The Retail Pilot

Ken Pilot interviews Tim Parr, CEO & Founder of Caddis, for this flight of The Retail Pilot podcast. Tim Parr is the CEO and Founder of CADDIS, an eyewear brand that crushes age stereotypes. He believes in defying our society’s addiction to youth and fueling getting older and owning it. Tim is an entrepreneur who has also worked for some of the most respected brands. Patagonia, L.L. Bean, Fils...

Ken Pilot interviews Janet Hayes, CEO of Crate & Barrel Holdings, for this episode of The Retail Pilot podcast. Summary Janet Hayes, CEO of Crate and Barrel Holdings, shares her journey into retail and her experience leading the company. Crate and Barrel Holdings is a multi-brand, multi-platform, multi-country company with four brands: Crate and Barrel, CB2, Crate and Kids, and Hudson Grace. H...

Enjoy a replay of this beloved episode of The Retail Pilot podcast. In this episode, Ken sits down with Ryan Babenzien, the brilliant mind behind Greats, a renowned footwear brand that has taken the industry by storm. But today, Ryan is here to share his latest venture: Jolie, a groundbreaking showerhead filter brand. Join Ken as he delves into Ryan's entrepreneurial journey, from building a succe...

Ken Pilot interviews Sid and Ann Mashburn, Founders of Sid Mashburn and Ann Mashburn, for this episode of The Retail Pilot Podcast. Sid Mashburn grew up in small-town Mississippi but began his design career in New York in the mid-1980s, as J.Crew’s first men’s designer. He designed the brand’s first heritage piece— the Barn Jacket. He was later recruited by Ralph Lauren to join the design team at...

Ken Pilot interviews Mindy Grossman, a return guest to The Retail Pilot Podcast. Mindy Grossman is a Partner and Vice Chair at Consello, a financial services advisory and strategic investing platform. Prior to Consello, Mindy joined Weight Watchers in 2017 as the CEO and President leading the repositioning and rebranding of the company to WW Intl. From 2008 to 2017 Mindy took IAC retail public and...

Join Host Ken Pilot for an Exclusive Interview with Steve Madden: The Visionary Behind the Iconic Footwear and Accessories Brand Key Highlights: Steve Madden's Early Career Steve Madden's journey in retail began at a shoe store in Cedarhurst, Long Island. By leveraging his connection as Johnny Madden's little brother, he secured a job that marked the start of his illustrious career in the shoe bus...

Ken Pilot interviews Scott Tannen, Founder and CEO of Boll & Branch on this flight of The Retail Pilot Podcast. Scott Tannen is the CEO and Founder of Boll & Branch, the world’s leading luxury bedding brand, which he founded in 2014 with his wife Missy Tannen.  Boll & Branch was one of the earliest direct-to-consumer brands in the soft home world of bed and bath products, and is the fi...

Ken Pilot speaks with Ramy Brook Sharp one year later on The Retail Pilot podcast. Ramy is the Founder and CEO of eponymous brand, Ramy Brook. In this conversation, Ken and Ramy discuss the current state of Ramy Brook, a fashion brand, and the strategies they are implementing to grow the business. They talk about the balance between wholesale and e-commerce, successful collaborations, marketing ta...

In this episode first aired May 8, 2023, Ken sits down with Louisa Serene Schneider, Founder and CEO of Rowan, a company that offers safe ear piercings exclusively by licensed nurses. Louisa shares her journey from being a hedge fund analyst to launching Rowan in 2017 and raising over $35 million in venture funding.  Join Ken as he dives into Louisa's journey and learn how she turned her passion f...

Ken sits down with Hali Borenstein, CEO of Reformation, for this episode of The Retail Pilot - Leaders & Legends. Bio Hali Borenstein is the CEO of sustainable fashion brand Reformation. Hali has been with Reformation since 2014, when she joined the company as Director of Merchandising, and most recently served as President of the company prior becoming CEO. Under Hali’s leadership, Reformatio...

Ken Pilot conducts his second interview with Chris Burch, Founder of Burch Creative Capital , for this episode of The Retail Pilot. ·  Diverse Business Ventures : Chris Burch's company, Burch Creative Capital, is actively involved in multiple industries including hotels, real estate development, prefab building, technology, and retail. He highlights an innovative project in Boston where they are c...

Ken Pilot interviews Danielle Bernstein on this episode of The Retail Pilot podcast. Danielle is a native New Yorker and fashion influencer turned business mogul. She has a dedicated fan base of over 3.3 million followers and counting across her social media platforms. Danielle started her internationally recognized blog in 2010 as a daily dose of outfit inspiration for women everywhere, before gr...

On this flight of The Retail Pilot, Ken Pilot interviews Andrew Blackmon, the co-founder and CEO of The Black Tux. He manages the company's day-to-day operations and leadership team. He is passionate about diligently creating a great team/culture to execute on the company's long term vision of revolutionizing the men's formal industry. He previously worked in technology and marketing. He earned an...

Ken Pilot interviews Peiman Raf, Co-Founder and CEO of Madhappy, for this 50th Flight of The Retail Pilot - Leaders & Legends podcast. This interview was conducted live at The University of Michigan's Ross School of Business at the Michigan Fashion and Multimedia Summit. Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Michelle Wlazlo joined JCPenney in March 2019 as executive vice president, chief merchandising officer, reporting to Marc Rosen, chief executive officer. Wlazlo is responsible for leading the Company’s global merchandise strategy and operations including Merchandising, Planning and Allocation, Pricing, Product Design, and Development and Sourcing. Wlazlo brings more than 30 years of merchandising...

On this flight of The Retail PIlot, Ken Pilot interviews Pete Nordstrom, the President and Chief Brand Officer of Nordstrom. Throughout his career, Pete has helped Nordstrom innovate the customer shopping experience and redefine the role fashion plays in customers’ lives leading major strategic initiatives such as building the designer offering to a $1.5 billion business, evolving Nordstrom’s mix...

Ken Pilot interviews Denise Incandela for this flight of The Retail Pilot. Denise Incandela is Executive Vice President of Fashion and Private Brands for Walmart U.S. In this role, Denise is propelling Walmart’s reputation as a fashion destination, helping democratize access to stylish, quality apparel for Walmart’s 140 million weekly shoppers. Before joining Walmart, Denise rose through the fashi...

Ken interviews Amy Williams, the CEO at Citizens of Humanity Group, for this Flight of The Retail Pilot. Amy joined Citizens of Humanity as the company’s President in 2009 and ultimately assumed the Chief Executive Officer position in 2015, overseeing the business for the company’s family of brands including Citizens of Humanity and AGOLDE. Williams previous experience includes Executive Vice Pres...

Ken interviews Simeon Siegel, Managing Director, Senior Analyst of Retail and eCommerce for BMO Capital Markets. Key takeaways from the interview include: 1.     Role as an Equity Research Analyst : Simeon's job involves assessing publicly traded companies within the retail sector. He emphasizes the importance of being objective in his analysis, even if it means delivering hard truths that may not...

Ken interviews Nyakio Grieco, Co-founder of Thirteen Lune and Founder of Relevant: Your Skin Seen on this flight of The Retail Pilot - Leaders & Legends. Nyakio (pronounced Neh-Kay-Oh) Grieco is a beauty entrepreneur and advocate for clean, inclusive beauty that suits all skin types, tones, and needs. As a veteran beauty founder and trusted industry voice, Nyakio has launched successful busine...

On this Flight of The Retail Pilot Ken speaks with LEGEND, Tommy Hilfiger, Principal Designer, Tommy Hilfiger Global. Uplifting and inspiring consumers since 1985, Tommy Hilfiger has pioneered one of the world’s most recognized premium lifestyle brands. With Hilfiger’s vision and leadership as Principal Designer, his eponymous brand celebrates the essence of classic American style with a modern tw...

Ken interviews Nick Graham, CEO of SPACEONE Industries and Founder and Chief Underpants Officer of Joe Boxer. Nick Graham changed the face of fashion when he turned his underwear company into one of America¹s most popular lifestyle brands. Graham coined the phrase "The Brand is the Amusement Park, the Product is the Souvenir” and uses this philosophy in everything he does. Graham was the first clo...

Ken speaks with Lori Coulter, Co-Founder and CEO of Summersalt, on this Flight of The Retail Pilot - Leaders & Legends. Lori Coulter is the Co-Founder and CEO of Summersalt, a generation-defining lifestyle brand known for its data-backed fit and designer quality products without the designer price tag. In 2020, she was named one of Inc. Magazine’s Top 100 Female Founders. Lori and her Co-found...

Ken interviews Co-Founders of Negative, Marissa Vosper and Lauren Schwab. Lauren Schwab co-founded Negative in 2014 alongside Marissa Vosper with no experience in the fashion and manufacturing industry. With a passionate belief that women deserved to love the garments closest to their skin, Lauren taught herself every stage of developing, fitting and producing beautiful and functional intimate app...

Ken interviews Jeanne Jackson for this Flight of The Retail Pilot. Jeanne P. Jackson is CEO of a private equity and consulting firm that she founded in 2002, MSP Capital. In 2018, she retired from Nike, Inc. after 16 years, serving first as a Board member for 7 years, then stepping into successive roles inside the Company as President, then Senior Advisor to the CEO. She recently retired from the...