ABOUT
With broad experience spanning the entire value chain in retail for some of the most iconic American brands and as founder of Unionmade, I have hands-on experience in everything from product and merchandising to marketing and brand strategy. I began my career at Gap Inc., where I advanced through progressively senior roles leading strategy in the Americas, Canada, Europe, and Asia. Beginning in visual merchandising and marketing, and ultimately overall creative direction for the Gap and sub-brands, including Gap Body and Old Navy. I connected the dots from product idea to consumer demand to drive successful product launches, product stories, and global campaigns.
My time at Gap Inc. was during a pivotal period of rapid growth and I was a key player in its development. It was during that time that I learned the best of commercial retail from Mickey Drexler and I worked with some of the best leaders in the industry. It was a time when retail was presented in an aspirational way. And it was with that lens that I created Unionmade in 2009; using my corporate retail experience, personal passion, and love of product and presentation.
Unionmade was a retail concept that was inspired by stores I had visited on trips to Japan. It was an American aesthetic, seen thru a Japanese point of view; with a focus on traditional American manufacturing and quality at its forefront. It paired well with my passion for presenting the unique and special while making it appealing to a democratic audience. My goal was to put together authentic brands in surprising ways; to create an experience that was aspirational and highly editorial. I wanted to offer a utilitarian aesthetic that partnered with the luxury of American-made quality. It was all about elevating product by adding value thru presentation. Unionmade was about finding beauty in the ordinary while making unexpected mixes happen.
Following the original success at Unionmade and the realization that we needed a focused concept for our women shoppers, I opened the sister store in 2012, Mill Mercantile. ‘Mill’ shared the same ethos as Unionmade but had its own distinct point of view and original curation. Mill was tightly edited and offered apparel, accessories, and homewares that you couldn't find anywhere else. It had a contemporary designer aesthetic, yet distinctly feminine point of view, Mill operated as both a brick and mortar store and online store.
Together, Unionmade and Mill produced 12 million in sales annually with fifty employees and five brick and mortar locations, and two ecommerce sites. Together they were a fully realized internationally known brand and the trusted editor for a cultured customer who came to shop because they appreciated the process in which the clothing was made, as well as the origin and quality.
Unionmade/Mill was one of the first independent retailers to create a coveted digital platform, we connected with people in a new and different way. We were one of the originators of the digital-first business model that would become the trend and has now become standard. Known for its aspirational storytelling and for making product the ‘hero’, It was best-in-class and garnered a loyal customer following. The ecommerce website was accompanied by a large social media presence, including film and videos produced seasonally for special events and product launches. All of the collateral was curated much like the stores and was a platform for storytelling not just to sell clothes. Many competitors at the time presented the clothes nicely, but Unionmade/Mill offered rich editorial stories about new designers, seasonal must-haves, and new collaborations that connected with customers thru content and drove excitement about the brand and product.
Unionmade was one of the foremost sought after stores internationally in the men’s retail space and was a leader in men’s product ideas. I curated an assortment of new designers mixed with premium brands, all sharing an everyday workwear aesthetic. I brought both new brands and traditional brands to the forefront and took American made products and lifted them into everyday luxury. I brought creative direction that was editorialized and created aspiration stories with product. I created trusted partnerships with many American and international brands, that made Unionmade an influencer in the industry. I’m a brand builder with a 360 degree view of product and brand presentation; a brand influencer and editor.
Most recently I rejoined Gap as the Executive Creative Consultant to the CEO, where I worked on developing strategy to help guide the brand’s evolution globally connecting ideas from development to consumer. We established brand filters and created a five-year strategy of transforming Gap into a denim-lead company with sustainable quality product and great design as the focus. I used my understanding of mass and specialty retail and directed many channels of design and promotion including product development, store experience, marketing, and digital.
SERVICES