brought a strategic approach and a curiosity to each challenge. She’s especially skilled at reinventing heritage brands and driving them deeper into culture.
In this episode, Sam speaks with Ann Tham about the power of building a career portfolio and making change an opportunity.
Andrew Minosh Pieris's story starts in the lush landscapes of Sri Lanka, where the vibrant culture and architecture sparked his creative passion. Moving to London as a teen, he interned with Alexander McQueen, and other names such as Jonathan Saunders, John Rocha, KTZ. He immersed himself in the fashion world from the age of fifteen. His journey led him to visual merchandising and design, where he blends fashion insights with London's energy in his distinctive styling and displays. With over ten years in the industry, Andrew has worked with top brands like Prada, Selfridges, Neiman Marcus, and Marvel Studios. His diverse portfolio highlights his ability to innovate across different fields, marking him as a creative force in visual design.
In this episode, Andrew talks with Thomas Mitchell how a chance meeting he had at age 15 with someone he didn't even recognize forged his career path.
Originally from Albuquerque, NM, Thomas is an accomplished Visual Merchandising professional with over 2 decades experience across diverse retail channels from small boutiques to world-renowned luxury department stores. As the son of two talented jewelry designers, he learned the value and beauty of craftsmanship at an early age and explored photography and architecture in college. After moving to the east coast in 1993 he landed at Urban Outfitters then Brooks Brothers, starting as a District Visual Manager and then as the Global Visual Merchandising Manager, executing and writing corporate VM guidelines through a period of expansive international growth. His next stop was the Saks Fifth Avenue flagship in NYC where he held several Visual Manager positions including Men’s, Visual Operations and Special Projects. In his new role as a Visual Consultant, he leverages his experience and knowledge of engineering, construction and project management to help clients bring their brand vision to life through buildouts, popups and experiential design.
In this episode, Thomas talks with Andrew Pieris about how his engineering background and his ability to pivot and formulate a Plan B have been critical to his career.
Lisa Di Napoli sees the world in vivid color, has never met a color swatch that did not inspire, and loves curating visual stories. All this has served her well as a design leader and children’s industry expert. Her vision has brought to life children’s collections for over two decades, starting with H.M. Woggle Bug, a luxury line Di Napoli founded and ran, then parlaying those skills into multi-million-dollar revenue for prestigious companies such as Best & Co., Baby Gap, and Tommy Hilfiger.
Her talent is not isolated to the world of fashion; she is also a constant beauty seeker who loves to entertain and share her creativity with others. Di Napoli believes in mentoring and does so frequently at FIT, Parsons, and NYC public schools.
Di Napoli now runs, The Pixie Creative, a design
consultancy.
On this episode, Lisa talks with Celeste Lilore about how she got her first job in fashion and the ways in which running her own business prepared her for the corporate fashion world.
Céleste is an insatiably curious lifelong learner passionate about community, partnership,
provenance, ethics, sustainability, and timeless style. Through stories, she delights in making the complex simple. Her first job (not including babysitting and waitressing) was as the receptionist at Chanel HQ in Paris. It ignited Céleste’s love affair with product and fashion while elevating her commitment to service.
Since then, she has worked as Corporate Engagement and Membership Experience Director at Textile Exchange, Marketing and Community Director and Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Brooklyn Fashion + Design Accelerator, Regional Director, Green Festival -New York, Co-Founder and EcoPreneur, Restore clothing. Céleste is currently exploring new professional adventures in impact-related work.
On this episode, Celeste speaks with Lisa Di Napoli about her decision to pursue her own business and how she later re-entered the corporate world.
Crystal Slattery serves as the President of Tanya Taylor and plays a pivotal role in driving the brand’s success. With a strong background in business strategy from her years as President of Elizabeth and James and Cinq a Sept, Crystal is responsible for leading business operations and strategy for the Tanya Taylor brand.
On this episode, she talks with Tanya Taylor about the role she sees technology playing in the fashion industry, both currently and in the future.
Tanya serves as CEO and Creative Director of her namesake brand. Playing with color and texture, Tanya uses her artistic background to create clothing for women to move creatively and confidently through their day. Tanya Taylor’s collections are available at major retailers including Saks Fifth Avenue, Shopbop and Neiman Marcus, as well as on http://TanyaTaylor.com and at her Upper East Side boutique in Manhattan.
On this episode, Tanya speaks with Crystal Slattery about what motivated her to believe she could start her own brand early on in her career.
Jen White is a branding expert that guides companies beyond surface-level branding to build mindshare and capture market share.
She combines her background in fine art, expertise in consumer branding, and 20+ years of entrepreneurial experience to shepherd brands to their most powerful market potential. She has worked with both public and private organizations across CPG and beauty including: Seed Beauty, Johnson and Johnson, Markwins Beauty Brands, Sovos Brands and international giants including Belcorp and AJE Group. From independent brands still in their nascent stages to mature multinational corporations, she helps organizations enhance brand stewardship and grow brand equity.
On this episode, Jen talks with Sam Baker about the leap she took in deciding where to go to school and the circumstances that led to her starting a career in which she's always worked for herself.
Sam Baker transforms underperforming ecommerce sites into powerful selling tools that help her clients generate double-digit incremental revenue each year.
Sam’s ecommerce background includes web optimization at Abercrombie & Fitch, digital marketing at Vera Bradley and consulting clients such as Under Armour and Intercontinental Hotel Group. Her consultancy specializes in A/B Testing, UX improvements, and Retention and Acquisition strategies.
On this episode, Sam speaks with Jen White about how she got into a career that didn't exist when she was in college and about the challenges of moving from working a corporate job to running her own business.
Lydia Fenet is the founder and CEO of the Lydia Fenet Agency, a boutique agency representing best in class charity auctioneers. Over her two-decade long career, Lydia served as the Global Managing Director of Strategic Partnerships for Christie’s and reshaped the fundraising landscape as the world’s leading charity auctioneer, single handedly raising over one billion dollars for more than 800 organizations and breaking down countless barriers for women in the auction industry. Widely recognized for her poise and power onstage, she has stood alongside celebrities including Bruce Springsteen, Hugh Jackman, Elton John, Matt Damon and Jerry Seinfeld to raise record-breaking donations for the most notable charities across the globe. Lydia is the author of two best-selling books, The Most Powerful Woman in the Room is You & Claim Your Confidence as well as the podcast host of Claim Your Confidence in collaboration with Rockefeller Center.
On this episode, Lydia speaks with Katelyn Delaney about the importance of speaking her dreams into existence.
Katelyn Delaney is an empowering executive product marketer and global beauty brand builder with successful experience leading product innovation and strategy, collaborating on effective go-to-market campaigns, and developing impactful 360 multi-channel marketing programs to accelerate growth across color and fragrance categories.
On this episode, Katelyn speaks with Lydia Fenet about how important the first job is, and the role of the mentors she found early in her career.
Kátia Sarti is a highly experienced digital marketing and e-commerce professional with over 15 years of experience successfully growing retail brands through innovative and integrated digital marketing strategies. She has led performance marketing for the likes of 1-800-flowers.com and Clinique and is currently the Head of Consumer Marketing for Priority Pass in the Americas. Her professional arsenal is marked by a high level of adaptability and flexibility, consistently paired with leadership acumen, strategic thinking and a results-driven mentality. She’s fluent in English, Portuguese and Spanish and enjoys being able to engage in multicultural environments both professionally and personally.
On this episode, Katia talks with Loree Lash Valencia about how she's reached a pivot point in her career and her thoughts on what she will do next.
Loree Lash-Valencia is a distinguished executive with over 20 years of experience in global sales leadership and strategic partnerships, known for her expertise in business development, revenue generation, and marketing. She has a proven track record of generating over $100 million in new revenue and has been instrumental in various roles with major brands like Fila, BCBG, WGSN, and JOOR. Loree excels in identifying market trends and forming strategic alliances, consistently driving remarkable growth and success. Her focus lies in refining go-to-market strategies, improving sales protocols, and forging impactful partnerships.
In this episode, Loree speaks with Katia Sarti about the ugly fashion template that led her into the second act of her career, and the serendipity that has at times helped lead her down her professional path.
From being the face of a brand to creating a brand, there's not much that Jay hasn't done or can't do in the world of fashion.
On this episode, Jay speaks with Andrew Staunton about the meaning of the words resilience and agility in making a career in fashion.
Designer director with 2 decades of experience leading international brands across genders and categories. Experience building businesses in established brands and launching new product lines from scratch. Masters graduate focusing on project management methods and their application to successful design development.
On this episode, Andrew talks with Jay Anderson about keeping up hope and resilience as he seeks out the next role in his career.
Michelle is originally from Los Angeles and has been living in France since 2021. After 5 years of professional experience in office management she came to Paris to earn her Masters in Communications with a concentration on sustainable development. Michelle is currently working on creating content around her areas of research into cultural sustainability and material impact while simultaneously navigating building a career within sustainability in fashion.
On this episode, Michelle talks with Cynthia Power about how deciding on her career path took her from San Francisco to India to Paris.
Cynthia is a circular-programs expert with 15 years of experience and the owner of Molte Volte. She previously managed EILEEN FISHER Renew for many years before working at tech-resale startup Recurate. She now works independently, helping brands and circular service providers to understand and navigate the fashion circular landscape, including building and scaling resale and reuse programs. She (like most of us) is passionate about the high quality, durable goods that already exist and how we can prolong their useful lives.
In this episode, Cynthia speaks with Michelle Doyle about how a project she did to raise money for a college club she was in served as the launching pad for her career.
Priya is recognized globally in luxury brand strategy, product development and manufacturing. She has brought her creative vision and expertise to an extensive career at Tiffany & Co., working directly with the likes of world renowned architect Frank Gehry, famed designer Paloma Picasso, and the esteemed archives of Jean Schlumberger. More recently, she has built her own brand, Rania Designs, developing custom pieces for private clients and as a luxury retail consultant. Priya’s rich heritage and life experiences give her a unique perspective and path to success no matter the journey.
In this episode, Priya speaks with Katharine McKee about how she took the career path that led her to do the one thing she thought she'd never want to do.
After a 16 year career building out digital commerce capability for companies in pillars such as CPG, Luxury, Beauty and Apparel, Katharine McKee founded Morphology Consulting, a digital commerce consultancy that creates long term profitable growth for their clients by helping them understand and adhere to algorithmic systems online.
A Forbes Next 1000 honoree and veteran in digital commerce, Katharine is a leader in ecommerce and an expert on systems, who focuses on building profitable growth models for brands and retailers. To date, Katharine has overhauled the digital go-to-market for more than 50 brands, including Fortune 500's such as Coty, Luxottica and IPG Media Brands and has sustainably increased client’s revenue up to 600% YoY.
On this episode, Katharine speaks with Priya Jain about how she got her start in e-commerce and what her career path might have looked like had she not lost her athletic scholarship due to injury.
Melissa Burkheimer is the CEO of Melissa Burkheimer Studio, a virtual design agency that creates 360° brand campaigns for product launches.
She killed my parents’ dream of becoming a popstar and took a different creative route, a life full of helping thought leaders, beauty brands, global nonprofits and production companies become the stars of their industries.
Her signature sales page design process helped her achieve her dream of getting paid to be creative while staying home with her boys. She’s consulted on dozens of launches that have collectively generated multiple 7 figures in revenue.
Her company’s focus on conversion design ensures seamless customer experiences that inspire action from ideal customers, keeping them coming back for more. Her agency’s specialty is making sure your copy, product positioning, brand strategy and visuals align with your big-picture vision.
She’s worked with thought leaders Lewis Howes, Amy Porterfield, Jereshia Hawk, Rachel Luna and global brands like Massage Heights and Dress for Success Worldwide.
When she’s not using my conversion design brain or daydreaming about a new mascara line, she’s probably lounging in my pool, or making a plan for her plans.
On this episode, Melissa speaks with Lane Tabb about how she started her business and has built it over the past decade.
Lane Tabb is focused on merging new technologies with localized artisan craftsmanship.
Lane has worked as a creative director and head of product, with some of the most esteemed fashion leaders on the planet over the past 20 years including Donna Karan, Kate Spade, Rebecca Minkoff, Jill Stuart, Herve Leger, Max Azria and many others.
In 2013 Lane was tapped to lead a fashion technology startup in San Francisco. For 5 years Lane focused on the intersection of fashion and technology, which introduced her to thinking outside of the traditional fashion industry box.
In 2019 Tabb returned to her roots in the fashion industry launching the LLABB ALM startup focused on Sustainable advanced luxury manufacturing.
LLABB ALM was selected to participate in the XRC labs Accelerator in 2019, and in 2020 Tabb was selected to participate in the UBS Project Entrepreneur Accelerator.
In September, Lane and Team won a CFDA production grant for innovation in sustainable manufacturing. In 2024 Tabb will continue her consulting for luxury brands and will be launching a sustainable fashion incubator, and a sustainable lifestyle brand NOVAE RES.
Lane is based in NYC, sharing her West Village home with her husband George, and their two dogs Lucky and Rocket.
On this episode, Lane speaks with Melissa Burkheimer about how her time in Silicon Valley led her to re-evaluate her relationship to fashion sustainability and launch a startup doing on-demand manufacturing of artisan-made pieces.
Emily is a fashion consultant and stylist with over 15 years of experience across editorial, print, digital and brand. She has held full time roles at Glamour Magazine, Refinery29 and Madewell, leading styling strategy and editorial direction. Emily's passion lies in inclusive storytelling, working with brands to develop and execute strategies that elevate their identity, positioning, and visual aesthetics driving sales and captivating target audiences.
On this episode, Emily speaks with Nicole Heim about how her parents recognized the path her career might take before she ever did.
Nicole is an industry recognized Creative Director with over 15 years of experience across creative marketing, brand development, and product design. With a portfolio spanning luxury fashion, direct-to-consumer start-ups, and multi-billion dollar brands, she has been a consultant and held in-house leadership roles for companies such as Mara Hoffman, Away, Argent, and Victoria’s Secret & Co. She is a CFDA Award Winner and a sustainable fashion expert, recognized for her co-founding of Cienne, an award-winning womenswear brand that pioneered ethical and environmental practices. Nicole's work has been featured in The New York Times, Vogue, Vogue Italia, W Magazine, Elle, Fast Company, Forbes, and more.
In this episode, Nicole speaks with Emily Holland about how a volunteer trip to Ethiopia altered her perspective on the fashion industry and changed the course of her career.
Luke has 12+ years of global branding, marketing, and advertising experience in the fashion, beauty, lifestyle and culture space. A multi-disciplined strategic, creative, and business-oriented leader with a strong understanding of industry trends, cultural landscapes, and experience driving multi-channel teams. Currently, Global VP of Marketing for Mackage, a luxury outerwear leader, with a focus on driving global awareness, influence and affinity. Previously holding leadership roles at ALDO and agency-side, working on brands like: Nordstrom, Living Proof, DVF, P&G beauty, Uber, Pepsi, etc.
On this episode, Luke speaks with Kiera Ganann about how a childhood of constantly moving helped him build a skillset to use in marketing at a global company.
With 25 years of experience in the apparel and accessories space, Kiera Ganann is a seasoned, passionate and highly engaged Merchandising & Sales Executive with a proven track record for conceiving and implementing clear brand vision, inspiring and re-energizing organizations, forging superior cross-functional relationships and demonstrating excellent fiscal responsibility. She is dedicated to developing top performing teams, creating and improving business processes, and identifying opportunities to drive revenue and profit. She has held leadership positions for brands such as Ralph Lauren, Levi's, and, most recently, Bolt Threads where she led the sales and marketing teams for a mushroom leather brand, Mylo.
In this episode, Kiera speaks with Luke Vachon about how she's tried to create happiness in her career.
Lauren Sherman has been covering the fashion industry since 2004. She is a special correspondent at Puck, where she writes about power players in fashion, retail, and luxury. The former chief correspondent for the Business of Fashion, she began her career as a reporter at Forbes and holds a BFA in writing, literature and publishing from Emerson College. She has contributed to the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, http://Newyorker.com , The Gentlewoman, and various other publications. She lives in Los Angeles.
In this episode, Lauren speaks with Travis Paul Martin about how she broke in as a fashion reporter and how the major changes in the industry have affected fashion journalism and her career in it.
Travis Paul Martin is an experienced marketing and communications professional with more than 15 years of experience guiding communications strategies for brands in the fashion, lifestyle, and consumer packaged goods spaces. Travis currently runs the consulting firm TPM Consulting, working with brands in the fashion, lifestyle, CPG space with a focus on affiliate PR marketing.
Travis discovered his passion for helping brands harness the power of public relations and communications during his time at KCD, working with established brands like Barneys New York, Marc by Marc Jacobs, and The Gap, as well as emerging talent like Peter Som and Tabitha Simmons. While Fashion Director at BPCM, he launched brands, including Brock Collection and Draper James, to a national audience. And, most recently, Travis led the public relations team at Skoog Co. as Executive Director of Public Relations, with a diverse array of clients ranging from Rothy’s and Gucci to Method and Room & Board. Travis' clients have been featured in Vogue, Architectural Digest, The New York Times, House Beautiful, The Wall Street Journal, and more.
Travis holds a BBA in Design and Management from Parsons Paris and currently lives in Chicago, IL.
On this episode, Travis speaks with Lauren Sherman about how his winding career path, from wanting to be an actor to studying design and working retail eventually led him to follow in his mother's professional footsteps.
Yvonne has 20 years of merchandising and digital experience in the retail industry. Her career has spanned working at retailers like Saks Fifth Avenue, Gilt Groupe and Walmart Ecommerce.
On this episode, she speaks with Julie Kim about a series of career pivots that led from aspirations of a legal career to one in fashion all because a classmate asked her if she'd be interested in a job position she knew nothing about.
Julie is a merchandising and e-commerce leader with over 20 years of experience working for companies such as Saks, Gilt, Google and Intermix. She is highly skilled at optimizing product assortments and inventory to achieve top-line growth and profitability. She is a results-driven, creative and collaborative leader who excels at problem solving, implementing best practices and nurturing teams. And as a strategic advisor and consultant, she has a proven track record in helping to launch and scale businesses through strategic merchandising management and organizational change.
On this episode, Julie speaks with Yvonne Yip about the turns of fate that led her from a career in banking to one that mirrored that of her parents'.
Katelyn is a seasoned marketing professional known for her expertise in both brand and agency environments, with a diverse background and firsthand knowledge of brand and product strategy, consumer segmentations, creative development, marketplace trends, and media planning.
Throughout her career, Katelyn has held pivotal roles in global, matrix organizations, where she successfully led global and regional marketing strategies and ecosystems, while managing a full suite of agency disciplines. Her results-oriented approach is complemented by her collaborative nature and commitment to consumer-led thinking.
In this episode, Katelyn talks with Adeline Callanan about the life change that occurred when, not knowing exactly what she was signing up for, she accepted an offer from Converse to move to Amsterdam for a year.
Adeline Gheorghita Callanan is an Executive Creative Recruiter with boutique executive search firm Landline. With a specialty in product + brand, she recruits for brands in the fashion, retail, lifestyle and consumer goods space and has worked for Banana Republic, Athleta, Old Navy, SKIMS, Native Shoes, Wilson Sporting Goods & BRADY Brand. During her time at Gap Inc. she ran their internship & entry level design pipeline programs, partnering closely with top Fashion & Design schools across the UK & US, as well as served as a panelist for Fashion Senior Thesis Reviews for the Academy of Art University & California College of the Arts.
Most recently she became a Career Mentor and Coach with Career Contessa where she works one-on-one with individuals as they navigate the various stages of their career.
In this episode, she connects with Katelyn Nugent on how she found her way into the world of recruiting and how listening to your inner voice and taking risks have been key ingredients to her career.
Richard is a Creative Director who has spent the last 15+ years delivering best-in-class, performance-driving campaigns for global brands such as Abercrombie & Fitch, Hollister, and Gap Inc. Through his passion for transformative storytelling within brand design, design systems, digital products and physical customer experiences, he focuses on the data of the customer journey within all channels to develop brand-driving creative that truly resonates with its audience.
On this episode, Richard speaks with David Scott about the unexpected journey that took from Liverpool, England to Columbus, Ohio despite his initial desire to work at an agency in London.
David is a Creative Director, Designer, and frequent Copywriter focused on design for brand and marketing. Throughout his career, he's worked with in-house creative teams and agencies alike, designing for a wide range of brands in different categories from Fortune level to startups.
On this episode, he speaks with Richard Irving about how his shared passions for arts and sports formed his career path and led to one of his most memorable projects.
YURGA JUOZAPA — a true do-it-yourself native born in tiny Lithuania, has her jewelry worn by Courteney Cox and Julia Roberts.
JUNETHINGS is a hard to define concept of stories driven jewelry, helping women to have more confidence through their wardrobes, and importance on seeing value in reclaimed, repaired, mended and just old in order to curb consumption in our everyday life.
In this episode, Yurga talks with Laura Parker about how life growing up behind the Iron Curtain and watching MTV influenced her work in styling and design.
Based in Charleston, South Carolina, where she has a store-front, Laura began her career journey in Istanbul, Turkey. Today, she aims to expand her business and connect clothing designers with manufacturers in Turkey.
On this episode, Laura talks with Yurga Juozapa about the post-graduation trip to Turkey that led to her meeting her future husband and business partner.
Matthew Doull is based in New York City. He began his career as a financial journalist at The Daily Telegraph in London where he covered TMT. From 1998-2000, Matthew served as Chairman of http://Trip.com , a pioneering online travel business which he sold to Galileo. Subsequently he was a Senior Analyst at SAC Capital where he was responsible for global TMT investing for the $12B hedge fund, and was a Portfolio Manager at Pequot Capital Management.
In 2009, Matthew and his partners created Prometheus Global Media to acquire The Hollywood Reporter, Adweek, Backstage, The Clio Awards and Billboard from Nielsen. He served as an owner/operator at Prometheus before selling the assets to Guggenheim Partners in 2013. Most recently prior to joining Wedbush he was co-Head of Technology Investment Banking at BDA Partners based in Hong Kong, and advised on cross-border M&A and capital raising for corporate, private equity, family office and VC clients.
On this episode, Matthew speaks with Kristy Hurt about the internet's unassailable and continuing influence on the media industry, including his own professional career, which he began as a financial journalist in the early 1990s.
Molly Jong-Fast is a special correspondent at Vanity Fair and host of the Fast Politics Podcast.
You can find her at twitter at mollyjongfast
On this episode, Molly speaks with Matthew Doull about the advantages and pitfalls of coming from a long line of writers and how she's navigated her own substance problems and the ever-changing media landscape.
Brooks Brown is a Learning & Development and Retail Director with a career spent in the beauty and fashion industry. She has worked in wholesale, retail, branding and L&D for Ralph Lauren, Estee Lauder, Brioni, Donna Karan and Emmanuel Ungaro. Additionally, she worked and lived in Hong Kong with responsibilities for the entire APAC region. She created and led initiatives in DE&I, luxury sales and service, client relations and product knowledge. Recently, she completed a styling certification from Fashion Institute of Technology. She loves hiking, yoga, travel, art and, like a true Southerner, iced tea.
On this episode, she spoke with Madeline Schwarz about the new paths and challenges she's sought for herself in her non-linear fashion career.
Madeline Schwarz has been called a career therapist, lifesaver and secret weapon.
She solves one problem that every business and employee has in common: to clearly and concisely articulate your vision, communicate what you do and why other people should care.
She’s coached individuals and teams on presentation skills, storytelling and team dynamics. Her clients have included Tommy Hilfiger, Mastercard, Etsy and The Jewish Museum.
When she's not dreaming up ways to make communication more fun, you can find her hanging out in Prospect Park in Brooklyn, roaming art museums and building cardboard forts with her 9-year old son.
On this episode, Madeline speaks with Brooks Brown about her reasons for starting a business to advocate for quiet leaders.
Julian's research focuses on luxury fashion, consumption, and identity in America. As an extension of his academic work, Julian writes for Menswear Style and his site, julianrandall.com. Other interests include hip-hop, travel, and all things black truffle.
On this episode, Julian talks with Andrea Pascual about what led him to move from Texas to the UK, and his journey into the intersection of hip-hop, fashion and luxury.
Andrea Pascual leads Cool Eye Creative, where she works with bold founders to design trusted brands.
She is also owner and designer of ANDREA PASCUAL, her eponymous luxury fashion brand, where she designs exclusive items for a community of cultural disruptors. She was featured in Flare and FASHION magazines, and was a finalist in the Independent Handbag Designer Awards sponsored by InStyle.
Andrea’s Filipino-Canadian heritage inspires her work and storytelling. She loves music, art, yoga, and great coffee. She is currently based in her hometown, Toronto, Canada.
Talia Shuvalov is an accomplished Creative Director in the fashion industry and the co-founder of EREDE Official, a fine jewelry line launching in July 2023. Talia was most recently the SVP of Design and Creative at Alexander Wang overseeing all product design for the company. Talia has specialized in knitwear throughout her career, and is well known for her integral role in the growth of this category at companies such as Alexander Mcqueen, Narciso Rodriguez, Opening Ceremony, Theory, Dion Lee & Area NYC to name a few. She is renowned for her ability to achieve innovative design that exemplifies commercial viability.
On this episode, Talia talks with Karen Ruenitz about how spending time as a kid on the floor of her grandparents' factory led her to pursue a career in knitwear.
Karen Santoyo Ruenitz is an accomplished creative director in footwear and accessories, renowned for her ability to create iconic products for lifestyle brands such as Soludos, Loeffler Randall, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Tory Burch, and Helmut Lang. Along with her creative vision, Karen is a passionate advocate for sustainability, as demonstrated by her leadership in pioneering the Soludos Sustainability Commitments resulting in over 70% of the brand's footwear being made using Environmentally Preferred Materials per the FDRA industry guide.
In this episode, Karen tells Talia Shuvalov the story of how she went from receptionist to designer at Helmut Lang.
Monica Botkier is a pioneer and leader in the accessories space Founder and Creative Director of Botkier New York. Exited 2018 Entrepreneur, Co-Founder of Chosenwoven luxury merino lingerie. Author, Harper Collins Design.
On this episode, Monica speaks with her co-founder Olga Kapustina about the gamble she took to start her own handbag company, parting ways with it and the lessons she's put to use in starting over building a new company.
The Belarusian born, Brooklyn raised designer started her eponymous line in 1999. Her work was featured in Barneys for a decade along with numerous exclusive boutiques across the US. Her clothes have been worn by celebrities like Angelina Jolie, Cameron Diaz, Kim Kardashian, Katie Holmes, Brittany Spears and Rachel Bilson, among others. And her work was featured in major publications including Elle, Vogue, Bazaar, In Style, Mademoiselle, Cosmopolitan,L’officiel , and Marie Claire.
In 2012, Kapustina, craving a life-change, closed her popular line and returned to her love of biological systems and engineering. After completing a degree inchemical engineering in 2017, she decided to marry her two passions with her unique ability to understand the languages of design and engineering. Kapustinataught sustainable design systems and materiality futures at the acclaimed Parsons School of Design.
In 2023, Kapustina launched Chosenwoven with her business partner Monica Botkier. A perfect amalgamation of her love of good design and engineering. Chosen woven creates luxuriously knit lingerie with one of her favorite materials: Merino Wool.
On this episode, Olga speaks with her business partner Monica Botkier about how her decision to delay applying to medical school for a year paved the way for a career in fashion rather than the one she'd planned as a surgeon.
For 23 years, Greg Baratte has been a notable leader and innovator in the Digital, e-commerce and CRM space of the luxury goods industry.
Greg is currently working in the newly created Global Open Innovation team of Chanel, focusing on investing and supporting existing start-ups or building bespoke ventures; prior to this role he led http://Chanel.com globally and created the house’s first Global integrated Digital Services team.
In his positions at LVMH then Chanel, as well as creating and advising start-ups, Mr. Baratte has spearheaded multiple innovative initiatives and global programs. He contributed to the launch of the first multi-brand e-commerce platform for luxury goods in early 2001 when E-luxury.comwas acquired by LVMH, then pivoted it into the arts & culture platform, nowness in 2008 ; launched the brands first e-commerce enabled websites, first CRM programs, digital and social media and marketing campaigns, influencers strategy, and omnichannel retail and customer service across multiple regions. He is now focusing on AI, Web3, other strategic emerging technologies and business models.
He currently shares his time between Paris, London and New York where he lives with his wife, and 2 dogs.
Iwona Waluk specializes in Beauty, Wellness, Fashion, Interiors, and Hospitality. Her creative process is to develop brands and their visual identities with a personal, contemporary sensibility, informed by the multicultural identity, a love for nature, arts, and the evocative power of objects.
She serves fearless entrepreneurs and companies to help them move in the direction they want. She wants to work with inspiring brands with a sincere interest in design, commitment to quality, sustainability, purpose, and “good” growth, so they can create a better community they serve.
On this episode, Iwona speaks with Emily Yeston about the beauty and benefits of a non-linear career path full of pivots.
Emily is the co-founder and CEO of modern French pharmacy skincare brand, Doré. After 5 years of working with her current business partner Garance, she became her business partner and COO of the media company Atelier Doré in 2016. Her previous experience includes working with both brands and publications such as Lucky Magazine, WWD and Oscar de la Rent across production, editorial and public relations. Emily has been invited to speak at conference and universities on the intersection of content and commerce.
In this episode, Emily speaks with Iwona Waluk about how the interview she thought she'd screwed up led to a career full of pivots despite the fact she hasn't switched jobs since.
As Senior Vice President of Global Direct Sales, Jennifer Parker was responsible for the strategic sales planning, execution and management of Peloton’s 140+ retail locations and inside sales representatives. Her team of more than 500 employees cultivate Peloton’s direct sales business of in-store experience, phone and chat introducing new customers to the Peloton Bike, Bike+, Tread, Row, Digital, Accessories and Apparel.
Since joining in 2016, Jen grew Peloton’s retail footprint by 500%, largely contributing to the company’s rapid overall growth. With nearly two decades experience in corporate retail strategy, Jen has held roles at contemporary and luxury fashion labels such as Bloomingdales and Theory/Helmut Lang, where she served in several positions, including Vice President of Retail Operations and CRM, Vice President of Full Price Stores and Director of Retail Planning. Jennifer holds a BS in Marketing from Fairfield University. In her spare time, she can be found working out with Peloton, project managing her 3 kids’ life and sports schedules, and creatively trying to teach her kids how to earn their own money by creating their own businesses.
In this episode, Jennifer talks with Lilly Minkove about how her experience working in her parents' candy store set the stage for her career.
Lilly Liu Minkove is a consumer-obsessed marketing and strategy leader with over 20 years of experience leading and advising luxury, retail, consumer and technology brands. She is the founder of boutique strategy consultancy ArtLogica Group, and has been an advisor to brands like Spanx, Timbuk2, Kohl’s, CVS, Birdies and Invisalign. A quant geek turned luxury retail operator and strategic marketer, she has worked at best in class companies like Goldman Sachs, McKinsey, Coach, Louis Vuitton, and Hair Cuttery Family of Brands. Lilly crafts tailored growth strategies for clients using a mix of data and experience, art and logic - giving ambitious brands a clear roadmap to growth.
In this episode, Lilly speaks with Jennifer Parker about how she has navigated a career path full of pivots and moves, whether from one company or one city to another, and the experiences that have allowed her to do so.
Stephanie Davila is an award-winning Creative Director with a focus on brand storytelling, content creation and creative strategy. She helps brands cultivate deeper connections with their customers through engaging content that converts. She has led copy, creative and social at some of America’s top fashion brands like Ralph Lauren, Tory Burch, Banana Republic, and Express. Prior to going brand side, she was a Senior Editor at InStyle Magazine and has written for Vogue, The New York Times and New York Magazine—to name a few. While at Oscar de la Renta, she wrote a book entitled, “An American Icon,” alongside Oscar.
On this episode, Stephanie chats with Kimara Mitchell about helping brands stay relevant, finding the best stories, and how her success at small and large organizations led her to start her own creative consultancy.
Kimara Mitchell is an award-winning creative director, photo art director, brand strategist, and designer. She’s worked on the agency side, at design firms, and in-house for brands large and small like Gap, Banana Republic, Grey, Stanford Graduate School of Business, Levi’s, Quay Australia, and Walmart. In addition, she is a content creator whose blog j’adore couture has been featured in The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, and PORTER Magazine, and collaborated with brands such as The OUTNET, Valentino Beauty, Wyndham Hotels, and AllModern.
On this episode, Kimara talks to Stephanie Davila about going from an engineering major to working in design. how her time playing sports helps her manage teams and leveraging her other career as a content creator in her day job.
D’IYANU is an exciting up and coming African inspired brand based in Norristown, PA. Seeing a void in the market for a modern African inspired fashion line, her Nigerian roots inspired her to launch D’IYANU in Jan 2014. Both the brand and Addie Elabor have been featured on the New York Times, Forbes, CBS, and Fox. She currently works with her brother and business partner, Dara Ajayi along with 15 other team members from their headquarters in Norristown, PA. Addie oversees the marketing, design, production, and financial aspects of the company and plans to expand the brand to Canada and the UK in 2023.
In this episode, Addie talks with Seun Olubodun about the college and post-college experiences that inspired the creation of D'IYANU and how she grew it from its initial roots of selling clothes outside dentist's offices in downtown Philadelphia.
Duke & Winston is a brand for bulldogs, their people & those who live with The Bulldog Spirit. Launched originally 2010 - 2016 as a trunk show, retail & wholesale business (sold through Urban Outfitters and over 80 national/international accounts) with no real target market & too many skus, Seun revived the brand in 2020 & with a renewed focus on what he loves most, bulldogs & the die-hard folks like him around the world who love them. Seun's ultimate goal is to be an example of how to successfully build a grassroots brand around a niche community.
In this episode, Seun talks with Addie Elabor about how a trip home to visit his parents in Boston ultimately gave him the creative inspiration to start his own brand.
Charlotta Hellichius is a passionate brand strategy leader unlocking change for C-suite clients across categories in the US and abroad. She has a proven track record of improving companies from the inside out, shaping product and services to customers' and employees needs, as well as crafting compelling comms and creative that strikes a chord. She began her career as a product designer, before becoming a technology trend forecaster, and starting her own business in the beauty category, called Baude. Originally from Stockholm, Sweden Charlotta currently lives in Rockaway Beach, NYC.
In this episode, Charlotta speaks with Gina Ciancone about the power of vagueness and her attitudes toward receiving feedback and the concept of failure.
Gina Ciancone is an in-house creative at Vespa, working between Milan, Italy and New York City. Her work focuses on concepting and managing the creative for global brand campaigns that help push Vespa into the future. Trained at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, Gina has worked in different areas of the creative industry, always applying a cross-cultural and strategic mindset to design challenges. She started her career in photography working for Annie Leibovitz, and has since worked for the AD100 firm, Howeler + Yoon Architecture, as well as founding her own company, Green Screen.
In this episode, Gina speaks with Charlotta Hellichius about her outlook on handling failure and how her career has brought her full circle with her Italian heritage.
Pamela has a rich and storied career with over 20 years of experience in luxury retail. Prior to launching Collab Society, she consulted for Arhaus, managing a freelance creative team, creating seasonal concepts, and working closely with the founder and his product development team, and for Roman and Williams Guild, helping to develop the brand’s merchandising arm. Berick co-founded two active proprietary clothing lines for Anthropologie: Girls from Savoy, a women's clothing collection, and The Good Friends, a sweater line. In her prior roles, Berick served as a VP at The Line, where she oversaw its merchandising, product development, styling, and retail programs, as a furniture, hardware and found objects buyer at Anthropologie, and as a women's designer clothing buyer for Barneys New York. Her international experience includes dealing and importing vintage and antique furniture from France and Italy as well as extensive travel with her husband and pups.
In this episode, Pamela speaks with Abby Bruce about how her mother's hopes that one of her progeny pursue something creative set her on a path that led her to pursue studying the oboe and becoming an opera singer before ultimately transitioning to a career in fashion.
Abby is a creative strategist and communications expert, sometimes known as a “PR lady” and always relied upon as a connector of dots and people. A natural Ideas Person and Strategic Planner, Abby founded her consultancy, Common Point while living in France in 2012 to bring unique skills and knowledge of international business, communications, journalism, creative writing, brand design, and relationship marketing to help businesses create stand-out strategies in a world that is getting smaller every day. The first half of her career was spent in the UK and Europe, where she worked closely with high-profile brands such as L’Oréal, Nestlé, Pantone and Maker&Son as well as thought leaders, tastemakers, movers and shakers that help share stand out strategies and make going to work even more fun. Now based in Charlotte, North Carolina to be living close to family and the heart of US furniture manufacturing (another love), Abby is looking forward to continuing her career from a different perspective...
On this episode, Abby talks with Pamela Berick about her experiences with work and motherhood in France, and the path that eventually led her back to the states, and North Carolina.
Hilary Jochmans is the Founder of PoliticallyInFashion, a community for all those in fashion – designers, manufacturers, artisans, retailers, models, lawyers, reporters, consumers – to learn about legislative and regulatory issues of key importance to the industry. The mission is to educate individuals on public policy; and empower them with this knowledge; to then engage with elected representatives on how these issues impact companies and consumers. Recent initiatives from PoliticallyInFashion include spearheading advocacy for the creation of a Fashion Czar in the US and a Call to Action for the Federal Trade Commission to update the Green Guides, a federal regulation designed to assist businesses in making lawful environmental marketing claims and the public in understanding and appreciating these statements. These endeavors have been featured in WWD, Marie Claire, British Vogue and Fashionista, among others.
Hilary is also the Founder of Jochmans Consulting LLC, a boutique government affairs practice. Previously, she was the Director of the New York State Governor’s Office in Washington DC where she served as the Governor’s chief liaison with Congressional leadership and the Administration. Hilary also spent a dozen years on Capitol Hill as senior staff in both the House and Senate. Hilary holds a B.A. from the University of Virginia and a J.D. from the George Washington University Law School. She is the co-chair of the New York City Bar Fashion Law Committee; a Member Advisor of the American Influencer Council; an Advisory Board Member of the Model Alliance; and is a frequent speaker on panels concerning fashion and politics.
In this episode, Hilary talks with Yoana Strateva about how a professor's recommendation led away from her presumed career path and instead toward one combining fashion, government, legislation and entrepreneurship.
Yoana Strateva is a European attorney, who has lived in five different countries, at present based in Seattle, WA. Yoana holds a law degree from France and an LLM degree from Queen Mary University of London. Yoana specializes in Competition law, Intellectual property and has a special interest in Fashion law. Yoana obtained several certificates in Fashion law, and she is an alumna of the prestigious Fashion Law Bootcamp organized by the Fashion Law Institute.
Before moving to the United States, Yoana was an associate at a European law firm where her work involved cases in the area of Contract Law, Competition law, Trademark and Copyright Law. She has several publications in the field of Intellectual property. At present, her work is focused on Trademark and Copyright law.
Yoana has experience working in an international environment and advising multinational clients. She is also a European professional representative for Trademarks and Designs, and is also an active member of Sofia Bar Association.
In this episode, she speaks with Hilary Jochmans about her move from Europe to the United States and the differences in practicing and understanding the way fashion laws are enacted and interpreted between the two continents.
Kristen is the Founder of Luminate Brand Advisors, a consultancy that helps brands and retailers accelerate growth with a focus on omni-channel expansion, merchandising, and go to market. Kristen held roles such as President of The Americas at Marc Jacobs, EVP/Chief Merchant at Saks Fifth Avenue and President/Chief Merchant for several start-ups. Kristen partners with purpose driven brands to meet their potential at the intersection of brand, product, and commercial strategy.
On this episode, Kristen tells Katie Irving about the bold move that helped her earn her first job at Saks, where she worked for 20+ years, and how from there she moved to a startup with a completely different mission before starting her own company.
Katie Irving is a Whitespace Forecaster and the founder of MOONSHOT, a consulting agency that works with fashion brands to uncover first-to-market product opportunities that are deeply rooted in customer insights - not popular trends. Formerly the Consulting Director of Fashion at WGSN and Head of Concept at Abercrombie & Fitch, Katie delivers best-in-class advisory projects for leading brands including Farfetch, Under Armour, Athleta, GAP, Hollister, Target, Walmart and LL Bean.
On this episode, Katie talks with Kristen Sosa about her fascination with the relationships people do or do not forge with their clothing, and explains how her work in this space led her to start her own consulting business.
Christiana Mavromatis has over two decades of experience leading marketing and creative for iconic brands like Cartier, MAC Cosmetics, COACH, Peloton, W Hotels, L'Oreal, and Compass.
Christiana began her career as a creative in the advertising agency world before going brand-side, where she is now. She's passionate about using data to develop marketing strategy and to ensure creative efficacy, taking brands to cult status by accelerating affinity while also achieving the business's revenue and profitability goals.
In this episode, Christiana and Jessica Quillin chat about how an equally left-brained and right-brained approach has steered Christiana's success in driving results for some of the world's most iconic luxury brands.
Jessica Quillin, PhD is the Co-Founder and Principal for It’s A Working Title, LLC, a boutique agency and think tank focused on content strategy and research for fashion, luxury, and the experience economy. Jessica is an experienced content strategist, published author, and the former Fashion Editor for Glass Magazine. She has an extensive background in fashion, luxury, and retail, including strategy consulting and magazine editorial work with a range of brands, designers, and celebrities, including Maria Grazia Chiuri, Virgil Abloh, Sandra Choi, Tiffany & Co, and Burberry, among others. Jessica holds a PhD in English Literature and Music from the University of Cambridge and authored a book on Percy Bysshe Shelley and music. She also is an avid runner who runs marathons for fun.
On this episode, she talks with Christiana Mavromatis about her career move from tech to fashion and how she's married the two while at the same time taking on not only starting her own business, but also launching a fashion tech social media site as well.
A pragmatic leader and idealist entrepreneur with over 15 years of experience in business development and merchandising and collection management in the luxury and contemporary fashion industry in NY and Paris, Emily’s focus and expertise is to take a company to their next dream phase, whether through re-positioning or building a product from the ground up. Today, as co-founder and CEO of female-led fashion tech startup Etelier, Emily is excited to share her journey.
On this episode, Emily speaks with Rachel Hall Danes about how she went from working in finance in New York City to co-founding a tech startup that's based in Israel.
Rachel Hall Danes is a sales & solutions consultant for manufacturers and designers.
Previously, Rachel co-founded The Danes, a brand that solves construction and fit issues for women and has remained a top sell-through collection in Bergdorf Goodman’s couture department every day since 1993.
The collection is also available at Boyd’s Philadelphia and select Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue locations.
On this episode, Rachel spoke with Emily Meridor about getting started running a fashion startup with her boyfriend, and how one particular sale led her down the path to her starting a brand focused on construction and fit.
A storyteller at heart, Phil is dedicated to supporting the LGBTQ community. Thus, they make use of their skills, talent, and experience to help others tell their stories. In that spirit, they lend their voice to narrate other people's messages as a voiceover artist. Hoping to help listeners connect with the moving stories, They are committed to telling each story with authenticity, honesty, and grace.
Phil has always been interested in celebrating stories that connect people and ideas on multiple levels, but at the same time, challenge the way we think. As a black and trans individual, Phil had an intense desire to share their own journey and in 2018 began hosting their first podcast, Transition of Style, highlighting conversations about how some queer people use clothing to navigate the journey to an identity that feels most authentic. Phil is also the co-host of the I’m From Driftwood podcast, an organization collecting and sharing first-person LGBTQ+ video stories for over 12 years now.
Phil continues to participate in and moderate many panels, fireside chats, and trainings where they lend their insight on topics such as gender identity, style, diversity in technology, and podcasting. Currently, Phil is the senior producer with FC podcasts, a podcast production agency, and the creative force behind the New York Life Podcast, Love Takes Action, Pivot with Purpose with Meghan Houle and In Scope - The Healthcare Security Podcast.
In this episode, Phil speaks with Meghan Houle about the major career pivots they experienced to become a podcaster, and how they have arrived at their own definition of success.
Meghan Houle is a one-stop-shop for all things career pivots and personal development. She's a globally recognized Senior Executive Recruiter, an ACC accredited Professional Career & Business Master Coach, and host of the Pivot with Purpose Podcast.
Meghan has spent the past 20+ years working in the luxury, specialty, and consumer retail industries, placing high-achievers in their dream jobs and building high-performing executive teams. Her clients include globally recognized corporate retail brands to solopreneurs where she uses her credibility and expertise in the industry to help create profitable businesses by getting the right people on their teams with her expert talent development strategies
As an Executive Recruiter with The Bowerman Group, Meghan is engaged with some of the top global brands in the Luxury & Specialty retail space. She is an expert in finding talent to fill retail, corporate and wholesale positions across all of North America. She prides herself in providing exceptional service to both our valued clients and candidates in the recruitment process with a mission to find the right mix of talent, partnering with our clients to understand their job needs and provide talent solutions in a timely manner.
Meghan established her MHM Career and Business coaching platform as another offering to work with her should you be looking to navigate a meaningful career pivot or build strategic hiring plans for business owners. In her podcast, Pivot with Purpose, Meghan shares inspirational stories of incredible humans who pivoted their lives or careers to align living with more purpose and joy, sharing with listeners how they can do the same.
Meghan speaks with Phil Corin about what service means to her, and how she found her way from broadcast journalism to retail to recruiting and back to media.
Holly Cole is a retail executive with $3B in sales volume across companies including Neiman Marcus, Victoria’s Secret, Rue Gilt Groupe, as well as helping launch a DTC fashion startup. She has 20+ years’ experience driving merchandising strategies for eCommerce, DTC, brick & mortar, catalog and mobile.
Holly has been able to transform businesses and drive multi-million-dollar growth through strategy and implementation, building fashion-right assortments, focusing on target markets and delivering unique shopping experiences. She has overseen businesses from $25M to $300M and teams of 6 to 40.
In this episode, Holly talks with her friend and colleague, Kate Sheldon, about how her career started, the importance of customer centricity and how inspiration can be found nearly everywhere.
In 2007 Kate Sheldon founded Fashioneering LLC; a management consultancy working internationally across classifications advising brands, retailers, investors, and service providers in the luxury goods, affordable luxury, and sustainability spaces.
Kate formally launched the Fashioneering Lab in January 2022. A new division of her management consultancy comprised of a global team of industry leaders built to future-proof the fashion industry.
The Fashioneering Lab is a comprehensive growth hub, working globally with purpose-driven luxury brands (and those who hope to be) providing advisory and tactical services, curated think tanks, collection audits, to fractional c-suites.
Leveraging three decades of success, deep industry knowledge, and an extensive network in the world of luxury fashion; Kate currently works as a Fractional Brand President and Chief Merchandising Officer and through the development platform, The Fashioneering Lab to help emerging to heritage brands develop collections, assortments, and businesses that are both profitable and responsible.
Kate got her start in Luxury Fashion as a designer with Victor Costa; notoriously known as “the knock-off king.”
Eventually, Kate found her way to Neiman Marcus. After that, she would go on to spend over a decade as a merchant in Fine Apparel, and Couture Foundations buying the likes of CHANEL, DIOR, Ungaro, Christian Lacroix, PRADA, Etro, Missoni, Roberto Cavalli, Moschino, Alberta Ferreti, Nina Ricci, Donna Karen, Pucci, La Perla, SPANX, Carine Gilson, Wolford, Vera Wang, Reem Acra, Richard Tyler Couture, Badgely Mischka, Monique Lhullier, Oscar de la Renta and many more for the then 43 store chain and online business. Equally passionate and skilled in both the creative and business sides of the industry she describes her unique approach in three words... Creative Thinking Fashioneering
In this episode, Kate talks with Holly Cole about how powerfully the word "no" influenced her career path from designer to merchant to entrepreneur.
Emerald Carroll is a New York based creative director and brand strategist driving desire and growth on a global scale. 15 years of expertise in storytelling, strategy, and brand-building across media for legacy and new brands in luxury, CPG, fashion, beauty, retail, and lifestyle.
She has guided numerous disruptor brands through launch and lent counsel to heritage players such as Coach, Amazon, Revlon, Maybelline, Christie’s, Barneys New York, and more.
Driven by curiosity, intuition, and data, Emerald embraces new strategies and technologies while pursuing whitespace innovation. She currently consults on brand development, creative direction, and Web3 marketing.
In this episode, Emerald talks with Elizabeth Welborn about how she entered the world of entrepreneurship as a teenager, and where that early start has led.
Originally from Louisiana, Elizabeth studied International Business at Spring Hill College in Alabama and Spanish in Latin America. She resides with her children in Marin County, California, where she combines her business acumen, love of design, sustainability, fashion, food and horses in her luxury lifestyle brand, Stick & Ball.
On this episode, she talks with Emerald Carroll about the inspiration for Stick and Ball, and how she went about starting the business.
Kathryn Shah is the co-founder of Spring & Mulberry, a food-meets-wellness brand exploring a world of sweet beyond sugar. The company’s inaugural line our date-sweetened chocolate bars are topped with beautiful & fantastic-for-you ingredients, from mango with Urfa Chili to lavender with bee pollen, all with 0g added sugar. Kathryn was inspired to start the brand after a cancer diagnosis in her early 30s led her to quit refined sugar. Previously, Kathryn led global marketing at Pantone and held marketing positions at LVMH (Veuve Clicquot) and Unilever (Dove, Axe, Ragu). She has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BA from The University of Michigan. She lives in Raleigh, North Carolina with her husband and baby girl.
On this episode, Kathryn talks to Allison Henry Aver about how studying economics led her to a career in brand management, and ultimately to starting her own company.
Allison is the founder and creative director for Letter A, an all female-brand building agency based in Portland, Oregon.
Allison’s love of branding comes from over 20 years of leading top tier, in-house creative marketing teams that were integral to capturing the essence of the brand from A-to-Z.
Allison was the founding Design Director for the cult favorite brand, Kate Spade Saturday, led the re-brand of the heritage label Ann Taylor, was the first digital Art Director of Vogue.com, a Design Director at the prestige hair care brand Bumble and bumble under Estee Lauder and an art director for Mother’s Day at Hallmark Cards.
Allison received her Master’s Degree from the Designer as Entrepreneur Program at the School of Visual Arts in New York City and her BFA from Miami University in Ohio.
In this episode, she speaks with Kathryn Shah about how vests catapulted her into the fashion world, and eventually to the creation of her own branding agency.
After a 12-year career focus on social media marketing for Fortune 50 companies including PepsiCo, Disney, and General Electric, and with storied brands across European luxury houses including LVMH, Kering, Richemont, and Chanel, Gina Gretchko launched her own consultancy which helps brands define and scale their content strategies to execution.
Most recently, Gina built a best-in-class social media practice from the ground up for Saks Fifth Avenue and the HBC umbrella of multi-brand retailers (Saks OFF 5th, Lord & Taylor, Gilt Groupe, Hudson’s Bay). There, she partnered with executive leadership to introduce full-funnel social strategy, develop omni processes, establish critical cross-functional and platform relationships, as well as education and trust within the organization and its vendors.
Skilled in synthesizing brand strategies into compelling narratives, Gina personally secured partnerships and produced custom content with Virgil Abloh, Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia, Stella McCartney, Phillip Lim, Brandon Maxwell, Victoria Beckham, and Donatella Versace among many others. Her editorial direction and on-the-ground coverage for more than a dozen New York and European Fashion Weeks exceeded platform benchmarks and were emulated competitively.
In this episode, Gina talks with Grace Liu about adapting to the sea change in what digital marketing has become over the course of her career.
Grace is a brand-builder specializing in integrated marketing, content & social media within Fashion & Beauty. She has spent the last decade driving consumer engagement for iconic global brands, including growing Calvin Klein’s Instagram community from 500K to 15M+ through award-winning and culture-shaping content, and launching Laura Mercier digitally in the $106 billion Chinese beauty & personal care market.
In creating GL Consulting, Grace strives to be a strategic advisor and resource to founders as they build their dream businesses, starting at the core with brand storytelling. Learn more at gracemarieliu.com
In this episode, she speaks with Gina Gretchko about her roundabout academic path into the fashion and beauty industry and how social media marketing has changed since she started her career.
Maria is a New York based fashion expert and historian. Born and raised in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Although her love for fashion started very early in life reading every fashion magazine she would come across; Maria studied law. Realizing that albeit a great education it was not for her she perused her first Master in Fashion Management Experience and Design from SDA Bocconi in Milan similar to an MBA in Fashion. Following her tenure in Milan, Maria moved to New York where the job of fashion photo producer found her. After a couple of years producing in the city she moved back to Buenos Aires and continued setting up her own production company; Now Here Productions. She spent more than 10 years producing fashion shoots around the world catering to the most demanding clientele. In 2019 she moved back to New York and is currently perusing her second Master’s Degree in Costume Studies at NYU focused on the history of dress and textiles in its broadest aesthetic and cultural context. Maria is pivoting her career from fashion photo producer to fashion historian.
In this Episode she speaks with Turna Uyar, Sotheby’s SVP about her transition from Formal Education to the creative world, from Law School into Fashion Photo Production and her recent education of Costume Studies at NYU.
Originally from Istanbul, Turkey, Turna started her career at Young and Rubicam Advertising many moons ago and continued her career around Madison Avenue until she decided to jump to client side. She has joined the auction mega house Sotheby’s in the Spring of 2016 and is continuing to hold global business executive positions in the company.
Prior to Sotheby’s Turna held positions at the Fragrance Foundation, King and Partners, Publicis, Digitas and Wunderman, focusing on clients from multiple industries and Fortune 500 companies including art, fashion, finance, technology, beauty, luxury and lifestyle brands such as American Express, General Mills, Microsoft, AT&T, Citibank, Monique Lhuillier, Victoria's Secret, and Marc Jacobs to name a few.
On this episode, Turna speaks with Maria Chammah on her jump from advertising to the art business, and her work as a teacher.
Charlotte is a copy and content person raised in New York City by Condé Nast.
She specializes in beauty and fashion, clear, crisp messaging and lots of energy. Let’s do something different together.
In this episode, Charlotte talks with Katie Levine about how her experiences with beauty growing up led her into the industry, and her transitions between freelancing and working for one steady employer.
Katie Levine is a photographer new to the Phoenix area from NYC/LA. She got her start in the business through her internships at Vogue + being an assistant for Annie Leibovitz. Since launching on her own, she has worked with clients such as Kourtney Kardashian, Mary Fitzgerald of Selling Sunset, and Paper Magazine. Her goal is to make her subjects at ease while capturing high quality images. Since the pandemic, she's started offering FaceTime headshots which she now does for entire companies, private clients and campaigns.
In this episode, Katie speaks with Charlotte Rudge about how she got her start in photography, and how FaceTime has changed her professional life.
Daniella Stromberg grew up on the vibrant streets of NYC, in the full-spectrum technicolor of the 1970s. Her teachers described her as “delightfully social.” Anything and everything that made life cozier was and still is Daniella’s obsession. Luxe, chic, cozy and comfortable became her passion. Hotel lobby lounges were her favorite place to hang out and concentrate on getting homework done.
It’s no wonder Daniella got her degree in holistic wellness. She went from being a private wellness coach with a celebrity clientele to eventually opening her acclaimed d’mai urban oasis in Park Slope, Brooklyn in 2004. She was a trailblazer as no one had opened anything on the strip of 5th avenue at that time, it was an Avenue of empty storefronts. She turned a barren neighborhood into a burgeoning commercial corridor dubbed "The Other 5th" with d’mai urban spa being the nucleus and healing center. Daniella received the prestigious award of Brooklyn’s best business owner and won best “spa of year” year after year.
On this episode, Daniella talks to Jenni Shaw about why she closed d’mai Urban Spa shortly after the worst of the COVID pandemic and moved to the North Fork of Long Island. She discusses running d’mai Wellness consulting and offering her expertise to luxury wellness and hospitality businesses both locally and across the country.
Jenni Shaw is a freelance makeup artist with 15 years of production experience in New York City. In 2018 she started Shaw + Co., a boutique agency currently representing 8 phenomenal makeup artists for film, tv, advertising, fashion, celebrity, red carpet and runway. In March of this year Jenni became bicoastal and founded Zen Beauty in Sedona, Arizona. Zen is a company that combines allied therapies with makeup artistry to give clients the elevated experience of healing and nourishment coupled with a polished esthetic which results in a “beauty from within” effect. The Zen Beauty location will be opening this fall.
In this episode, she talks with Daniella Stromberg about what she views as the greatest catalyst for professional change and describes her definition of beauty.
Carmen is a New York-based designer born and raised in Mexico. She attended Parsons The New School for Design and graduated as a finalist for the ‘Designer of the Year’ Award, Class of 2015. Upon graduation, Gama’s ‘Sustainable Urban Outerwear’ thesis earned her the
inaugural Eileen Fisher x CFDA Social Innovator fellowship. During her fellowship, Gama worked collaboratively to design a scalable and profitable remanufacturing system for the damaged RENEW Eileen Fisher garments. Gama is currently the Director of Circular Design at Eileen Fisher.
In this episode, Gama speaks with Lauren Fay about how her true passion for solution-based design and circular systems, and the people and experiences who steered her into this space in the fashion industry.
Through this framework she is constantly challenging her design values by striving to design scalable systems that have the capacity to extend the life cycle and re-capture the value of pre and post consumer textile waste.
Carmen has also been featured in numerous publications including Women's Wear Daily, Business of Fashion, The Wall Street Journal, Vogue, The New York Times and Harper’s Bazaar.
Lauren B Fay works with brands and non-profits for the benefit of people and planet. Her main passion is preventing textile and clothing waste. She designs circular initiatives for retail companies and brands, and helps connect the dots in the circular economy with the team at Helpsy.
Her projects and events have been featured in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, WWD, Refinery 29 and Sourcing Journal among others. Project partners have included: Eileen Fisher, Mara Hoffman, Stella McCartney, Ellen MacArthur, SmarterSorting, FairTradeUSA, Pact Organic, Coyuchi, and Avery Dennison.
She led one of the first Environmental Science research courses in the US on the impact of Fashion with Brown University in 2020. And she has given lectures at Bard, Barnard, NYU and Brown University.
On this episode, she speaks with Carmen Gama about how she used her entrepreneurial wiring to pursue sustainability and corporate social responsibility, and how transparency is crucial in fulfilling those missions.
Originally from Russia, Rita came to the U.S. as a Fulbright Program’s Graduate Student to study journalism and communications. Prior to that, she was an associate fashion editor at Sobaka.ru magazine in St. Petersburg, Russia, and a freelance writer for advertising agencies. In addition to that, she was involved in event and entertainment industries helping with St. Petersburg Fashion Week and nationwide gastronomic festivals. She is also a Cultural Vistas’ 2022 fellow (Edmund S. Muskie Professional Fellowship Program) promoting international relationships and collaboration, who's currently working in a creative production company in NYC.
On this episode, she talks with Ilina Luthra about her career as a journalist in Russia, various creative internships and how she decided to leave it all behind to pursue her dream of studying abroad and exploring the world through cultural exchange.
Ilina Luthra is a 2022 graduate of MS Business of Fashion, from Rutgers Business School. She moved to New York City after working her way up from being a Marketing intern through her undergrad, to becoming an Assistant Manager of Marketing and Communications at Good Earth, India's most precious luxury lifestyle brand.
On this episode, she talks with Rita Shmakova about her inside-Fashion podcast (the Roster Radio), what drove her to pursue a career in Fashion, the many challenges of being an International student, and what lies ahead in her professional journey.
Paula Haza, based in NYC, has recently launched her own global consultancy “Haza Global Partners” with the main goal of helping Brazilian/Latin brands to expand and grow their presence globally. Prior to pivoting into consulting she spent more than 15 years helping global apparel/retail brands expand their international presence. Paula worked at VF Corporation for 10 years, as Director of International Licensing for the Nautica brand, where she established a vast network of retail operators across multiple geographies. For the last 5 years, Paula was the Director of Americas for Gap Inc.'s Global Franchise, Strategic Alliances, and Licensing division, where she led the expansion of Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy and Athleta brands throughout the Americas.
Paula is originally from Brazil, moved to the US 22 years ago and has been in NYC for the last 17 years where she lives with her husband and 7-year-old daughter. Paula is also a volunteer at Trekking for Kids, a nonprofit organization offering purpose driven treks to iconic destinations around the world benefiting orphaned children living in those areas
In this episode, she speaks with Karin Dauch about two major transitions: going from banking into fashion early in her career, and her recent pivot from corporate work to consulting.
Karin Dauch moved to New York in 1998 to attend Columbia School of Journalism and has transitioned from working as a foreign correspondent to helping people buy and sell their homes about 8 years ago. She speaks five languages, has three daughters, and is a board member of BrazilFoundation, a non-profit that gives grants and offers capacity training for social projects all over Brazil. A couple of years ago she completed a masters in philanthropy at NYU. Her mission is to help great people find their home.
On this episode, she talks with Paula Haza about how she started her career as a VJ on MTV in Brazil, why she moved from Brazil to New York and the twists and turns that ultimately led to her pursuing her twin passions of real estate and philanthropy.
Cecelia St. Clair Rembert is an artist based in Brooklyn, NY. She received an MFA in Painting from the New York Studio School in 2007, and has shown locally and nationally, in solo and group exhibitions, over the last 15 years.
In addition to painting, Rembert has a passion for sustainability and agriculture and is a produce buyer at the Park Slope Food Coop. Her interests are far-reaching and include making her own pigments, plant medicine, mythology and supporting soil-based farming.
In this episode, she speaks with Pam Seidman about the similarities between food and art, and how she's made the time for painting while also working full-time.
With over 25 years of experience, Pam has worked with some of the largest fashion brands globally with major success in designing, developing, and implementing brand growth strategies.
Spanning luxury to the mass sector, her expertise is in bringing aspirational appeal to brands and telling stories that resonate with audiences, alongside the marketing acumen to drive from community to commerce.
Previously, as EVP of Marketing at Nine West she successfully built a global marketing, digital, and creative team that oversaw the re-launch of the business across all categories. As Founder of Seidline Group, a consultancy, she has grown companies from $5M in revenue to $50M.
On this episode, she spoke with Cecelia Rembert about what inspired her to start BYBBA and the challenges of launching a business in the midst of a global pandemic.
Yashica Dutt is the author of the non-fiction memoir, Coming Out as Dalit. It was recently awarded the Sahitya Akademi Yuva Puruskar, 2020 (India’s National Academy of Letters’ Young Writers Award; among the country’s highest literary honors). Yashica Dutt is an emerging figure recognized for highlighting Dalit rights globally and her voice has been instrumental in understanding the realities of the caste system.
Her work has been published in the New York Times, Foreign Policy and The Atlantic and Dutt has been featured on The BBC, The Guardian and PBS Newshour. Dutt graduated from Columbia Journalism School and lives in New York. She is planning to soon release Coming Out as Dalit worldwide.
Listen as she speaks with Jonathan Joseph about her fashion as armor coming of age story and how it led her to explore the issues of caste through journalism as well as through her newly published memoir.
Jonathan Joseph is the CEO and creator of Little Red Fashion, the first fashion ed-tech and publishing company focused on teaching kids about and through fashion. He’s the author of their first book “The Little Red Dress: A Kids Book About Fashion.” LRF is also developing unique DEI & CSR resources including consulting for fashion companies to leave a better industry for the kids they write stories for.
Before founding Little Red Fashion, Jonathan was a strategic and fundraising management consultant working with nonprofits and startup firms across sectors. His passion for advocacy in the LD, LGBTQIA+ and Cerebral palsy communities has been a personal focus since his first keynote delivered at just 14. Jonathan serves on the board of The New Haven Pride Center, advisory board for The HIV League, and is an ambassador for anti-human trafficking organization Beauty for Freedom. He splits his time between Connecticut and Los Angeles. His CT based fine art practice, J. Joseph Studio specializes in medium and large format abstract works which began as a way to explore the way his ataxic cerebral palsy informs his reality.
In this episode, Jonathan speaks with Yashica Dutt about how shopping for socks with his mother, and later, discovering his gift for words and oratory, led him into a career in fashion and advocacy.
Katie Welch is a creative thinker and brand storyteller with more than 20 years of marketing experience. At Rare Beauty, Katie works to bring Selena Gomez’s mission and vision for Rare Beauty and the Rare Impact Fund to life. An innovative thought leader, she has continually pushed the envelope while working with globally respected beauty brands, including Hourglass, Bliss, Elemis, Burt’s Bees and Unilever. Katie has appeared on AMC’s The Pitch, WABC, WNBC, WIX and QVC. She has been quoted in Allure, WWD, Vogue Business, Glossy and more.
In this episode, Katie speaks with Caroline Homlish about how her personal relationships influenced her career path, and mentoring early career professionals interested in working in the beauty industry or marketing.
Caroline has led the Supergoop!’s digital transformation and online channel growth since 2019, overseeing e-commerce, site development, digital marketing, paid media, CRM and customer experience for the fast-growing, category-creating SPF beauty brand.
Prior to Supergoop!, Caroline oversaw exponential growth of the Digital business at ready-to-wear women's fashion brand Veronica Beard. Her early career began in PR and events for brands like Calvin Klein, followed by working at start-ups, and senior digital positions at Alexander McQueen in London and CHANEL Fragrance & Beauty in New York.
She holds a BA from Georgetown University and an MBA in Luxury Brand Management from ESSEC in Paris, France where she graduated as Major de Promotion (valedictorian).
On this episode, Caroline talks to Katie Welch about the path that's led her to take on roles and titles that didn't exist before she joined a company, and the advantages to knowing your way around Excel in the world of fashion.
For over twenty five years, Malia Mills has pioneered an inclusive and inspiring voice on the subject of women and beauty. In 1993, Mills launched her luxurious collection of bra-sized swimwear separates to critical acclaim.
With Love Thy Differences™ as her mission, mantra and driving force, Malia Mills has expanded her signature swimwear collection to include ready-to-wear and accessories. From A to F cup and sizes 1 to 22, each piece is designed using luxurious fabrics and a retro-modern aesthetic to celebrate the feminine fierce. "When you put on a swimsuit that celebrates the rockstar you are, there's nothing you can't accomplish," says Mills.
Mills created the company, aka The House of Hell Yes, to champion women and to be a catalyst for opportunities for women to live bold and not so well-behaved lives.
On this episode, she talks with Stephanie von Watzdorf about her initial pre-internet job search to get her foot in the door at Nordstrom's, and the invaluable career advice she received when faced with two competing job offers and a desire to pursue a career as a designer.
Stephanie von Watzdorf is an accomplished creative director, curator and fashion designer with more than 30 years' experience. She is known for the artistic and intuitive style she brings to design, be it clothes, accessories, or soulful spaces. She currently works as a consultant specializing in fashion, accessories and interior design.
Stephanie was born in Paris to a German/French father and a Russian mother. Her grandfather, Leonide Massine, was the renowned Ballets Russes choreographer whose friends and collaborators included Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, Leon Bakst and Igor Stravinsky. Stephanie’s immersion into this richly artistic, wayfaring life instilled in her an appreciation for other cultures, fine fabrics, music, dance, language and nature.
A graduate of Parson School of Design and recipient of Calvin Klein’s Golden Thimble award, Stephanie refined her aesthetic working for venerable fashion houses including Yves Saint Laurent, Giorgio Armani, Ann Taylor, and Ralph Lauren. In 2004, she joined Tory Burch as the original vice president of design, where she led design development and ready-to-wear accessories for over seven years.
In this episode, Stephanie speaks with Malia Mills about how her background, work experiences and love of travel culminated in 2011, when she founded Figue, a luxury fashion and lifestyle brand that captures the global gypsy-meets-jet-set spirit that is her native tongue. As creative director and the face of the label, Stephane grew a conscious company from the ground up, with roots in sustainability, heritage, travel and artisanship.
Originally from Spain, Rosella Lopez has worked in the fashion industry for over 20 years starting in Paris with Diane Von Furstenberg, then in London with Ralph Lauren, and for the past ten years in New York as the Vice President of CUSHNIE.
Growing CUSHNIE from the start to a multi-million-dollar company, she acquired the experience and knowledge to focus her career on consulting for companies in need of leadership and collectively working on building strategic roadmaps for growth involving sales distribution, merchandising, marketing, branding, e-commerce, and capital investment.
Listen as Rosella speaks with Rachel Wolff about the path that took her from Valencia to New York for business school, a return to Europe to start her professional career, before it eventually led her back again to New York.
Rachel Wolff has more than two decades of experience in fashion retail - general management, strategy, merchandising, operations, buying, sales, product development. Her career experience includes Chief Merchandising and Product officer of Cuyana, General Manager/ VP Merch for Loeffler Randall & Tea Collection.
Currently, Rachel is partner and Brand President of FREDA SALVADOR a unique emerging luxury footwear and accessory brand based in CA and handcrafted in Spain and El Salvador. FREDA is a fast growing DTC brand paving the way for new luxury with high-quality, slightly unconventional accessories to empower women. Her career focus is now on supporting emerging, female founded, design led businesses.
Listen as she talks with Rosella Lopez about the twists and turns that set her on her career path, and how having her first child prompted her to re-assess what she most wanted from her career.
Rita comes from one of the most prominent families in the international fashion system. Her former key positions include: GM of North America of Woolrich USA, CEO of Costume National USA and Executive Vice President of USIT.
She speaks with Agathe Lerolle about her family's remarkable influence on international fashion, what she learned about the business from her parents and working with her brothers, and later her push for the global inclusivity she wants to see in the fashion industry.
Agathe Lerolle is the Founder of Sur Mesure Executive Search, a boutique recruitment firm specializing in the Fashion, Luxury, and Retail industry. She has conducted over 5,000 interviews in the span of a 15-year career and is a leading expert in executive recruitment talent marketing, and sourcing. Prior to starting Sur Mesure Executive Search, she was a Director at K&J Executive Search and a Principal at Sterling International from 2006 to 2009, having spent several years at JP Morgan in Paris and New York. She has extensive knowledge of Fashion & Luxury brands, having worked with Louis Vuitton, Graff, Harry Winston, Cartier, Frederic Malle, Goyard, Dior, Chloe, Aether, Vestiaire Collective, A.P.C. amongst others.
Agathe obtained a B.A. in Finance from the European Business School in Paris, and is fluent in French, English, Spanish and hopefully soon in Italian.
Listen as she talks with Rita Capasa about the unusual way in which she went into recruiting, and her shift from working with brands to find the right candidates to working with candidates to find them the right jobs in a changing and evolving industry.
April co-founded THE BOARD, a vetted network of C-level consultants bringing “dream team” expertise to brands. April most recently held CEO positions at VIOLET GREY & ONDA Beauty.
She was the Chief Brand Officer and founding team member at the ground breaking mobile first market place SPRING where she led brand strategy and curation. Prior to Spring she spent 25 years in the fashion industry, highlighted by 9 years as the EVP of Global Sales & Strategy at DVF.
April is a self proclaimed “accidental activist” and is a founding member of IAMAVOTER. The New York Business Journal honored April as part of their inaugural Women of Influence Awards and her leadership skills were profiled by Women@Forbes.
Listen as she speaks with Marisa Runyon about pivoting out of fashion, and the winding path that led to, in her words, drinking out of a fire hose to gain the experience and knowledge she needed to become a CEO, and later co-found THE BOARD.
Marisa has more than a decade of experience creating premium content in the fashion, beauty and lifestyle space. As a digitally-savvy, metric-focused editor and content creator, she has spearheaded everything from new video series and branded content to e-commerce strategy.
She served as the Senior Style Producer & Editor for Entertainment Tonight Digital, where she launched both the Style & Shopping content verticals, and as the Head of Video for The Zoe Report. Before shifting her focus to digital content, Marisa started her production career in unscripted television, producing shows for Bravo, Lifetime and Style Network.
Listen as she speaks with April Uchitel about her belief in learning on the job and her skill, luck and timing of recognizing when the next career opportunity was presenting itself.
Kathryn Kallison has 20 years of experience building and leading teams managing logistics, customer service, distribution and warehousing for retail and wholesale consumer goods. She is currently VP Logistics for Flow Commerce (acquired by Global-e), a SaaS platform that helps e-commerce merchants scale their brands globally.
Listen as she tells Carol Pearson about how the HR job she accidentally landed after graduating from college opened the door to her work in the fashion industry, and how her initial work in HR has influenced her career since.
Carol grew up in the United Kingdom and after her studies, embarked on a 20-year odyssey around the world pursuing her global HR career. Carol opened Ritz-Carlton Hotels in Australia and Asia, led the HR aspects of a start-up in San Francisco, worked as SVP Human Resources North America, for the LVMH Fashion Group and more recently was European HR VP for InterContinental Hotels Group.
Carol now works independently as a Leadership Coach working with clients around the world.
Listen as she speaks with Kathryn Kallison about her global journey, her pursuit of lifelong learning and the self-fulfillment that she says comes from helping others to fly.
An entrepreneur and business leader at heart, Beryl founded Poplar, The Modern Drug Store, in 2018 after personally discovering natural medicine solutions. Beryl added cannabis to her health and wellness routine and decreased her dependence on pharmaceutical anti-anxiety/antidepressants. Prior to transitioning into the wellness space, Beryl was a Fashion and Retail Executive focused on creating and growing best-in-class brands.
Join us as Beryl speaks with Bari Schorr about wanting to save the world, and her challenging journey from starting her career in public policy to entering the natural drug space with the goal of making it easily accessible and understandable.
Bari Schorr has 30 years in the industry starting at Bloomingdales, and most recently as SVP GMM at Rue Gilt Groupe. She's known for her performance excellence in high volume businesses through strategic planning and implementation, an extensive background in online marketing and user experience. She's also a strategic and data driven decision maker, an expert at selling a sales and marketing platform for brands and a skilled leader of large high performance teams through mentoring, as well as peer to peer relationships in highly matrixed organizations.
Listen as Bari speaks with Beryl Solomon about how she becmae, in her words, "the luckiest girl in retail."
Susan Joy is a regenerative strategist and fashion brand advisor, with a background in fashion media, brand and design consulting, and a master’s in sustainability.
She has a background in fashion media, brand and design consulting, having worked with a broad cross section of designers, brands and magazines, including contributing to the New York Times for a decade.
Susan is committed to building a just and regenerative world in which business gives back more than they take from the communities and ecosystems they touch, creating only products that add value to the world around them, and are produced in healthy, respectful, and responsible ways.
Listen as she talks with Gayle Robbins about what brought her from Australia to New York, and how motherhood changed her career perspective and helped inspire a career pivot to working in regeneration.
Gayle has more than 20 years of experience in product development, creative direction, cross-functional collaboration, intellectual property expansion, strategic foresight, and trend analysis.
She is a smart and passionate optimist focused on working with mission-driven brands supporting the well-being of people, the planet, and creating long-term value. Gayle is scheduled to complete a Master's degree in Business for Social Impact and Sustainability in Spring 2022. Her passion is working with companies to develop sustainable products and practices and building consumer trust to inspire brand loyalty.
Listen as she chats with Susan Joy about a career spent serving a purpose to develop products as problem solvers.
A former magazine stylist for Harper’s Bazaar, Nicole’s quest to find the perfect pair of jeans inspired her to co-found Habitual, a cult denim brand which won the Vogue/CFDA Fashion award. On the back of that success Nicole was appointed co-Creative Director of Helmut Lang and is lauded with the brand's successful relaunch. Nicole, along with her husband Michael, then launched their own sustainable fashion label, Colovos, which won the 2019 International Woolmark Prize for Womenswear. Nicole is currently working on a new startup launching in 2022.
Join us as Nicole describes her journey from fashion editor to fashion stylist to launching her own startup, while simultaneously moving from New Zealand to Australia to New York.
New York based Aussie Natasha Silva-Jelly has worked for renowned media brands like Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue, GRAZIA, The Guardian Life & Style. A long time journalist and editor specializing in fashion, beauty, lifestyle, she started her career at Australian Vogue, run the fashion round at The Sydney Morning Herald Newspaper and worked for Vogue in London. She moved with her family to NYC in 2014 and joined Harper’s Bazaar as Features and Fashion News Director.
Listen as she describes what drew her to New York from Australia, and how she's navigated the engine room during every phase of the changing media landscape.
A brand marketer with more than a decade of experience in fashion and community-building, Libby leads marketing for Nickel & Suede, an accessories brand dedicated to inspiring confidence in women. Previously, she oversaw PR, Partnerships, and Social Impact at Stella & Dot, a global lifestyle brand known for accessorizing everyone from Selena Gomez to RBG. In 2019, Libby launched her own consulting business helping brands engage new audiences and build brand loyalists. Libby also leads the Co-Lab's monthly Marketing Lunch Hour covering everything from green-washing to brand evangelism.
Join us as Libby describes her winding path of a career, from finance to jewelry to fashion, and the lessons she learned from those experiences about career mobility and not being pigeonholed.
Meg Barr has a passion for understanding consumer behavior and is currently working as a product marketing manager in the skincare industry. In her current role, Meg is setting business strategy for the North America region and working to bring new products to life and drive sales. When she is not working, Meg is preparing to run her second marathon in London, UK next year (hopefully!). In this episode, Meg explains how studying psychology led her into a career in marketing, and also how she benefitted in her career through a variety of different roles and experiences in marketing and strategy at Estée Lauder.
Naomi Mishkin is an artist and designer making things in Brooklyn, New York. Trained as a glassblower, she spent a decade making sculpture before founding NAOMI NOMI in 2018. The conceptual themes of her sculpture ring true in her clothes: love your materials and put meaning in the making.
A Boston native, she could knit since before she could read and decided to become a designer when she was 13. She attended Cornell University for design school, and then moved to New York, where she temped briefly in a knitting factory before joining the design team at Oscar de la Renta as a knitwear product development assistant.
After four years as a product developer, she left to go to MIT Sloan School of Management to study business and operations.
Join us as Laura describes her journey from learning to knit at a very early age to participating in MIT's startup accelerator to start Fit for Everybody, focusing on consistency, accuracy, and representation in fit and sizing from the design stage.
Catrina Reingold has spent the past 15 years of her career in the fashion industry. She is an innovative creative strategist adept at transforming brands through insightful product strategy in order to create long-term brand value.
Her experience includes trend forecasting & marketing at Jones apparel, Director of Licensing for Isaac Mizrahi, Vice President of Design at C.Wonder for QVC, and the Creative Director at Lori Goldstein.
Listen as Catrina describes her career journey and how her experience at QVC both enabled and influenced her decision to pursue brand storytelling through ethics, culture, and sustainability.
For almost two decades, Jamie has consulted with globally recognized fashion, beauty, technology, and e-commerce companies to find and place the best talent at all levels. From filling specific roles in the C-Suite to staffing entire departments, she has built a much-deserved reputation for not only knowing everyone in the industry, but helping her candidates feel fulfilled and successful in their careers.
Join us as Jamie humorously describes how she parlayed her marketing experience into a successful career in recruiting, and how successful recruiting is akin to matchmaking. Interviewed by Catrina Reingold.
Today we hear from Camila Gomez Wills, a Business and Human Rights Program Manager who develops bespoke strategies for Fortune 500 companies to address high-risk ESG business issues — interviewed by fellow co-lab member, Janet Gilbert. Camila cares deeply about human dignity and agency and is dedicated to finding solutions for responsible sourcing as well as best practices to ultimately put an end to modern slavery in our supply chains. Join us as she describes how a personal tragedy in high school led to spend a year in India before starting college in Colombia, ultimately setting her on a path to her current career.
Janet is a researcher and collaborator in corporate social responsibility and private sector engagement in apparel industry value chains, with a keen focus on modern slavery and other social compliance risks. A lifelong seamstress, she has a strong affinity toward garment workers. Listen to how, in sewing, she found the resilience to persevere through personal tragedy and ultimately enroll in business school to pursue a career in sustainability.
Today we hear the career story of Saskia van Gendtsits, Head of Sustainability at Rothy's — interviewed by fellow co-lab member, Ariele Elia. An environmental scientist with more than a decade of experience in sustainable manufacturing and design, Saskia is head of sustainability at Rothy’s, a San Francisco-based company transforming sustainable materials into modern shoes and accessories. After working at the EPA, Saskia now develops strategies to minimize the environmental impact that Rothy’s supply chain has on the environment. Join us as Saskia discusses her work at the EPA and method, and how her parents influenced her choice to focus on sustainability.
Ariele Elia is currently the Assistant Director of the Fashion Law Institute at Fordham Law. Previously, she served as the Assistant Curator of Costume and Textile at the Museum at FIT for seven years, where she curated or co-curated a number of exhibits including: "Faking It: Originals, Copies, and Counterfeits," “Global Fashion Capitals,” and "Black Fashion Designers.” Elia recently developed the course Cultural Awareness, Design Responsibility, and the Law at FIT. She has lectured internationally at the United Nations, Oxford, and Columbia Law.
Listen along as Saskia van Gendt chats with Ariele about her career.
American-born Swati Argade is the Founder and Creative Director of Bhoomki, one of New York City’s leading destinations for sustainable fashion since 2012.
Swati began her fashion career in South India while working on a documentary. In 2006 while in Calcutta, Swati was shocked to see children on factory floors producing $5,000 leather bags—the kind found in glossy fashion magazines. She decided to take a break from producing fashion collections to study the apparel supply chain and identify solutions for change. In 2012, Swati opened Bhoomki Boutique to provide a space for customers to discover brands committed to social and environmental responsibility.
Swati has Bachelor’s degrees in Art History and Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a Master’s degree in South Asian Studies with a concentration in film from the University of California, Berkeley. She has also studied garment construction at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. Swati is a founding faculty member of the School of the New York Times where she is the lead fashion educator. In 2017, she was chosen as one of four women entrepreneurs by technology giant Intel in their campaign #SheOwnsIt. Her work has been featured in such publications as Elle, Lucky, Wall Street Journal, The Huffington Post, Associated Press, Brooklyn Magazine and The Nation.
Toral Patel Hughes is a corporate lawyer turned business consultant and fashion entrepreneur. A graduate of UCLA, Wash U Law School and Georgetown Law, she practiced at law firms for 8 years before moving in house to be a general counsel for a hotel holding company in New York City. In early 2020, right before COVID (eek on that timing), she decided to take a leap and take a break from law. While the world was on a COVID pause, she found her way to consulting for start-ups and also started a passion project based on her love of Indian textiles and artisan-made embroideries - a clothing line for children called Little Choli. Toral is excited to share her career journey, chat pivots and what it’s like to leave a prosperous career to follow your passion.
Kelsey Linnartz is a New York City based Assistant Designer for private label swimwear company, Trimera Brands, and she is the founder of LinnArtzy, where she designs greeting cards and fashion illustrations. Join us as she opens up about the challenges of navigating the start of her fashion career during the pandemic, moving back home, then back to NYC, networking, and launching her own brand. When Kelsey is not designing swimwear and greeting cards, she enjoys exploring New York, and connecting with fellow creatives.
Lauren Cook is a marketing and social media guru with a background in the retail and hospitality spaces. A graduate of Baylor University, Lauren started her career working in sales and marketing for Hilton and Marriott hotels, and has recently made the switch to retail as a part of Lovesac's Social Partnerships team. Listen along as she shares her best career advice, and how her spontaneous move to NYC has shaped her career today.
Anja Tyson is a business development consultant specializing in sustainability and culture in the fashion, beauty and wellness spaces. After 16 years working cross-functionally with emergent and established brands focused on businesses with environmental and ethical missions, she is now independently consulting for businesses that are seeking to holistically adapt their operational and communications missions to fit and thrive in the new world.
Kelli has 12+ years of experience in sales and marketing across CPG, DTC, luxury and mass brands before transitioning into fintech. She is currently the Director of Brand Partnerships at Sezzle -- a “buy now, pay later” platform and certified B Corp where she leads business development for their fashion vertical. Prior to that she's been at companies such as Abercrombie, Tory Burch, Neutrogena and M.M. LaFleur.
Laila Tarraf is a senior human resource executive with over 25 years of professional experience. After graduating with her MBA from the Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley, she became one of the founding team members at Walmart.com. She then served as Chief People Officer at Peet’s Coffee and Tea, an iconic Bay Area premium coffee company.
Currently, Laila is the Chief People Officer at Allbirds, a sustainable footwear and apparel brand. She is also a trusted advisor to entrepreneurs and investors and is a guest lecturer at Berkeley Law School. Her debut novel, Strong Like Water, shares her hard-won insights on the importance of balancing courage and compassion, and infusing power with tenderness in business and in life.
As Chief Executive Officer of Quay—a buzzworthy, millennial-favorite, global eyewear brand—Jodi Bricker is leading the charge on bringing bold style, affordability and self-expression to customers around the world and aiming to disrupt the monopolized eyewear category.
Under Bricker’s leadership, Quay has continued to dominate the eyewear industry as one of the fastest growing independent brands—now available in 35 countries with over 1,500 points of distribution, including 15 companyowned retail shops. In 2020, Bricker drove the company to achieve year-overyear growth in excess of 25 percent—despite the downward trend in retail during the global pandemic—and solidified the company’s status as one of the most buzzworthy, purpose-driven eyewear brands. During her tenure with the company, Jodi has launched a series of celebrity collaborations with the most notable names in Hollywood, including Jennifer Lopez, Lizzo and Maluma, and donated over $750,000 to causes that amplify and nurture the self-expression, confidence, and wellbeing of their global community.
Prior to her role at Quay, Bricker held executive leadership roles at Athleta, Levi Strauss & Co. and Gap Inc., where she was amongst a handful of merchants handpicked to launch Old Navy in 1993. With over 25 years of experience driving rapid and sustainable growth across iconic American brands—and a keen understanding of customers, product and innovation—Bricker is an omni-channel retail expert and inspiring leader with a track record of driving multiple brands and businesses to $1B and beyond.
As a working mother of two teenage daughters, a former college athlete, and leader of a predominantly female organization, woman empowerment and mentorship are a motivating and guiding force across all aspects of her life. For further information, please visit www.Quay.com.
From Cool Hunter to Fashion Executive, Chandra Recchi boasts an enviable roster of international fashion brands having worked for the likes of Acne Studios, Coach and Burberry to name a few. An inspirational leader that has seen multiple brand transformations, she has a passion for brand building through clear product strategy and authentic storytelling. Chandra is known for her ability to filter creative visions into commercial success, a passion for helping people succeed and throwing a killer party!
Expert in fashion, trends and experiences, Nadège Winter is a forerunner of the 360° generation. Former Head of Communications of the Palais de Tokyo (PARIS) and of the Colette concept store (PARIS), she founded her agency in 2008: NWA. It offers global expertise in branding/identity, experiences and product creation.
In August 2019, she moved from Paris to NYC, with her daughter and husband (who still lives between Paris and NYC) to work at Calvin Klein, as SVP of Brand Experience.
One year later, as the Covid pandemic took the world by storm, and convinced that the fashion industry must re-invent itself around purpose while still providing an escape and creating desire, Nadège decided to go back to consulting. In her view, sustainability and social responsibility cannot be disassociated from creativity or profitability, they must operate as one “do good” ecosystem. In addition to her client assignments (Hermès, Cartier, Burberry, Nike, Petit Bateau, Kenzo, Belvedere, L’Oreal, Timberland, H&M Conscious, Maison Standard, etc.), Nadège also creates and produces her own projects.
In 2008, she co-launched the Big Music Festival in Biarritz which went on for 8 years (100,000 visitors). At the same time she organized the Parisian seasonal event BrunchBazar bringing together over 10,000 people for a week at the Palais de Tokyo. Then, she launched her own fashion brand AmishBoyish in collaboration with graphic designer Dyane de Serigny. In partnership with Delphine de Canecaude, she launched the new collaborative and community media platform TwentyMagazine.fr, a“phygital” platform of expression for the new generation of twenty-something talents. Wherever she is, Nadège Winter detects those who create the trends and directions for tomorrow.
Crystal DeVone aka DJ C. DeVone is a multimedia professional that specializes in events, music, marketing and audio production. She has a passion for events, social media campaigns and integrated strategies that drive new customer acquisition, increase brand awareness and improve profitability.
She has been highlighted on life and beauty blogs, Essence Magazine, Nylon Magazine, Bravo and Ammo Magazine. The New York native has been linked to Revolt TV, Afropunk, Google, Youtube, WeTV, Bravo’s Blood Sweat and Heels, UGG, L’Oreal, Neiman Marcus, H&M to name a few. C. DeVone’s clear devotion to creativity and desire to constantly learn has garnered the attention of industry heavy-weights.
Her love for music and audio stemmed at a young age and heightened when she was accepted to the High School of Music & Art (LaGuardia HS). She then headed off to Washington, DC to attend Howard University, where she earned a degree in Radio, TV and Film. Her passion is driven by creating impactful multimedia content in the digital hemisphere in the world of podcasts, social media, TV and branding.
Her podcast credits include Music, Men & My Mental Podcast, Versed: The ASCAP Podcast, Refinery29 - Go Off Sis Podcast (Vice Media), Positively Gam, (hosted by Red Table Talk's own Gammy, AKA Adrienne Banfield) and Pretty Big Deal with Supermodel Ashley Graham (Westbrook).
“I strive to be the Sylvia Rhone of Podcasts” - C. DeVone
Tracy Chenoff, an Arizona State Sundevil, started her career journey with an internship at MGM. This is where she found her love of events, working on movies like Ghost World, Windtalkers and Legally Blonde. She grew up hearing about the sales industry from her father who sold media for MTV when it first started and ended his long career at MGM. It only made sense for her to put her love of events and sales skills together.
Her sales and events career stretches for 20+ years, most notable Entertainment Cruises, 4PM Events, BizBash and now Breaking Media where she is the Sales Director for Fashionista, Above the Law, Dealbreaker and MedCity News. When she is not creating digital campaigns for Bloomberg and Nordstrom, she is fueling her comedy bug with sketch writing and toying with the idea of doing stand up again, though her husband thinks Podcasting is the way to go. Stay tuned!
Sarah specializes in studio and atelier management for luxury brands, mostly recently at Tom Ford International and Calvin Klein under Raf Simons.
After studying literature at Bryn Mawr College, Sarah discovered an affinity for pattern-making while attending the Fashion Institute of Technology. Sarah began her career in technical design at J. Crew and Alexander Wang, while also working in the custom ateliers of Oscar de la Renta, Ralph Rucci, and Calvin Klein Collection. Based in New York City, Sarah manages the creative development and manufacturing of collections, working both with overseas factories and domestic, in-house ateliers.
Cassandra Kane spent almost a decade designing luxury ready-to-wear, leather and fur, outerwear and eveningwear for brands in New York. Throughout these experiences, she worked closely with manufacturers and sample rooms, discovering a passion for creating directly in factories closest to the supply chain. In 2017 she relocated to Florence, Italy to learn the art of Italian handbags and continue developing her craft at the supply source. Through all of these experiences, Cassandra grappled with the realities of waste and exploitation within the fashion industry at every level, even in the luxury handbag industry. This realization inspired her to launch Sieme, (@wearesieme) a brand and platform founded to offset luxury production material waste and support local artisans and independent factories. Through a line of handcrafted luxury accessories created from local deadstock and material waste and exclusive digital sample sales with Italian based artisans, Sieme promotes sustainably made artisan Italian products to a global audience.
Tia Tappan is the Founder and CEO of DIVERSITY IN BEAUTY, a safe space for under-represented creatives and allies in the beauty community. Since 2017, the DIVERSITY IN BEAUTY Summit brings together consumers, industry professionals, celebrities and influencers for candid panel discussions on the beauty industry's state of diversity, equity and inclusion. The Summit gained notoriety when Sir John, global makeup artist and activist, headlined the Summit two years in a row.
Ms. Tappan is also the creator of the eyelash brand BATLASH (est.2014). With fun collections named "Pin-Up Girl" - named after famous American pin-up girls - and the "Queen Collection" - inspired by drag queen culture - the brand quickly grew on social media. In 2016, BATLASH rose to fame when influencer Angel "Mac Daddy" Merino posted a makeup look wearing the lashes on his Snapchat and Instagram accounts to his 1.4 million followers. The lashes have also been used by celebrity makeup artists Francesca Tolot, Joyce Bonelli, and Sara Tanno.
Prior to becoming a beauty entrepreneur, Tappan had a career in public relations and marketing, which led her to become the first-ever Marketing Director at the Urban League of Greater Atlanta, a subsidiary of the National Urban League. Tia is a Memphis, TN native and a graduate of the University of Tennessee, where she earned her Bachelor's degree in English Language & American Literature with a minor in Communication. She lives in Los Angeles and New York City. To get invloved with DIVERSITY IN BEAUTY , visit www.diversityinbeauty.com
Josanta Gray Emegano is the Founder of Grayscaled Media, a boutique firm that helps indie brands navigate the gray areas of retail distribution and brand partnerships. The company was created with the intention of helping indie brands avoid costly mistakes when growing their businesses. She recently created From Gray to Green, a series of ecourses designed to help provide clarity on a variety of subjects for budding entrepreneurs.
Named the Olivia Pope of Beauty by clients, Josanta has developed retail strategies that have allowed her clients to secure distribution with Ulta, Sephora, Urban Outfitters, Target, and HSN to name a few. Previously, Josanta was the Chief Operating Officer of Beauty Bakerie Cosmetics Brand.
Prior to Beauty Bakerie, Josanta worked as a Licensing Agent at Creative Artists Agency - Global Brands Group (CAA-GBG). She was responsible for managing brands such as Gabby Douglas, Daya by Zendaya, and California Baby. Josanta is also an internationally published writer with pieces that can be found on CBS, NBC, Grind Pretty, and many more! Josanta holds a Masters in Communication Management from the University of Southern California.
Lauren Rome is a lover of community, the environment, and clean skincare. Born on the East Coast, Lauren spent the last decade in New York City grinding in the tenacious environment of Wall Street. A woman on the go, she tried countless skincare products but nothing seemed to work to combat the stress which led to breakouts, dark circles, and dehydrated skin. Empowered by the idea that she could help people feel their best, she embarked on a mission to create the solution she and others needed. Enter Romer Skincare. Lauren is now living full time in Chicago with her husband, a proud Mom to a golden retriever and her skin has never looked better. She spends less time trying new products and more time on the things that matter. Lauren is continuing to build a community around her brand and helping others discover the joy of healthy, beautiful skin.
Shay’s years working in media taught her a number of things. The most obvious was that melanin-rich skin was being underserved. Even though the beauty industry is a nearly 500 billion dollar market, many of its most commanding brands ignore the needs of deep and dark complexions from formulations to marketing.
After a lifetime of acne scars and hyperpigmentation, this added insult to injury for Shay. It confirmed that her years of struggle were actually caused by an industry-wide oversight. In fact, the real problem was that no one was making products for her. SHAYDE BEAUTY was born to serve this market and create skincare with melanin in mind.
Regina is the Founder of Collective Work, a research consultancy specializing in the Modern Luxury Consumer, translating insight into strategy, innovation, and storytelling for the lifestyle and hospitality sectors. She has over 20 years of experience in creating brands, products, communications, and experiences from the customer’s perspective, working with impressive companies like Apple, Starwood, and Nike.
Tiffany's love of "story" and beautiful, well-made objects has resulted in a career spanning the worlds of Film, Fashion and Interiors for all spaces. Her professional roles have often focused on creating exceptional experiences through building and developing balanced teams, generating dynamic sales programming for omnichannel businesses, and shining a light on the power of "story" as a way to connect customers with products and brands.
Tiffany is currently the Sales Director of Architecture & Design Trade at Heath Ceramics, where she has spent the last six years of her career. Listen along as friend and fellow hospitality professional, Regina Connell, talks with Tiffany about her career.
Ashley Wilson is a Florida-bred, Brooklyn-based digital and creative project manager with 9+ years of experience in the fashion, photography, and luxury beauty industries. After graduating from Florida State University with a degree in Fashion Merchandising, Ashley moved to New York to pursue a styling internship at Esquire Magazine, where she learned on set that her true knack was for managing teams and problem-solving.
Since then, Ashley has produced both in-house and within agencies for a variety of fashion, beauty, jewelry, luxury goods, and lifestyle brands as well as editorial publications and photographers. Most recently, Ashley has been delving further into the digital space as the Senior Digital Project Manager at a major luxury beauty brand. She thrives on managing projects that challenge and inspire teams. In her spare time, Ashley is a mentor to female and non-binary students looking to break into the tech world and enjoys making a tasty mess in the kitchen.
Listen along as Juliana Wise chats with Ashley about her career.
Juliana is an executive level project manager with 11+ years of experience in retail operations, marketing, product development, product launches and experiential event execution. She is currently the Senior Program Manager of Marketing and Operations at SEPHORA, and has managed projects for a variety of fashion, jewelry, tech, creative and coaching businesses and thrives at working cross-functionally to deliver successful projects.
She enjoys finding quick strategies to resolve problems, developing and automating operational systems and is at her best when finding ways to bring ideas to life. Having supported a variety of projects, Juliana mixes technical project management philosophies with a creative, brand driven, customer and team centric approach. She finds joy in caring for the people that count on her and leading the execution of exciting projects.
Juliana is an active member of the Project Management Institute’s San Francisco Bay Area Chapter and runs a philanthropic event for the Los Angeles Southwest Community College Foundation. She loves all things fitness and outdoors - cycling, running, hiking, yoga, playing in the gym, panting, sewing and cooking. She is super excited to be working in the Bay Area where she grew up after spending the last 16 years in Long Beach, CA earning her Masters in Business and PMP Certification while starting her career. Fun Fact: she upcycles antique books into art pieces.
Listen along as Ashley Wilson, Senior Digital Project Manager at Pat McGrath Cosmetics, chats with Juliana about her career.
Naomi Usher is Founder and Creative Director of Studio Usher, a full-service design firm in New York City. Her commitment to the process is fervent, her energy is laser-focused, and her non-linear approach is as smart as it is provocative. It’s why she’s been sought after for two decades to create award-winning campaigns across a range of industries, from publishing and fashion to fine arts and non-profit.
Prior to opening her own firm, Naomi spent 8 years as an Art Director at Allure magazine and at the Walt Disney Company. She holds a B.A. (cum laude) from the University of Pennsylvania, a B.F.A. from Parsons School of Design, and a certificate from the Yale School of Management Executive Education program. In 2014, she completed an intensive class in User Experience at General Assembly. She has founded a community advocacy group, and serves on two non-profit boards: FerroDonna Features and Village Preservation.
Listen along as Sneaker Designer and Founder of Lilith NYC, Sarah Sukumaran, chats with Naomi.
Sarah Sukumaran was born and raised in Queens, NY. She is the founder and CEO of Lilith NYC, a sneaker startup launching Summer 2021. Sarah started Lilith NYC, largely motivated by the fact that women are overlooked by the sneaker industry and that the industry forces a very one-dimensional view of how women are to show up in sneaker culture.
Most recently, she was Director of Product (Data Science and Models) at Nike where she was responsible for building and deepening a holistic view of Nike's consumers through data and analytics and applying those insights to inform the development and growth of digital services, content, and experiences for Nike’s consumers. She has spent most of her career in the Enterprise SaaS space, leading teams of product managers and engineers. Sarah has a BS in Business Management from Babson College.
Listen along as Naomi Usher chats with Sarah about her career.
Annelies spent 15 years of her career in fashion, having worked with a range of major designers including Karl Lagerfeld, and later founded a beachwear brand called Seilenna. Originally from Belgium, her career has spanned across the world, from the UK to New York. Annelies Is currently based in Portugal, and Is the Chief Creative Officer at FTD Flowers, a Chicago-based company.
Listen along as fellow Portugal resident, Ana Lerario, chats with Annelies.
Brazilian-Born Ana Lerario Geller is a Fashion designer and owner of New York City based Fiftytwo showroom. After starting her career at Marc Jacobs and working for over a decade in some of New York's top fashion houses, Ana embarked on her own business adventure helping young internatioal designers launch their brands in the American market. Currently living in Portugal, Ana continues to split her time between Fiftytwo showroom, her family, and some new and exciting business ventures.
Listen along as fellow Portugal resident, Annelies De Rouck, talks with Ana about her career.
Jermaine Francis is a London based Photographer who works between projects and commissions, and has appeared in exhibitions at the National Portrait Gallery, International Centre of Photography, as well as i-D Magazine, 10 Magazine, British Journal of Photography, Beauty Papers, and Self Service.
He recently published his latest book, Something that seems so Familiar becomes Distant, and appears in the soon-to-be published Aperture book, Photo No-Nos: Meditations on What Not to Shoot, edited by Jason Fulford and out this summer.
Listen along as former colleague and Executive Producer, Heloise Thomas Goodman, interviews Jermaine about his extensive career.
Heloise has an impressive background of working with photographers and visual content creators for the past 20+ years, combining her expertise of hiring the visual talent and representing the talent to tell a brand’s story. Beginning her career at The Andy Warhol Foundation and Ian Schrager Hotels, Heloise established herself at Art + Commerce—where for nearly a decade, she worked with various preeminent photographers in their fields as well as many of the world’s leading luxury, fashion and beauty brands. Pivoting to photo editing, she has held positions at W Magazine, D La Repubblica, and Martha Stewart Omnimedia, where she oversaw photographic direction for the MSLO brands. She is currently a Freelance Producer at e.l.f. Cosmetics.
Listen along as London-based Photographer and former colleague, Jermaine Francis, talks with Heloise about her career.
Laura Annetta Kaplan is the founder of ANNETTA, a collection of responsibly sourced and made fine jewelry, which launched in September 2020. Prior to opening her own business, her 20-year fashion career includes posts at European luxury houses Bottega Veneta, Alexander McQueen, and Stella McCartney, as well as senior merchant positions at Ralph Lauren and AllSaints, and President at Paul Andrew.
Listen along as fellow co-lab member and jewelry founder, Shelly Steffee, talks with Laura.
Shelly is the founder and curator of recently launched ehra, a direct to consumer collection of vintage jewelry, accessories and objects. "Where art and adornment intersect, ehra begins." ehra’s selection of vintage aims for a more mindful approach, starting with the reuse of existing parts. Each piece is expertly curated or recreated from vintage parts to sustain its life.
Prior to that, Shelly launched SHELLY STEFFEE, a luxury women’s lifestyle brand and concept store, pioneering the Meatpacking District in NYC in the 2000s. Shelly is a CFDA member and has been featured in Vogue, W Magazine, I-D and WWD.
Listen along as fellow co-lab member, Laura Kaplan, interviews Shelly.
Alexa Steiner (she/her) works as a sustainability consultant focused on helping organizations uncover the opportunities that lie within sustainable innovation. She has worked across industries in fashion, government, and nonprofit sector. Though she works with clients across North America, she currently resides in beautiful BC, Canada and spends as much time outside with her pup, Rizzo.
Listen along as fellow co-lab member, Gabriella Ainslie, interviews Alexa.
Gabriella Ainslie directs operations, growth and sustainability as COO of Miranda Bennett Studio, an ethical, sustainable fashion brand. Her career has included positions at Christie’s Auction House, ABC Carpet & Home and URBN. She has also worked as a consultant to brands and retailers directing profitable growth through brand strategy and operational efficiencies.
Listen along as fellow co-lab member and sustainability consultant, Alexa Steiner, talks with Gabriella.
Amanda Vlavianos is a strategic and goal-oriented product development manager with extensive background in the luxury and contemporary apparel industry. Upon graduating from Rutgers University with a degree in English Literature, Amanda began her career with KARISMA, an embroidery company that partners with designers to bring embroidered and embellished apparel to life. While at KARISMA, she led product development for a portfolio of 15 luxury brands and has worked with major designers like Oscar de la Renta and Ralph Lauren. Amanda is now a Product Development Manager at Delta Galil Industries and found her new role through the co-lab. Listen along as fellow co-lab member, Abbey Cook, chats with Amanda about her experience.
Ever wondered what a job in Trend Forecasting looks like? Abbey Cook is a lifestyle trend forecaster and creative consultant with over 15 years experience in developing cultural trends, storytelling and design forecasts for major brands and retailers. A graduate of University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Abbey's lifelong love of fashion led her to her career path. Listen along as she talks with fellow co-lab member, Amanda Vlavianos, about her career journey and her recent venture to consulting.
Danielle Kayembe is a female futurist and serial entrepreneur who works on projects at the intersection of women, tech and social impact. Through her company GreyFire, she advises female founders in the US and emerging markets in Africa on scaling their businesses and raising capital. Danielle is an advisor to social impact startups and a mentor to Columbia University’s business accelerator, she has lectured at Yale School of Management and Barnard College's Athena Program and Princeton University. Danielle is an Ariane de Rothschild Fellow, awarded to 20 Global Social Impact Entrepreneurs each year. She has been featured on CNBC and in Forbes, and is a frequent speaker at the United Nations, TEDx, Google, General Assembly and other events. Danielle is the author of "The Silent Rise of the Female-Driven Economy" a position paper on women and the future of business and innovation.
Listen along as fellow entrepreneur and Founder/CEO of The Upside, Erin Halper, interviews Danielle.
Erin Halper is the founder and CEO of The Upside, an award-winning community and accelerator for consultants who support and advance one another in business and beyond. Since launching The Upside in 2017, Erin has helped thousands of professionals build a respected consultancy practice that generates consistent clients and affords them the freedom and flexibility that come with being your own boss.
Prior to launching The Upside, Erin built a 7-year independent consulting career providing marketing expertise to her private equity, real estate investor and hedge fund clients, collectively resulting in more than $3 billion in outside funding and deal sourcing.
Erin is a mentor at Columbia University's Almaworks startup accelerator and a judge at NYU's TrepCamp entrepreneur simulator. Erin is a frequent speaker on panels, workshops and podcasts including Harvard University's International Women in Business Conference, Brown University's Women's Entrepreneurship Conference, Heymama and Ladies Get Paid.
Listen along as fellow entrepreneur and founder/CEO of GreyFire Impact, Danielle Kayembe, chats with Erin.
Lori Adelman is a Human Resources Executive with 20+ years of HR experience in the fashion industry. Lori started her career as a Human Resources Manager at Calvin Klein, and has held senior roles at numerous impressive brands like Cole Haan, DIOR, Condé Nast, Coach and currently, Tory Burch. Her extensive expertise spans Talent Acquisition across all departments from Creative, Strategy, C-Suite and HR Business Partner roles. Listen along for insider Human Resources advice as fellow co-lab member, Caroline Priebe, talks with Lori about her background.
Caroline Priebe is the Founder and Director of Sustainability at The Center for the Advancement of Garment Making, offering brands sustainable/circular business strategies, creative consulting and learning opportunities. An early adapter to sustainable design (1999), Caroline began her career strategically working for sustainable fashion pioneers including Zero + Maria Cornejo, Rogan, Loomstate, and her own brand, ULURU. Caroline has previously taught sustainability classes at Parsons and currently teaches via The Sustainable Leader Masterclass. Listen along as fellow co-lab member, Lori Adelman, chats with Caroline on her diverse experience.
Gabrielle Korn is a journalist and digital media expert. She worked in digital media for ten years, during which time she served as the editor-in-chief of Nylon and the director of fashion and culture at Refinery29. She is currently the editorial and publishing lead of Most, Netflix’s home for LGBTQ storytelling on social media. Her nonfiction debut, Everybody (Else) Is Perfect, was published by Atria, a Simon & Schuster imprint, in 2021.
Listen along as Editor-in-chief of Fashionista, Tyler McCall, chats with Gabrielle about her impressive career.
Tyler McCall is the Editor-in-Chief of Fashionista.com, where she used to religiously leave comments while an undergrad at the University of Florida. She spends a lot of time wondering if the boys of One Direction are happy on hiatus and trying to find the perfect reaction GIFs of Blair Waldorf. She's also logged hours at Teen Vogue, Vogue Runway and WWD.
Tune in as Netflix's Editorial and Publishing Manager of The Most, Gabrielle Korn, interviews Tyler about her diverse career experience.
Kimberly Dillon is the founder of Frigg, a beauty brand that tackles the impact of stress on the hair and skin. Frigg leverages cannabis, mushrooms, and adaptogens in all of their vegan formulas, with a mission to work with BIPOC farmers and vendors. Kimberly got her start in Cannabis as the CMO of Papa & Barkley, a Cannabis startup that she helped grow to a 30 Million dollar business in 2.5 years.
Fellow entrepreneur and founder of Pholk Beauty, Niambi Cacchioli, talks with Kimberly about her previous work at several Blue Chip companies like Procter & Gamble and Clorox. Kimberly also has two undergraduate degrees from the University of Pittsburgh and an MBA from the University of Michigan.
Niambi Cacchioli is the founder and lead formulator at Pholk Beauty. As an academic turned beauty activist, Niambi infuses Pholk with her love and knowledge of the African Diaspora's healing and herbalist traditions. Her calling is to welcome women of color into the natural skincare space by thinking about both lifestyle and skin needs and crafting a brand narrative that celebrates women of color as innovators of culture. Listen along as fellow entrepreneur and founder of Frigg, Kimberly Dillon, talks with Niambi about her journey.
Rachel Pearl is an experienced designer with a history of working in the footwear and fashion industry. Skilled in brand strategy, trend analysis, illustration, technical drawings, a variety of footwear products, and fit. Rachel is a graduate of Ars Sutoria as well as Parsons School of Design, and has worked for impressive brands like DKNY and Dansko.
Listen along as fellow designer and co-lab member, Megan Oliver, chats with Rachel about sustainability, her best career advice, and what she hopes to do next.
Megan Oliver is a freelance designer, who was most recently a Senior Designer for DKNY Sport. A graduate of Purdue University, Megan has worked for impressive brands like Tommy Hilfiger, Elie Tahari and Cynthia Rowley, and is currently launching an ethically produced children's clothing line called League of Friends. Megan resides in Brooklyn with her family, and talks with fellow co-lab member and designer, Rachel Pearl, about her design experience.
Arden Frank is an entrepreneur and creative with a passion for sustainability. An apparel and textiles graduate of the University of Texas, Arden was working as an analyst for Good Vision Consulting in Tel Aviv, Israel when the pandemic hit in March 2020. She soon found herself back in Atlanta, using the downtime of the pandemic to start Let's Be Frank, a company that hand makes and hand dyes tie-dye masks from up-cycled materials. (The masks were even featured in GQ!) Arden continues to run and operate Let's Be Frank while taking on a new role as Social Media Marketing Strategist for Abbey Glass. Listen along as Tibi founder and creative director, Amy Smilovic, talks with Arden on what she's learned through starting a business and what she hopes to do in the future with sustainability.
Amy Smilovic is the founder and creative director of Tibi, an iconic fashion brand she created almost 25 years ago. Originally from a small town off the coast of Georgia, Amy was raised around a family of artists. While an Advertising Executive at American Express, Amy began sourcing materials from Italy and France, ultimately starting Tibi - without a formal fashion background. Listen along as co-lab member and fellow entrepreneur, Arden Frank, talks with Amy about how Tibi has navigated the past year during a pandemic, and her best advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Céline Kaplan is the ne plus ultra tastemaker of all things French chic and, like all guardians of the French-girl mystique, will never give away her age. Founder of her eponymous boutique public relations agency Céline Kaplan PR, Céline’s client list (and closet) is enough to make other fashion PR doyennes green with envy. A consummate traveler (she most recently invaded the island of Culebra), she is always looking for the next diamond in the rough. “I know a good thing when I see it, and I’m not afraid to go after what I want,” she explains. Truer words have never been spoken by a true tastemaker. Listen along as she is interviewed by friend and fellow co-lab member, Kahlana Barfield Brown.
Kahlana Barfield Brown has carved a niche for herself in the hyper-competitive world of fashion and beauty publishing. She began her career as an intern at InStyle before eventually being hired full time. Throughout her career at the magazine, she took on several key positions, including Beauty Director, and fulfilled duties that ranged from writing in-depth features to reporting live from the red carpet. She's now a leading fashion and beauty expert who inspires a new generation of women to embrace beauty from within. She regularly appears on national television shows such as Today, Good Morning America, The View, Extra, Entertainment Tonight and The Drew Barrymore Show. Listen along as fellow co-lab member, friend, and PR maven, Céline Kaplan, chats with Kahlana about her inspiring career.
D'Arcy Jensen is a creative executive with expertise leading brand strategy & aesthetic, experiential & social media marketing, strategic collaboration partnerships, and product design & development within the fashion, beauty, and retail spaces. D'Arcy found herself amidst the pandemic reclaiming a 950 sq. foot community garden in Hudson Valley, NY. Combining her professional skills, personal passions with resources from the garden, she created Guilded Goods. Now a brand, marketplace and community Guilded Goods is a reflection of D’Arcy’s colorful style and entrepreneurial spirit. Listen along as this midwest native discusses her career journey which includes design roles at LeSportsac, Ralph Lauren, Old Navy and Estee Lauder.
Sara Sakanaka is a multidisciplinary creative, focusing on design, fashion, and consultancy projects for domestic and international clients. She holds a broad understanding of apparel design, product development, brand strategy, domestic and international markets, and is experienced in successfully launching new fashion and lifestyle brands including ready-to-wear, bridal, couture, and outerwear.
Born to Japanese immigrants, Sara grew up in Los Angeles and now resides in NYC. A graduate of FIT, Sara has held many impressive design roles, including several years as a designer in Japan and China. Last year she started Considered Objects LLC, a concept studio that creates one-of-a-kind and limited edition objects through an artistic and sentimental vision.
Saúl started creating content in the fashion industry shooting fashion weeks in New York, Milan & Paris. His film projects have included collaborating with various companies and organizations across the world including Apple Music, Spotify, Jordan Brand, ESPN, Netflix, Under Armour, Nordstrom, Moncler, Louis Vuitton, The Getty Museum and more.
Saúl also won a 2020 MTV VMA & EMA in the "Video For Good" category as a drone cinematographer on H.E.R.'s music video, "I Can't Breathe.”
"What you wear is what you represent." UPRISERS was founded by Creative Director Michelle K. Hanabusa, a fourth-generation Japanese American. Michelle amassed an impressive resume in the fashion + design industry prior to UPRISERS. While working in corporate, she noticed a disconnect between the consumer and the company. Inspired by the origins of streetwear culture and its ability to connect people through creative mediums, she made her own. Always the trailblazer, Michelle is celebrated for her charismatic approach in leading collaborative projects with diverse, like-minded folks– ultimately inspiring valuable and intentional conversations.
Allie Egan is founder and CEO of Veracity Selfcare, a company that creates a personal skincare experience based on real data about hormones and other biofactors that impact skin and health through their at-home Skin + Health Test. A graduate of University of Virginia and Harvard Business School, Allie began her career in finance, pivoting to fashion and beauty a few years later. After spending two years at Estee Lauder in various marketing roles, Allie became CEO of Cynthia Rowley.
Listen along as fellow entrepreneur and Harvard Business School grad, Franci Girard, talks to Allie about the two births she experienced this year: her newborn son and new company.
Franci Girard is Founder and CEO of fashion e-commerce brand, The Sixes, a Stanford and Harvard Business School grad, a former professional volleyball player, and a former associate at Goldman Sachs. What hasn't this superwoman accomplished?
Originally from Brooklyn, Franci credits much of her success to her mother, sister, and Prep for Prep, a leadership development program that offers promising students of color access to private school education in NYC. Standing at 6'1, Franci started The Sixes as a way to address style and fit issues on a historically underserved market, tall women.
Listen to Franci's incredible career story as fellow entrepreneur and friend, Allie Egan, interviews her.
"I want to be in a place where I can say I’ve made a positive impact on retail in some way, shape, or form," says Victoria Lee, Senior Assistant Planner at Bloomingdale's. Victoria is interviewed today by fellow co-lab member and beauty industry executive, Richard Vera. Originally from New Jersey, Victoria attended Princeton University where she studied Economics, and later began her fashion career as an Assistant Buyer at Barney's New York. Listen along as she discusses the importance of driving positive change in the industry, how she made use of downtime during COVID, and what she hopes to accomplish in the future.
Today we hear the career story of Beauty Executive, Richard Vera, who is currently Senior Vice President of Global Sales at Kayo Body Care. Originally from Ecuador, Richard attended University of Miami, studying International Finance and Marketing, and went on to receive an MBA from Vanderbilt University. Richard began his career at L'Oréal in Miami, and really developed his career during his 13 years at Estée Lauder, where he held a multitude of roles, including International VP of Men's Skincare. Interviewed by fellow co-lab member, Victoria Lee, listen along as Richard shares his vast experience in the beauty industry, how quickly it's changing with digital, and how he's navigated recent career pivots.
Steven Waldberg is a Luxury Global Marketing and Communications Executive, most recently Executive VP of Global Consumer Engagement at Calvin Klein. Born in France, Steven is trilingual (speaking English, French, and Spanish) and credits his multicultural background and schooling to his success today. Steven currently lives in New York City and has held various VP roles for a bevy of impressive brands under the LVMH and L’Oréal Groups. Listen along as fellow co-lab member and fashion executive, Andy Comer, talks with Steven about his best career advice and what he hopes to see in this next chapter.
Aliza Licht is the Founder and President of LEAVE YOUR MARK LLC, a creative brand marketing and digital strategy consultancy. Interviewed by Facebook's Site Merchandising Lead and Style Blogger, Sylvie Esmundo, Licht discusses her unlikely route to the fashion world. Although she grew up fashion-obsessed, it wasn't until later in college that she pivoted from pre-med student to Assistant Accessories Editor at Marie Claire Magazine. Licht is most known for her work as the creator and voice behind the award-winning social personality DKNY PR GIRL, and served as DKNY's SVP of Global Communications for 17 years. She is a best-selling author of the popular career development book, Leave Your Mark: Land Your Dream Job. Kill It in Your Career. Rock Social Media., and host of the LEAVE YOUR MARK podcast. Recognized as a pioneer in digital, Licht was one of the first people in the fashion industry to launch a social media personality and is here to share her vast PR and Branding experience, as well as how to break into the fashion industry.
“What I want to do with my life is work with amazing, like-minded, well-intentioned creative people to tell really great stories,” says Andy Comer, most recently SVP of Marketing and Creative Services at Tommy Bahama. Listen today as fellow co-lab member and Luxury Executive, Steven Waldberg, interviews Andy on his career trajectory and what advice he would give his 20-year-old self. Originally from Kentucky, Andy attended Oberlin College in Ohio, moved to New York City after college to begin his impressive career, and now resides in Seattle. Andy has extensive experience in digital media and editorial, having led GQ’s initial website and digital presence, as well as serving as Nordstrom’s Creative Director from 2013-2015.
“One of the greatest successes of my life is seeing success come from someone else because of how I supported them,” says Bianca Kofman, Interim Area Manager at Cole Haan, interviewed by fellow co-lab member, Denise Baca. Born and raised in CA, Bianca attended San Diego State University, majoring in Kinesiology with the intention of becoming a physical therapist. Right before graduating from college, Bianca unexpectedly started working for Pura Vida Bracelets through a college connection. During her time as Product Manager at the socially conscious accessory brand, she increased their charity collection from 3 bracelet designs to 100 and was officially introduced to the fashion industry. Soon after this role, she began her fashion blog, ultimately connecting her with brands which led her to fashion styling and creating her own agency, B. Rose Creative. She is currently Interim Area Manager for Cole Haan’s Bay Area stores, and is a self-proclaimed lifelong learner who hasn't ruled out any future career ideas.
“It’s important to look at the upside of failures,” says Denise Baca, VP of Wholesale (North America) at G-Star RAW, interviewed by fellow co-lab member, Bianca Kofman. Originally from Mexico, Denise and her family moved to Texas when she was 5 years old. She attended Baylor University, where she studied Finance and International Business. During a college internship in Dallas, she became acquainted and interested with the Neiman Marcus HQ through friends who worked there. Upon college graduation, she was accepted into Neiman’s executive program, ultimately becoming an Assistant Buyer and getting her start in the fashion industry. After five years at Neiman’s, she took the leap to NYC and has held various VP and Director roles - focused on retail, sales and wholesale - for a bevy of amazing brands, including Gucci, Miu Miu and Prada. Listen along as she talks about her incredible career, the importance of focusing on the positive side, and her passion for sustainability.
"It's always worth a shot, in my book, to try something that you're not sure is going to work," says Lindsay Denninger, Copy Director at Boll & Branch. Lindsay is interviewed today by fellow copywriter and co-lab connection, Julie Chen. Lindsay grew up in Long Island, NY, and studied English and Literature at Long Island University. Upon graduation during the 2008 recession, she took small jobs to advance her marketing and copywriting skills, and ultimately went to grad school where she received a Masters of Arts at Hunter College in New York City. Lindsay has a vast career in copywriting, writing content for Bustle, and for brands like Ann Taylor, Uniqlo and One Kings Lane. She eventually jumped into the freelance world but recently made the switch back over to the brand side as Copy Director at Boll & Branch. Listen along as she shares her best career advice and the major differences and challenges of Freelancing vs. Brand Copywriting.
Today we hear the career story of Beauty Copywriter, Julie Chen, interviewed by fellow copywriter Lindsay Denninger. Growing up in Massachusetts, Julie developed an interest in fashion from a young age (thanks to MTV & Cindy Crawford) and ultimately attended FIT, studying Trend Forecasting. The first half of Julie's career was spent in the illustrious world of magazines, with extensive experience at Glamour and Lucky. Since 2010, she has shifted more into the digital space, working in social media and beauty copywriting. Listen as Julie discusses the importance of being action-oriented, the work she's been doing in the beauty world, and her strong belief in the upcoming Gen Z generation.
“Real experience provides authentic confidence,” says Sylvie Esmundo, Site Merchandising Lead at Facebook and Influencer & Blogger @life.by.sylvie. Sylvie kicks off season 2 of The co-lab Career Stories Podcast and is interviewed by Founder of LEAVE YOUR MARK LLCand PR & Branding Maven, Aliza Licht. Sylvie grew up in the Bay Area and attended both University of California Davis, majoring in Design and Communications, and Academy of Art University. Sylvie began her career in fashion as an editorial assistant at Lucky Magazine, eventually pivoting into Merchandising at the Gap, where she rose to be Director of Merchandising, among other roles, for 10+ years. Sylvie took on various roles thereafter to shift her career towards tech. Her editorial and creative interests led her to begin blogging in the early 2000s, launching her style and wellness blog, Sylvie in the Sky.Listen along as Sylvie discusses the importance of having mentors, how she began blogging, why one should have more than just one job, and the importance of taking the initiative to gain needed career experience to move yourself forward.
Today on the Co-lab Career Stories podcast we feature Tara O'Brien, Assistant Planner at Macy's, interviewed by fellow co-lab member, Sarah Ross. Tara grew up right outside the Big Apple, in Fishkill, New York. Her lifelong passion for the fashion industry ultimately led her to attend FIT and study Fashion Merchandising, where she developed a love for the business side of fashion. Her strengths in analytics and consumer insights led her to her current role as an Assistant Planner at Macy's. Listen along as Tara talks about what she's learned so far in the industry, her love for DTC brands like Glossier, and her future aspirations to create something in the health and wellness space.
“You can’t get where you are without messing up. I’m really proud of owning the mistakes I’ve made. Those mistakes really form who you are later in life,” says Sarah Ross, President and Founder of W.I.P. Strategic Brand Management and former Head of Sales at Stojo and S’well. Sarah grew up in a small town in New Jersey, and moved to NYC to attend NYU, studying Mass Communications & Media Studies. While she originally planned on having a glamorous career in advertising and marketing, Sarah surprised herself when she took her first job out of college as a Sales Assistant for Joie. She ended up falling in love with the world of sales and grew her career in New York City for 10+ years until she and her family followed their outdoorsy instincts to Denver, Colorado in 2017. Listen along as fellow co-lab member, Tara O'Brien, talks with Sarah about the importance of making and learning from mistakes in your career and standing up for what you believe in.
Susan Elliott-Bocassi currently serves as Chairman of the Advisory Board for Brighter Children funding schools in Kenya, Honduras, Colombia and India. Prior to this, Susan served as Vice President – General Manager at Bluestem Brands where she grew e-commerce and turned around a down trending business. She began her career at Warner Bros. and has held various planning and merchandising roles at Casual Male, J.Jill and Federated Merchandising Group. Susan holds an MBA from the University of Rhode Island and a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from the University of Massachusetts. She resides in Greenwich, CT (her hometown) with her wife and children. Listen along as she talks about how she fell into the nonprofit sector, and what she's learned in her career.
Christine Jasper, Consultant and Project Manager with an interest in sustainable fashion, is interviewed today by fellow co-lab member Susan Elliott-Bocassi. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Christine served in the Peace Corps for 2 years in Romania. She later went on to earn a Master's Degree from Johns Hopkins University, and moved back to Romania for four years to manage grants for the Academy for Educational Development. A Midwest native, Christine now resides in the D.C. area and was most recently a project manager for an online platform supporting secondary education throughout the US and Tanzania. Listen along as Christine talks about her wide-ranging experience and what she hopes to do next.
Today we chat with Talent Acquisition Coordinator at AHA! Recruiting Experts, Hasmik Minasian. Originally from Armenia, Hasmik moved to Chicago as a child when her father got an engineering opportunity. While finishing up her Bachelor's Degree at Elmhurst College, she had an internship that made her instantly fall in love with HR. After beginning her professional career as an Administrative Assistant, she made the switch into a full cycle recruiting role. Listen along as she shares the importance of being positive, having confidence in yourself, and her joy of helping others find their dream job!
"I want to bring more humanity to the workplace," says International Operations Expert turned Executive Coach, Kamrin Eriksen Huban, interviewed by recruiter Hasmik Minasian. Originally from Washington state, Kamrin attended Gonzaga University where she studied PR, Marketing and Advertising. She moved to China in 1997 and got her first job at a Taiwanese owned footwear factory. Kamrin spent 18 years working in International Operations (living in Germany, China, Vietnam and NYC) for major companies like Adidas, Coach and Brahmin. Her newest chapter includes starting her own coaching company, Kamrin Huban Coaching. Her passion for developing great leaders has taken her to her happiest and most fulfilling work yet. Listen along for some inspiration!
"Follow your gut sooner and take bigger risks, because you only live once. If you put in enough effort and have the right people around you, then things are going to work out," says Ricardo Larroudé, co-founder and CEO of newly launched shoe brand, Larroudé.
Ricardo is interviewed by his wife and co-founder (and fashion power player), Marina Larroudé, on today's Career Stories episode. After initially starting his career in investment banking and private equity, Ricardo quickly realized that he loved working on the operational side of things. Listen as he discusses what he's learned from starting Larroudé, especially during a pandemic, and the importance of offering comfortable yet fashionable and accessible pieces to women.
Today on the co-lab Career Stories podcast we chat with Marina Larroudé, co-founder and CCO of newly launched brand, Larroudé. She is interviewed by her husband and co-founder, Ricardo Larroudé! Originally from Brazil, Marina got her start in fashion as an editor at Vogue Brazil and officially became a New Yorker in 2003. She has an impressive background as Fashion Director of Barney's, Teen Vogue and Style.com. Her new brand, Larroudé, provides high quality handmade shoes. Marina always wanted to start her own brand and provide that feeling of empowerment that a good pair of shoes can give a woman. Listen for Marina's inspiring story!
Today we sit down with Blair Lawson, Chief Merchandising and Marketing Officer at Beautycounter. While attending business school at Northwestern University after initially starting her career in finance, Blair became drawn to the creative career path and decided to pursue a career in fashion. During school, she undertook a summer internship at Kate Spade where she fell for the industry.
After more than ten years working at various brands and positions within LVMH, including digital vice president at Louis Vuitton, marketing manager at Dior Watches and PR manager at TAG Heuer, Lawson left the luxury conglomerate and moved to Los Angeles with her family. She joined Beautycounter in 2012 as Head of Merchandising & Product Development, then went on to become the Chief Merchandising Officer at Goop. Now, Blair has re-joined the Beautycounter team this year as Chief Merchandising and Marketing Officer. Listen for amazing career advice and inspiration!
Jim Kuerschner is the President of KULE, an emerging womenswear label by CFDA member Nikki Kule. Today he sits down (virtually) with fellow fashion executive, Blair Lawson of Beautycounter. Prior to KULE, Jim managed retail operations and in-store technology for Inditex, bringing RFID technology to Zara stores across the US and Canada. Kuerschner started his career with Puig, first in PR at Nina Ricci, and later in sales and merchandising at Carolina Herrera. He is a business mentor with the CFDA and a graduate of NYU and Harvard Business School. Listen as he shares his career story and what KULE has in store next.
Today we hear the career story of Marianne Battle, former Omni-Channel Planning Director at Macy’s. Originally from Grand Rapids, MI, Marianne attended Kentucky State University, a historically Black College, where she graduated with a degree in Apparel and Textile Marketing Management (and she was also a cheerleader!). Now residing in Orlando, FL, Marianne is exploring her next career chapter after wrapping up 16 years at Macy's, with interest in areas like digital marketing and financial planning. Listen to Marianne's incredible story and what she has learned during this unprecedented year.
Currently Senior Director of design at Delta Galil for 3+ years, Lauren Bertrando worked her way up to Director of Design at Macy’s over her 10+ years at the company. Listen to Lauren’s story as she digs into the effects of Covid on our industry, how we need to act now to implement sustainability practices, and how important it is to learn how to network and give back to your professional community.
Today we hear from Megan Ryley, an American from the Midwest who came to NYC to go to FIT and start her career in haute couture. Listen to Megan’s journey to India, first working for Indian companies and then eventually starting her own factory, allowing her to work on product for some of the best global brands in the world such as Oscar De La Renta, The Row, Jenny Packham & more. Now back in NYC, Megan heads up production for a luxury fashion start up and has big dreams of seeing companies marry artisan craft with sustainable practices.
This week we have stories of two American professionals who love India so much they decided to live and work in India for both Indian and American brands. Listen to Cynthia Director’s journey from her time at RISD, why she decided to move to India, and how she discovered her love of textiles and the home interiors industry. Looking for her next challenge, hit Cynthia up on LinkedIn to get in touch about upcoming projects.
"I don’t love jewelry. I love people. I love concepts," says Pamela Roskin, owner of Pamela Roskin jewelry and Professor at Parsons School of Design and Berkeley. Upon graduating from Lewis & Clark College with a degree in History and Art History, Pamela began her career as a marketer in the book publishing industry. After ten years in publishing, she decided to get her masters in Fashion & Textile Studies from FIT, focusing on history, theory and museum practice. Pamela worked as an Archivist for Ralph Lauren, and unexpectedly fell into the jewelry business through her contacts at QVC. Listen along as she shares her experience as a professor, owning a jewelry company, and making big pivots in her business. Listeners, she wants your input!
“Sometimes it takes becoming confident and growing into yourself to realize the full story,” says Sara Stewart Stevens, Program Director at Textiles and Apparel Program at the University of Texas at Austin. Sara obtained her degree in Environmental Geography from the University of Oklahoma, and thought her post-grad path would lead to working in water rights in Central America. While job searching in Austin, she ended up helping a friend open the first high-end women's fitness apparel boutique in the city. This experience led her into buying, wholesale, and eventually getting her masters in Textiles and Apparel Technology at the University of Texas. Listen along as Sara shares her incredible journey - from beating cancer to plans of opening a retail lab at UT, as well as the work she’s doing with artisans and makers in Pakistan. You will feel nothing short of extremely inspired after listening.
Sometimes the universe surprises you with a completely new plan (including a new job) amidst a global pandemic. This is true of Ryan Metauro, Director of Sales (Americas) at ORDRE. Originally from New Jersey, Ryan began his career in NYC after graduating with a business degree from Boston University. He has worked for brands like Eugenia Kim and Gitman Bros., and was with Canada Goose during their major growth period. Listen along as he shares his career story, how he found a new job through the co-lab, and the importance of being yourself.
"Networking is a game changer", says Steven Wildenberg, National Account Manager at Patina Brands and Founder of new consultancy, Golden Meteors. Originally from the Poconos in Pennsylvania, Steven attended Temple University where he studied Account Management and LGBT studies. He began his career as a Junior Account Executive at O.N.S Clothing, but quickly learned that he loved working for a multi-label showroom and building brands from the ground up. Listen along as he discusses his new job at Patina Brands, his best career advice, and what he hopes to do in the future - it involves coffee chains and showrooms!
Today we hear the inspiring career story of Retail Executive turned Life and Business coach, Danielle Vigliotti. Danielle, a New Jersey native, has 25 years of experience as a retail and marketing executive growing multimillion dollar fashion companies in New York, London, and Florida, where she currently lives.
Danielle founded her life and business coaching practice, Stress Less Love More, in 2016, where she encourages her clients to shift their mindset to achieve the life of her dreams. Danielle discusses how trauma she’s experienced has helped her navigate these unprecedented times. Tune in if you want to feel encouraged and inspired!
This week we hear Michelle Peranteau's career story, interviewed by fellow co-lab member Danielle Vigliotti. Michelle has wide-ranging experience in PR, Marketing and Communications, having worked with global jewelers like Harry Winston and Baume & Mercier. She was most recently the VP of Marketing for Matouk. You'll love hearing Michelle's greatest career accomplishments, what she's learning during the pandemic, and how she is looking for the right "Candyland" card to lead her to her next career adventure.
Need a little motivation? Today we hear from master coach and speaker, Keren Eldad - interviewed by fellow co-lab member and life coach, Stephanie Venditto. Originally from Israel, Keren moved to NYC after a major life change and decided that the only direction to go after enduring hardship was up. Having served in the Israeli army and emerging into coaching from crisis counseling, Keren's belief in service as a way of life led her to found With Enthusiasm Coaching. She has since worked with top organizations like JP Morgan and LVMH and has even hosted her very own TEDx Talk. (How cool?!) Keren recently moved to Austin and is looking forward to continuing coaching and speaking, and added a new gig as Professor Eldad at the University of Texas's McCombs School of Business.
When the world and its institutions have their own rules about where, when and how women (and men!) should thrive, the question is, how willing are we to follow our own instincts which can be our most prosperous path?
Listen as we hear from Stephanie Venditto, who shares her experiences as a classically trained ballerina, a working actress on several acclaimed television shows and films, an acting coach, Manager of Fabric R&D at Tory Burch and as a life coach. This episode will inspire you to take chances and follow your instincts!
Handbag Designer, Alicia Skehan, talks with fellow co-lab member, Khalika Abrams, to discuss her career journey. A true East Coaster, Alicia grew up in Washington D.C. and now lives in Manhattan. Upon graduation from Parsons School of Design, Alicia started her career designing for big brands such as Kate Spade, Coach and Juicy Couture. She was most recently Design Director at MZ Wallace, and is now a design consultant. Listen as Alicia discusses the differences between working for small and large brands, her greatest career accomplishments, and what she hopes to do next.
This week we sit down with Visual Merchandise Executive and Entrepreneur, Khalika Abrams. Originally from New York, by way of Atlanta and Detroit, Khalika has lived in Los Angeles for the past 15 years. Growing up with a mother in performing arts heavily inspired her passion to create. After graduating from American Intercontinental University with a degree in fashion marketing, she began her career as a Visual Merchandiser with brands like Tommy Hilfiger and Burberry, and was most recently Creative Director of A'GACI. This past August she launched her personal branding and styling company, KurateD LA. Tune in to hear Khalika's incredible story, interviewed by fellow creative and designer Alicia Skehan.
Joeri Van Campenhout, Senior Designer at Dries Van Noten, sits down with fellow designer Andrea Robredo Ruiz to talk about his career path. Born in America to Belgian parents, Joeri ended up moving with his family to Belgium for schooling. After obtaining his undergraduate and graduate degrees from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, Belgium, Joeri began his fashion career as a designer for Dries Van Noten where he designs womenswear, embroidery and jewelry. Joeri shares with us what he's learned at his five years at Dries Van Noten, the amazing opportunities he has had to work hands on with embroiderers in India and manufacturers in Italy, and what he would like to do next in his career. (Hint: couture!)
Today we chat with Andrea Robredo Ruiz, Consulting Design Director at Carolina Herrera. Fellow designer Joeri Van Campenhout interviews Andrea on how she got her start in design and making the transition from corporate to consultant. Originally from Spain, Andrea comes from a fashion family and always knew the industry would be her destiny. Her background spans globally, having lived in Milan, London, and NYC. Not to mention, she's also worked with a bevy of major designers, such as Ralph Lauren, Tom Ford, and Gabriela Hearst. Listen along as Andrea shares her impressive background, making collections that are relevant and respectful of the times we are living in, and the importance of kindness.
Lauren McConnell, Brand Manager at Lovesac, is interviewed today by fellow co-lab member and marketer, Kyle Andrew. Lauren grew up on the west coast and made the move to NYC after graduating from St. Louis University. While her career began in advertising, she soon realized her love of working on the brand marketing side and made the transition. Lauren talks with us about pivoting a corporate brand strategy amidst the current pandemic, getting an MBA while having a baby at home, and the importance of constantly learning.
Today we hear the career story of marketing executive, Kyle Andrew — interviewed by fellow marketer, Lauren McConnell. Upon graduation from university in Australia, Kyle returned to the states and landed an advertising job in New York City. Kyle was most recently Chief Marketing Officer at American Eagle and has previously worked in marketing roles for major brands like Kate Spade, Kenneth Cole, and Gap. Listen as Kyle discusses her inspiring career, the importance of having self-confidence, and figuring out her next career adventure.
Margot Janks, Director of Global Merchandising at Tiffany & Co., is interviewed this week by fellow co-lab member Kenny Anderson. Margot is a native Californian turned New Yorker, who started her career in PR and quickly transitioned into marketing. Her experience ranges from working with major beauty brands to luxury jewelers, and most recently, starting her own coaching and consulting business. Listen along as Margot shares her career story, best advice, and the importance of bringing your "truest self" to work.
This week co-lab member Margot Janks interviews Kenny Anderson, SVP at Giorgio Armani. Kenny describes his unexpected journey into the fashion industry, building a team of 4 into 40, and what he is most proud of in his career journey thus far. Listen as Kenny shares his professional evolution, and how he is planning to give back as a mentor and boss in this super-competitive industry.
Natalie Garagiola, co-lab crew member, interviews Kristy Hurt, founder of the co-lab and Kristy Hurt Consulting, a fashion & beauty executive search firm in New York City. Kristy discusses her early career experiences, from starting out as a pre-med student at UT Austin and working at specialty boutique By George to running stores for Kate Spade in New York and later managing HR for LVMH before leaving to start her own firm. Listen as Kristy shares her story and explains why the co-lab is exactly what the fashion industry needs right now
Co-lab founder Kristy Hurt interviews Natalie Garagiola, a Marketing professional living in Washington, D.C. who has mastered the art of the industry pivot. From cupcakes at Sprinkles to campaigns at National Geographic, Kristy and Natalie discuss the importance of having a job you don't like, showing excitement in an interview, and how to pick up the pieces after you've been laid off.