Tuesday, February 23

A Career in Retail

Wednesday, March 3

The Future of Fitness, Beauty & Wellness

Wednesday, March 10

The Future of E-Commerce

Wednesday, March 17

How Sustainability is Changing Retail for Good

For the past 14 years, the Luxury & Retail Club at New York University's Leonard Stern School of Business has hosted an annual conference bringing together top graduate students with leading industry professionals in Luxury, Retail, Hospitality & Spirits, and Consulting.

Our goal is to create a forum where current topics in luxury and retail can be discussed with industry leaders in an academic environment. This year’s conference will be hosted virtually as a series of events throughout the months of February and March. Webinars will be dedicated to various topics in the Luxury, Retail, Beauty and Wellness spaces. The retail space is constantly evolving — we hope to highlight how top companies view the future of retail and how they are staying relevant within a competitive global landscape. 

RON THURSTON

Best Selling Author of RETAIL PRIDE, Vice President of Stores at INTERMIX

Ron Thurston is an experienced Vice President of Stores, Board Member, and Author with a demonstrated history of delivering exceptional results and building culture. Ron is skilled in trend analysis, retail, client development, and growing/collapsing store fleet count.

Ron currently leads the retail organization for INTERMIX, a division of GAP INC. and is the author of the book RETAIL PRIDE: The Guide to Celebrating Your Accidental Career.

Ashley Camerini

CEO of Rumble

Ashley joined Rumble shortly after the first Rumble studio opened in New York City (Flatiron) in 2017 to focus on the intersection of finance, operations and marketing, holding the positions of Vice President of Strategic Operations and Chief Business Officer prior to becoming the Company's CEO in 2020.

Prior to Rumble, Ashley was the Vice President of Business Operations at Barry's Bootcamp, where she worked with the CEO and private equity partners to develop and execute strategic objectives and initiatives across the business. Ashley began her career in Investment Banking at Jefferies before transitioning to investing at private equity firm L Catterton, where she focused on investments in the Health & Wellness category, including Peloton, CorePower Yoga, Flywheel, Pure Barre, and Sweaty Betty. Ashley graduated with a degree in Economics from Harvard University.

Pamela Cholankeril

Vice President of Global Omnichannel & Online Strategy at Estée Lauder Companies

Pamela has been at Estee Lauder Companies for over 10 years and has worked across several teams, including New Business Development, Corporate Strategy and Online. In her current role as head of Global Omnichannel, Pam is responsible for the development and global rollout of Omnichannel capabilities, including loyalty, buy-online pick-up in store and several others. Her team is also responsible for developing and launching new business models. In her role as head of Online Strategy, Pam helps to shape the 3-year strategy for the Online division and focuses on critical elements of the Online business that require strategic oversight or change. Before joining Estee Lauder Companies, Pam worked in strategy consulting and investment banking and also earned an MBA as well as a BA from New York University, Stern School of Business.

DANIELLE PERGAMENT

Former Editor in Chief of Goop and Founder of The C Word

Born in New York City and raised in New York and Sweden, Pergament started working in magazines after she graduated from Duke University with a degree in English and African American studies. Four years later, she worked her way up to Beauty Editor of Allure magazine, a Condé Nast publication. In 2005, Pergament became a Contributing Editor to the magazine and relocated to Rome, Italy, where she began writing regularly for The New York Times Travel section. After getting married in Italy, Pergament returned to New York and became the Executive Editor of Lucky magazine. A few years later, she returned to Allure as Executive Editor. At both Allure and Lucky, she oversaw all content and determined the voice and purview of the brand. In 2017, she joined goop as Editor in Chief and relocated from Brooklyn, NY to Los Angeles. In 2020, Pergament left goop to start The C Word, a content company.

As a journalist, Pergament has traveled throughout the Middle East, South America, and western Europe. She has written extensively for The New York Times, The International Herald Tribune, GQ, Travel + Leisure, Condé Nast Traveler, National Geographic Travel and New York magazine.

NJ FALK

Managing Partner at Athletic Propulsion Labs

NJ Falk is globally known as a Webby award-winning creative and serial entrepreneur focused on emerging luxury, fashion, lifestyle and direct-to-consumer brands. Her current roles are as the Managing Partner of Athletic Propulsion Labs (APL), the athletic footwear brand that pioneered the luxury performance category, as an on-going Contributor to Forbes and Forbes Women, as a Co-Founder at The Forward Female and as the Co-Host of her upcoming podcast A Cut Above With NJ and Ondre. Falk is also an angel investor and Mentorpreneur™, a term she trademarked, as an advisor for female-focused luxury and consumer brands including 11 Honoré, Starface, Hello Bumo, Artha, Modern Picnic, Amerfine, The Juggl, The Bunker and DeMarson.

Among her long list of kudos, Falk has often been referred to as “one of the chicest women in the world,” named a “Style Icon” by Louis Vuitton, recognized as one of LA’s “Leading Ladies of Style” by Angeleno Magazine, is a member of the Vogue Vanguard, a brand ambassador for Net-A-Porter, the muse of famed jeweler Martin Katz, a member of the IAVA (International Academy of Visual Arts) and an Associate Member of the IADAS (International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences). NJ earned an MBA from New York University, Stern School of Business and a BFA in Film, Television and Journalism from New York University Tisch School of The Arts. Falk is a member of the NYU Stern School of Business Luxury and Fashion Council and held senior executive positions at American Express, MGM, Universal Studios and The Wedding Channel.

NATALIE MASSENET

Co-Managing Partner of Imaginary Ventures and Founder of Net-A-Porter

Natalie Massenet is Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Imaginary Ventures, a venture capital firm focusing on innovations at the intersection of retail and technology. Founded in partnership with Nick Brown, formerly of 14W, Imaginary Ventures invests in best-in-class brands, platforms and entrepreneurs that are actively changing how a new generation of consumers live, eat and shop. Stage and geography agnostic, key investments include Everlane, Reformation, Glossier, SKIMS, Farfetch, Universal Standard, Daily Harvest and others.

Natalie revolutionized ecommerce when she founded online luxury retailer Net-A-Porter in 2000. She built the organization over 15 years, turning the platform into one of the world’s most influential fashion businesses operating across retail, media and publishing platforms and in the process, shaping an extraordinary experience for the global luxury fashion consumer.

In addition to her role at Imaginary, Natalie serves on the board of various portfolio brands.

ThomaÏ Serdari

Director of the Fashion & Luxury MBA at NYU Stern and Founder of BRAND(x)LUX

Thomaï Serdari, Ph.D. is an author and thought leader whose work in luxury marketing synthesizes information beyond the confines of a single discipline.

As a strategist and creative practitioner in luxury marketing and branding, Thomaï applies a unique approach to solving brand problems. She has developed frameworks specifically applicable to the challenges of the luxury market.

Thomaï has been teaching at the Leonard N. Stern School of Business, NYU since 2012 where she is also the Director of the Fashion & Luxury MBA.

She heads Brand(x)Lux, a brand strategy consultancy that helps brands interpret culture, the questions that define it and the trends that will impact the future of business and retail. Her book Rethinking Luxury Fashion: The Role of Cultural Intelligence in Creative Strategy was published last fall.

Vanessa Barboni Hallik

Founder and CEO, Another Tomorrow

Vanessa Barboni Hallik is the founder and CEO of Another Tomorrow, an end-to-end sustainable luxury design company and platform for discovery and action committed to transparency and a circular economy. She is also an investor in early-stage companies with strong ESG commitments catalyzing system change. Vanessa serves on the Board of the Accountability Counsel and the Advisory Boards for the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at Harvard Kennedy School and the Trust for Public Land.

Prior to founding Another Tomorrow, Vanessa was a Managing Director at Morgan Stanley, where she held several leadership roles in the emerging markets institutional securities business. While at Morgan Stanley, she served as a Trustee on the Board of the Morgan Stanley Foundation and represented the firm at the Council on Foreign Relations. She likewise chaired the Fixed Income Philanthropy Committee, during which she initiated and subsequently led the firm’s mentoring program with East Side Community High School, in partnership with PENCIL.org. Vanessa holds a B.A. in Economics from Cornell University and is an M.S. Candidate at Columbia University’s Earth Institute. She resides in New York City with her family and two dogs.

JENNIFER GOOTMAN

Vice President of Sustainability for Williams-Sonoma, Inc.

Jennifer Gootman is the Vice President of Sustainability for Williams-Sonoma, Inc., leading social and environmental strategy and programming across the company’s eight brands. Jennifer started with the West Elm brand in 2013 where she launched the first Fair Trade-Certified factory program in home retail, was a founding partner of the Nest Standard for Ethical Handcraft, and piloted a partnership with nonprofit VisionSpring to provide vision screenings to factory workers that is now reaching half-a-million people. Today, she is building on Williams-Sonoma, Inc.’s leadership in responsible materials and ethical production to launch a comprehensive climate and environmental strategy. Prior to this role, Jennifer spent more than a decade with nonprofits and social enterprises in New York, Nicaragua, and India, working within design-driven industries to create impact through supply chain innovation. Jennifer holds a BA from Harvard College and an MBA from the NYU Stern School of Business, is a fellow in the Aspen Institute’s First Movers program, and serves on the board of Chicago-based ethical fashion company Mata Traders and as an advisor to NYU Stern’s Center for Sustainable Business.

SASKIA VAN GENDT

Head of Sustainability at Rothy’s

An environmental scientist with over a decade of experience in sustainable manufacturing and design, Saskia develops strategies to minimize the impact that Rothy’s supply chain has on the environment, advancing Rothy’s sustainable innovations in materials, production, fulfillment and more. Prior to joining Rothy’s, Saskia worked as senior director of sustainability at method home. Saskia graduated from Northwestern University with a degree in Environmental Science.

PETER WHITCOMB

VP, Growth & Partnerships at Trove

Peter's experience ranges across a variety of high impact roles in finance, technology, retail and e-commerce. Prior to Trove, he spent six years on Wall Street, completed his MBA at the University of Texas and managed Amazon's Cycling and Action Sports businesses. Most recently he built and led REI's first of its kind New Business Development and Circular Economy team, which scaled REI's industry leading resale business.

Edward Hertzman

Executive Vice President Fairchild Media; Founder & President Sourcing Journal

Edward Hertzman received a degree in economics from NYU and spent more than a decade working as a top executive for major sourcing companies all over the world, including Synergies Worldwide and Pearl Global. He has partnered with globally recognized retailers and wholesalers all over the world with special expertise in Pakistan, Bangladesh, India and China. He continues to consult widely on sourcing and supply chain matters. Mr. Hertzman sits on the Board for Delivering Good, a charitable organization that channels the resources of the fashion industry to those in need. In 2009, in response to a need in the industry, he founded Sourcing Journal Online. With more than 75,000 subscribers, Sourcing Journal Online is the largest trade journal devoted to the sourcing apparel and textile industry supply chain in the world. In Oct 2017, Penske Media (owners of WWD &FN) acquired Sourcing Journal and its sister publications Rivet and Vamp.

Established in 2004 as a pioneering career-based outreach program for MBA students interested in the luxury and retail sectors, the NYU Stern Luxury & Retail Club aims to promote NYU Stern as a premier source of talent and academic leadership in these specific industries. The club now boasts over 1,200 members and has established relationships with some of the most prominent companies and individuals in the luxury and retail space. 

In 2009, NYU Stern introduced the Luxury Marketing specialization, the first of its kind among top-tier business schools. This focus differentiates NYU Stern from other MBA programs and as a club, we collaborate with faculty and industry executives to develop an interdisciplinary curriculum driven by today’s industry leaders.