I knew that I wanted a career in fashion, retail or consumer products from the time I was in high school. When I landed my first retail job at a local shoe store, I was hooked. I dreamed of becoming a Buyer and moving to New York City. I majored in Fashion Merchandising at Kent State University, and in 1998, graduated with an offer to follow my dream and join the Buyer Training program at Saks Fifth Avenue. My first job opened the door to incredible buying and merchandising opportunities. I spent the first chapter of my career: Building assortments and buy plans for the first brick and mortar swim business at Victoria's Secret  Harnessing the power of cross functional teams and earning my "product development masters” from Abercrombie & Fitch  Strengthening my financial discipline and learning the importance of mentoring at Target I spent the second chapter of my career launching, building and growing businesses for Carter's, Inc. Carter’s is the largest branded marketer of apparel for babies and young children. My roles included product development/merchandising, eCommerce, omni-channel retail, licensing, strategy/projects and new business development. Of these, the opportunity to run the first DTC eCommerce business was the most challenging, empowering and rewarding of my career.During my 9 years in eCommerce at Carter's, I had the incredible privilege to lead: Buying, Planning and Site Merchandising Teams P&L and Long-Range Planning Development  Buying and Planning Methodology Line Plan Development  Site Merchandising  Marketing and Creative Global eCommerce, including the US, Canada and ChinaIn the third chapter of my career, I had the incredible privilege to lead fab’rik boutiques as the CEO, implementing a significant change in strategic direction. The business is now on a path to repurchase its franchise locations and become a wholly owned retail entity. After spending a few years at the helm of a small company, I knew I was ready to venture out on my own. I’m proud to say I took the leap of faith and launched my own company, the après allstars TM in 2023. The brand is a passion project first and a business second. Rooted in my love of skiing and leisure sports, the assortment was built for off the slopes and court. I hope you’ll take a look at www.theapresallstars.com or follow us @theapresallstars on instagram and facebook.