I am a senior level apparel designer with over 20 years experience with design and product development for national retailers and worldwide lifestyle brands. My training has taught me to be customer obsessed with a keen eye for storytelling and design details. 

 

Growing up I had a passion for art and style which led me to pursue an education at the University of Cincinnati school of DAAP, where I received a Bachelor's of Science degree in Design. After completing internships at Banana Republic, Abercrombie & Fitch  and Express, I started my career at Abercrombie & Fitch.  Here I was first introduced to the importance of branding, exceptional quality standards, and denim design. Being an Associate Designer I became engrossed with learning the specialties from each mill and laundry, and how to communicate my vision to my peers. Eager to explore the west coast, I went to work for Quiksilver (Roxy), where I designed diverse collections intended for a  global market.

 

Recruited by Express for my ability to work cross functionally and focus on brand building a few years later, I moved back to Ohio. At Express, we established a clear denim destination within our store that was clearly named and marketed allowing us to build equity within the division. By traveling the globe working hands on with the vendors and creating beautiful washes and custom artistan details,  our team diligently worked on creating compelling stories to enhance this transformative store experience.

After Express, I immersed myself back into the world of academia both as a student and as professor at Kent State University. Completing a Masters of Fine Art in Textiles Degree and teaching fashion design classes as a Adjunct Professor, I worked diligently to prepare students for future careers in the industry. It also gave me the opportunity to further my ability to clearly present as well as mentor young talent.  As a student again, I was able to explore working with non conventional textiles and create without any design constraints.

 

I re-entered the Fashion Design Industry with Chico's as a Sr. Designer of Pants, Denim and Jackets. My main focus was on conceptualizing and leading the drive of product expansions across my departments. I lead the charge by identifying white space opportunity within the marketplace building new franchises including the Juliet Pant series and Girlfriend series which are still wildly successful today. I am recognized at Chico's for my ability to build compelling stories for an omni-channel brands, partner with the vendors and CAD artist to create one-of-a-king artisan pieces, and mentor incoming designers.