Speakers & Faculty

Cindy Deily

SVP, Merchandising - Skincare & Global Initiatives

Sephora

Cindy Deily serves as Vice President of Merchandising, Skincare for Sephora US. In her role, she oversees a team of merchants focused on the continual development and improvement of the retailer’s robust and diverse skincare product assortment.

Since joining the company in 2006, Cindy has driven the strategic development of multiple categories at Sephora and leading industry-wide trend curation, including skincare, hair, bath & body, sun, wellness, clean beauty, CBD, and intimate care. Managing 100+ brand partnerships, she effectively nurtures brands from infancy to industry dominance – such as, Drunk Elephant, Tatcha, and Summer Fridays to name a few – and has established products such as dry shampoos and face oils as key categories across prestige beauty. Cindly also spearheaded and continues to lead and evolve the ‘Clean at Sephora’ program, including updating the initial restricted ingredient list from 13 to more than 50 ingredient groups.

Alison Kohlenstein

Vice President, Merchandising - Private Label

Ulta Beauty

Alison Kohlenstein serves as Vice President of Merchandising, Private Label Brands for Ulta Beauty. In her role, she leads a team focused on the development, execution, and growth strategy for the company’s owned brand portfolio.

Since joining the company in 2021, Alison has driven the long-term strategy for the owned brand portfolio, which includes makeup, skincare, bodycare, sun, and wellness. She led the strategic transformation of Ulta Beauty Collection—aligning it with the Conscious Beauty program through certified clean ingredients, cruelty-free formulations, and significant advancements in sustainable packaging—and continues to guide its evolution and positioning for long-term growth.

Kevin Wong

Vice President of Merchandising for Beauty

Target

Kimberly Villatoro

CEO

Patrick Ta Beauty

With a background in beauty, consumer products, and fashion, Kimberly Villatoro has led and marketed some of the most recognized brands in the world, including the billion-dollar brand Barbie. Most recently, she served as Vice President and General Manager of Smashbox and Glamglow in North America, where she led the brand's strategy and operations. She is a proven leader, bringing purpose, strategy, and scale to the businesses she has led across her two decade long professional career. With a track record of community-first brand building, today Ms. Villatoro brings her vocal advocacy and passion for diversity, equity, and inclusion to the team at Patrick Ta Beauty.

Angela Simpson

Chief Marketing Officer

Haus Labs

Angela Simpson is an accomplished beauty marketing executive with over 20 years of experience driving brand growth and innovation across mass and prestige categories. Angela’s expertise spans product launches, brand strategy, media, retail marketing, E-commerce and digital initiatives, making her a sought-after leader in the beauty industry. With a proven track record of success at top-tier companies like Sephora and L'Oréal, Angela is known for her ability to build and scale brands, capitalize on key trends, and foster strong collaborations with influencers and founders. She holds an MBA from Kellogg and is passionate about mentoring young professionals and advancing diversity in beauty.

Marissa Galante Frank

Fashion Director, Accessories and Beauty

Bloomingdales

Marissa Galante Frank is the Fashion Director for Accessories & Beauty at Bloomingdale's, overseeing handbags, shoes, fine jewelry, watches, fashion accessories and beauty.  In her role, Marissa drives the Bloomingdale’s vision for the trends shoppers can expect each season in-store and online. She collaborates across departments to develop exclusive merchandise for Bloomingdale’s private brands, and translate trends into a one-of-kind accessories and beauty assortment, spanning emerging and established brands.

Brent Ridge, M.D

Co-Founder

Beekman 1802

Dr. Ridge began his career as a physician at Mt. Sinai in New York City and later launched the Health and Wellness division of Martha Stewart Omnimedia.

In 2008, he co-founded Beekman 1802 with his husband, Josh Kilmer-Purcell and is an ambassador to the Global Wellness Institute. Today, the company is recognized as one of the most successful lifestyle brands in America. Their beauty, home, and gourmet products are sold through premium retail partners worldwide, including Williams Sonoma, Bloomingdale’s, and Anthropologie, and in 2019, they set the record for the largest beauty brand launch in the combined 37-year history of both HSN and QVC. 

Aarti Kapoor

Former Partner

VMG Partners

Aarti Kapoor is a Partner at VMG Partners, a growth equity investment firm focused on partnering with high-growth consumer and retail companies, and brings 18 years of experience in high-growth consumer and retail across principal investing and M&A / capital markets advisory. Kapoor was formerly CEO of VMG-affiliated special purpose acquisition company, VMG Consumer Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ:VMGA), from June 2021 to May 2023. Prior to joining VMG Partners, Kapoor was an investment banker at Goldman Sachs where she was integral to the disruptive growth effort within consumer and retail investment banking, growing the firm’s coverage of leisure, lifestyle, and wellness brands. Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, she was an investment banker at Moelis & Company where she built one of Wall Street’s first coverage platforms focused on the health and wellness industry. Aarti has been recognized for her work in consumer and retail dealmaking by various publications, listed to "Forbes 30 Under 30" in Finance and Business Insider's "Rising Stars" of Wall Street, and featured in Bloomberg, CNBC, Yahoo! Finance and more. Aarti is based in New York, NY.

Michelle LeBlanc

VP of Beauty, Personal Care and Hispanic Strategy Team

CVS Health

Michelle L. LeBlanc is the Vice President of Merchandising for Beauty & Personal Care at CVS Health where she is responsible for the Cosmetics, Skin Care, Fragrance, Hair Care and Personal Care businesses, as well as Beauty Experience and Services.

She is a purpose-led leader who is confident, creative, and dynamic with a proven record for delivering results (while having fun along the way). Michelle is naturally curious with a hunger for insights, bias for action, and relentless desire to have meaningful impact on the people and the business.

Michelle has been with CVS Health for nearly 20 years and has held various leadership roles within the company. Most recently, Michelle led the Front Store Strategy & Transformation for CVS Health. As an instrumental member of the Front Store leadership team, Michelle was responsible for driving key initiatives and Front Store growth through deep understanding of performance drivers. Michelle’s greatest passion throughout her career has been serving as a leader of leaders – building and motivating highly engaged and high performing teams.

Michelle has a BS in Marketing from George Mason University and an MBA from Providence College. 

Outside of work, Michelle is busy raising three boys with her wife Jennifer. Her goal is that they lead with kindness and do their best everyday– words she lives by.

Brian Ecclefield

Founder & Managing Director

Validated Claim Support

Juliette Tang

President

ONE/SIZE Beauty

Juliette Tang is the President of ONE/SIZE by Patrick Starrr, a brand dedicated to giving a voice to the unseen and unheard and the fastest-growing makeup brand at Sephora North America. Since joining in January 2023, she has focused on enhancing digital innovation, strengthening operations, and driving thoughtful growth.

With a background in digital-first beauty, Juliette has spent her career helping brands scale, build strong eCommerce foundations, and connect with consumers in meaningful ways. Before ONE/SIZE, she was Vice President of Global eCommerce at Huda Beauty, leading international eCommerce for Huda Beauty and Kayali Fragrances. She has also held leadership roles at NYX Professional Makeup (L’Oréal) and Zevia, where she contributed to the brand’s digital expansion and IPO. Earlier in her career, she worked in social media strategy at Zoosk and started her journey in technology at Google.

Raye Boyce

Beauty and Lifestyle Creator

@ItsMyRayeRaye

RAYE BOYCE, known as ItsMyRayeRaye, is a leading beauty influencer, entrepreneur, and dedicated mother based in Los Angeles, CA. She rose to prominence on YouTube with her engaging beauty reviews, makeup tutorials, and relatable vlogs, amassing a substantial and loyal following.

As a top beauty influencer, Raye has collaborated with today’s top brands and launched successful product collaborations that highlight her commitment to inclusivity and representation. Raye’s makeup product line with Colourpop Cosmetics and BH cosmetics, and a hair extension partnership with INH have all sold out in just a few days. Her entrepreneurial spirit shines through in her ability to create and market beauty products that resonate with a diverse audience.

Beyond her professional achievements, Raye is a devoted mother who balances her career with her family life. She uses her platform to advocate for self-love, inspiring her followers to embrace their unique beauty and confidence. Raye stands out not only for her professional success but also for her ability to connect with and uplift others, making her a true icon in the beauty community.

Aurelian Lis

CEO

Dermalogica

Aurelian Lis is the global CEO of Dermalogica, a subsidiary of Unilever Prestige. For over 30 years, Dermalogica has been committed to elevating the skin care industry through providing world-class education to professional skin therapists and salon owners, as well as cutting-edge, professional-grade products that deliver results. Dermalogica is a standalone company headquartered in Los Angeles and is sold worldwide. Since 2016 the company has embarked on a digital transformation that has redefined the brand to new consumers seeking healthy skin. Dermalogica’s FaceMapping® technology is just one of the many examples.

Julian Reis

Founder & CEO

SuperOrdinary

Irene Scharmack

CEO

Quick Box Fulfilment

Romain Gaillard

Founder & CEO

The Detox Market

Romain is the founder and CEO of The Detox Market. In 2010, he opened The Detox Market on Abbot Kinney in Venice, CA, as a collaborative, short-term pop-up shop aimed at providing education regarding the benefits of green beauty while also exposing consumers to hard-to-find eco-friendly brands. After the positive response and several more pop-ups, he opened the West Hollywood flagship in 2011. As one of the first purveyors of natural beauty products, Romain’s focus has always been discovering and incubating new brands and showcasing the brand founders’ stories, which reflect his own passion for offering non-toxic beauty choices. Now North America’s leader in green beauty, The Detox Market has since expanded to seven locations throughout Los Angeles, Toronto, and New York City, as well as several Beauty Corners in partnership with Café Gratitude, the plant-based restaurants in CA. The demand for the best in green beauty has also made the ecommerce shop www.thedetoxmarket.com a thriving platform, shipping worldwide.

Annabel Norman

Managing Partner

Norman Consultants

Michael Pihowich

Partner

Baker Tilly

Michael advises private equity and corporate clients on buy- and sell-side transactions. His experience covers a broad range of industries with a current focus on manufacturing and distribution and consumer products (beauty, personal care, food and beverage, and apparel) sold through channels including e-commerce, multiunit retail, wholesale, and specialty. He also advises on transactions for restaurants, franchises, and hospitality.

Prior to his work in TAS, for over 10 years, Michael held positions in business finance, global product management and corporate development at large multinational companies. He began his career at a Big Four firm in Toronto, Canada in the assurance and consulting practices.

 

Anna Keller

Principal Analyst, BPC

Mintel

Anna Keller is an analyst on Mintel’s US Beauty and Personal Care team, and she joined Mintel with a strong background in the skincare industry translating trends and technologies into new products. Prior to her time with Mintel, Anna gained extensive experience at a contract manufacturer working across departments to drive product development. While Anna has focused on the beauty and personal care space in her professional career, sustainability, eco-minded innovation, and environmental policy have long been passions of hers. She graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with a unique degree in Ethics, History, and Public Policy with a concentration in Technology and Policy.

Nadine Tapia

President

Latinas in Beauty

Ashu Dubey

Founder & CEO

Alhena AI

Ashu Dubey is the Founder & CEO of Alhena AI, a leader in AI-powered CX solutions for modern retail brands. With a background in both technology and growth strategy, he has been at the forefront of shaping how e-commerce businesses leverage AI to drive revenue, elevate customer satisfaction, and unlock operational efficiency.
A top voice on the intersection of AI and customer experience, Ashu brings a pragmatic yet visionary lens to the fast-evolving CX automation landscape. Ashu is a vocal advocate of solutions that are not just intelligent, but also brand-aligned, measurable, and human-like.

Randi Christiansen

Co-Founder

Nécessaire

During Randi’s 15-year career at Estee Lauder Companies, she was instrumental in building and scaling brands across the portfolio (La Mer, Estee Lauder, ELC Ventures.) A native of Denmark, Randi holds a MSc in Economics and Business Administration from Copenhagen Business School. In 2023, she was recognized by Goldman Sachs as one of the most exceptional entrepreneurs of the year. She lives with her husband and three daughters in Rolling Hills, CA.
 
At Necessaire, we design the personal care we need - The Necessary™ -  that supports our health and wellness.  We use our business to make a positive environmental impact everywhere we can.

Nécessaire is recognized as a steward of responsible luxury with the planet as key stakeholder. Nécessaire is a Certified B Corp, 1% For The Planet Member, Climate Neutral Certified, Plastic Neutral Certified, FSC Certified and partners with How2Recycle to deliver verified recycling claims in the US/CAN.  By the end of this year Nécessaire will have planted 300,000 Trees+ and will have supported several non profits fighting to defend our air, land, water and wild-life world-wide. #careforyourbody #careforyourplanet #necesaire

 

Sheena Zadeh

Founder

Kosas

Roger Zien

Vice President Supply Chain & Operations

Murad, Unilever Prestige

Roger Zien is the Vice President of Global Supply Chain & Operations at Murad, a Unilever Prestige skincare brand, where he leads end-to-end global operations across supply planning, procurement, logistics, 3PL transitions, and manufacturing strategy. With over 15 years of experience in the beauty and CPG sectors, Roger has successfully spearheaded international contract manufacturing expansion, complex inventory reduction programs, and cross-functional transformation initiatives. Prior to entering the corporate world, Roger served as a U.S. Army officer for 15 years, including assignments with Special Operations, where he developed the leadership, adaptability, and operational rigor that define his executive approach today.

Astrid Menendez-Muharram

Attorney

Morrison Foerster

Astrid Menendez-Muharram is an attorney in Morrison Foerster’s M&A and Private Equity Practice, focusing her practice on advising clients on a broad range of corporate matters, with an emphasis on M&A and private equity transactions in the United States and Latin America.

 

Astrid has significant experience representing businesses and private equity funds and portfolio companies in a broad range of corporate matters, including domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, private equity investments, joint ventures, divestitures and general corporate governance. Astrid advises clients in all aspects of their investment activity across a wide variety of industry sectors, including consumer, beauty, and personal care products, retail, food and agriculture, manufacturing, aerospace, defense and government contracting and technology.

Amanda Kwasniewicz

Director of Customer Strategy

Yotpo

Charlene Patten

Chief Marketing Officer

Not Your Mother's Haircare

As a Chief Marketing Officer, Charlene honed her skills while leading some of the most iconic brands around the world, including $1 Billion brands Folgers Coffee Co, Gillette Venus and Pantene, underdogs Clairol Herbal Essence and Clairol nice ‘n easy and 375 year old Fiskars.

She is recognized as an expert in strategic marketing and innovation who delivers P&L growth with experience in the U.S., Europe, Latin America, China, and Asia Pacific. Charlene has led numerous award- winning campaigns and new product launches including 2022 Cannes and Clios Winners and 2021 Top 20 TikTok Culture Driver and Nielsen Breakthrough and IRI Pacesetter Top 20 Non-Food Launches in 2019, 2017, and 2015.

She was recognized as a Top 100 Women Decision- Makers in Finnish Businesses in both 2021 and 2022.

Brand-Building & Brand Soul — Leads global brands to deliver stakeholder value by optimizing business strategy and finding unexpected, insightful ways to express the brand that resonate with retailers and consumers.

Strategy & Innovation — Brings fresh, creative thinking to develop focused strategies and build the needed capabilities that rally the organization and position the company for competitive advantage.

Inspiring Leadership — Leads teams to unprecedented success with deep understanding that every encounter is an opportunity to cultivate belonging. Leads with grace and compassion, creating psychological safety to drive transformation.

Paula Floyd

Founder & CEO

Headkount Inc

Liz Allison

CEO

Tricoci

Liz Allison is the CEO of Tricoci, a modern beauty enterprise built around three distinct business units: Salon & Spa, MedSpa, and CPG Brand Incubation. Each business draws on Tricoci’s professional legacy while scaling through its own focused growth strategy.

With more than 20 years of experience transforming and scaling consumer businesses across beauty, retail, and wellness, Liz has held executive leadership roles at Milan Laser Hair Removal, Neiman Marcus Group, and JCPenney.

Since joining Tricoci in 2023, Liz has helped accelerate the brand’s evolution through talent investment, service expansion, the launch of Tricoci MedSpa, and the development of Nutrire, the company’s salon-born, science-backed haircare brand.

Liz holds a degree in accounting from the University of Iowa, has served on multiple advisory and organizational boards, and actively mentors rising female leaders in service, retail, and CPG.

William Susman

Managing Director: Consumer and Retail Investment Banking

Cascadia Capital

Hoss Mortezaie

Vice President

Stord

Hoss Mortezaie is Vice President at Stord, leading strategic growth and partnerships across the global logistics and supply chain ecosystem. With a proven track record at tier-one supply chain enterprises, he brings extensive experience helping leading brands and retailers scale through technology-enabled fulfillment and integrated logistics solutions. His work has supported global expansion initiatives across North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.

Andrew Koenig

Senior Technical Advisor, R&D & Regulatory

Goodkind Co.

Gisselle Hernandez

Founder & CEO

Glamlite Cosmetics

Gisselle is an Afro-Latina former undocumented immigrant, who defied the odds to become the founder and CEO of one of the fastest-growing beauty brands, Glamlite Cosmetics. She launched the business with just a dream and $1900 on a credit card from her bedroom. Despite being a high school dropout and stay-at-home with no investors, bank loans, or business experience, Gisselle was determined to overcome all obstacles. Now, Glamlite is one of the few independent-owned, Black and Latina founded brands to secure licensing partnerships with world-renowned corporations, such as Mattel, Warner Bros., Hershey's, and many more. The brand is scaling significantly in 2025 alone acoss DTC, TikTok Shop and retail. Gisselle is a testament to resilience, determination, and the power of chasing dreams.

Dr. Marc Clement

Co-Founder/Chief Innovation Officer

CyDen Ltd

Riku Laitasalo

VP Client Services

Pacvue

I am a seasoned retail professional with extensive experience on the brand, agency, and technology sides of the industry. Specializing in eCommerce and retail media, I currently lead the Client Services team at Pacvue to deliver sustainable and scalable growth for our clients. My diverse background in technology, finance, and retail, along with direct hands-on experience working with large brands enables me to lead our organization to deliver tailored solutions that meet diverse business needs in a continually dynamic retail environment. While my specialty is CPG and eCommerce, I have managed brands across numerous categories throughout both online and brick & mortar channels in the broader retail landscape.

Alessandra Zonari

CSO and Co-founder

OneSkin

Dawn Hilarczyk

COO

Borghese

Dawn Hilarczyk is a dynamic and innovative C-suite leader renowned for propelling consumer-driven organizations to new heights. With over 25 years of experience in sales, strategic development, and digital transformation, Dawn has played a pivotal role in reshaping companies ranging from large corporations to emerging start-ups. Her deep industry relationships and exceptional leadership have fostered trust across a broad spectrum of stakeholders. Dawn’s impressive career includes pivotal roles in some of the most prestigious names in retail and beauty. Brought to Borghese to lead the company’s Renaissance and restore it to its former status as a top luxury brand. Her strategic vision and leadership are central to revitalizing Borghese’s heritage and driving its future success.

Millie Liu

Founding Partner

First Star Ventures

Megan Vasquez

Director of Creator Strategy and Strategic Marketing

GRIN

Rima Minasyan

Co-Founder

Patrick Ta Beauty

Rima Minasyan is Co-Founder of Patrick Ta Beauty, a venture born out of a shared passion with Co-Founder Patrick Ta for beauty, skincare, and entrepreneurship. Rima's journey into the industry began with a degree in Business Management from Woodbury University. She then transitioned into her family's pharmaceutical business alongside her husband, Avo Minasyan, honing her entrepreneurial acumen while nurturing her growing family. Her friendship with Patrick—which began early on in his career as her go-to makeup artist for events— ignited a shared vision, leading to the collaborative inception of Patrick Ta Beauty after years of meticulous planning and design. As a mother of three daughters and a son, Rima brings a unique perspective to the brand, ensuring that each product seamlessly blends professional artistry with consumer accessibility and luxury, propelling Patrick Ta Beauty to new heights of success and innovation.

Elsa Jungman

CEO & Founding Team

Hello Biome

Lara Henderson

Founder and CEO

PURE MAMA

Lara Henderson is the Founder and CEO of PURE MAMA, the award-winning, naturally luxurious skincare brand redefining body care for pregnancy, birth, and beyond. Since launching in New Zealand in 2021, PURE MAMA has become the fastest growing brand in its category across Australasia and is dominating the family wellness category at MECCA, alongside rapid growth in the USA through partnerships with Revolve, Goop, and Erewhon.

With a background in global brand strategy and a deep passion for women’s health, Lara has built PURE MAMA on the belief that motherhood self-care should be both uncompromising. Her leadership has driven the brand’s rapid international expansion, pioneering a new era of premium, clinically backed, hormone safe body care designed for women at every stage of motherhood.

Lara’s mission is to empower women to embrace self-care through products that combine science, luxury, and purpose, celebrating the strength, transformation, and the real, raw beauty of motherhood.

Nicholas Daniel-Richards

Principal

Ok Peter

Principal of Ok Peter, a startup advisory consultancy, bringing 25 years of software development expertise to his work. His career spans from software engineer to leading distributed design and product teams across diverse industries, the past 15 years focused on logistics.

Nicholas's notable roles include Chief Digital Officer of the National Basketball Players Association, Cofounding ShipHero, and as the Chief Technology Officer of Code & Theory, a global design & product agency. His design excellence was recognized with a D&AD Yellow Pencil for his work with Anna Wintour on the relaunch of Vogue Digital.

With deep roots in logistics technology through his leadership at as founder of ShipHero and CEO of Packiyo, Nicholas understands the critical intersection of operations and customer experience. He is passionate about the foundations of user experience design, believing that exceptional customer experiences begin with organizational culture and processes, not just external touchpoints. This inside-out approach has shaped his philosophy on building sustainable, customer-centric operations in logistics.

Daniel Casiero

Principal

Prelude Growth Partners

Daniel is a Principal at Prelude Growth Partners, a New York City based consumer growth equity fund. Since 2017, Prelude Growth has invested in and supported leading growth-stage beauty brands including Sol De Janeiro, Naturium, Summer Fridays, Phlur, Tower 28, Westman Atelier, and OneSkin. Prior to joining Prelude Growth Partners, Daniel worked as an Associate Partner at McKinsey & Company in New York where he drove growth strategy for consumer and retail companies and conducted investment due diligence for private equity clients. Daniel began his career at The Blackstone Group as an investment banker advising companies on M&A and restructuring.