My Texworld

January 21 − 23, 2014Javits Convention Center

New York, NY

Co-located withApparelSourcing

The largest apparel fabrics show in North America

New yorK

January 2014 Seminar Speaker Bios

New yorK

Mercedes GonzalesDirector, Global Purchasing Companies

Cassandra TsaknisTrend Specialist, Stylesight

Michael KininmonthDenim Project Manager, Lenzing Fibers Inc

SeminarSpeakers

Thirteen years ago, Mercedes R. Gonzalez founded and remains director of the fashion industry consulting firm Global Purchasing Companies. Her understanding of the business of fashion began at age 14 when she worked every summer for her uncle’s manufacturing company in the heart of NYC’s garment district. After earning an economics degree from New York University, she went back to work full time with her uncle where she changed the operation of the company by moving production overseas, streamlining the company, and ensuring a stronger bottom line. Today, Mercedes works with designers to build competitive strategies that are the foundations to launching their design ideas. Regularly featured in industry publications, such as Women's Wear Daily and California Apparel News, Mercedes also teaches workshops on successfully starting a fashion line in today’s market at trade shows such as Texworld USA, and at regional and international fashion weeks. She sits on the board of the Fashion Merchandising Department at two US universities and is invited around the world to speak to designers, retailers, and manufacturers from Chile to China.

Cassandra Tsaknis is one of Stylesight’s Trend Specialists. She has proven to be an authoritative voice of the industry with her finger on the pulse of what’s happening in fashion, lifestyle and design. Tsaknis came to Stylesight from a fashion editorial background where she was the Fashion Market Editor of Spin magazine. She was also an editor at Harper’s Bazaar and Interview magazines. Tsaknis has a master’s degree in Psychology from Columbia University, a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Art History from the University of Maryland, as well as an associate’s degree in Fashion Marketing form Parsons The New School for Design. At Stylesight, Tsaknis draws on her education as well as her editorial experience to ensure that her clients have a well-rounded understanding of emerging and evolutionary trends. From fashion and culture to design across multiple disciplines, she interprets and communicates the company’s acclaimed trend reports in a way that is applicable to each of her clients.

Michael Kininmonth has spent the whole of his 39 years working life in textiles. Kininmonth trained at University of Bolton in the UK and worked in the denim industry as far back as 1974. Kininmonth has had a wide and varied career spanning fiber spinning through to garment production, woven and knits through to non-woven composites, apparel fabrics through to medical textiles. He is widely travelled and is the holder of several textile patents. He joined Courtaulds Chemicals just after the launch of TENCEL in 1994, working initially on technical service, and then new product and process development. Kininmonth is now employed by Lenzing Fibers as Business Development Manager. His current project responsibilities are split between sustainability and denim. Michael is married to Julia and has 2 children, a cat called Bob and a dog called Eddy. He lives near Nottingham in the UK.

Mark MessuraSenior Vice President, Global Supply Chain Marketing for Cotton Incorporated Mark Messura serves as Senior Vice President, Global Supply Chain Marketing for Cotton Incorporated, where he is responsible for the company’s global product marketing programs. Messura currently serves as Chairman of the International Forum for Cotton Promotion. He is a member of the Industry Advisory Board to the Textile Development and Marketing Department at the Fashion Institute of Technology and Chairman of the Industry Advisory Board, Fashion and Textile Management Program at North Carolina State University. Messura serves as an adjunct associate professor in the College of Textiles at North Carolina State University. He serves on the Washington State University Extension National Board of Advisors.Prior to joining Cotton Incorporated in 1994, Messura served as the Director of Policy and Programs for the North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center, and as Associate Director of the North Carolina Board of Science and Technology. He earned a B.A. from the University of Michigan in Economics and an M.A. in Policy Analysis from Duke University.

Julian MetcalfBusiness Manager, DyStar USTBD

Karla MagruderPresident, Fabrikology International

laurie PressmanVP, Pantone Color Institute

edward HertzmanFounder and Publisher of Sourcing Journal Online

Karla Magruder has been in the textile industry for more than 25 years with global experience ranging from fibers through finished garments. Magruder is currently President of Fabrikology International, a textile consulting firm, specializing in textile sourcing, education and business development. Clients have included technology suppliers, finishing companies, NGOs, brands and retailers. Recent work at Fabrikology includes textile R&D and sourcing, organizing and managing product development teams, setting fabric specifications and developing tradeshow presentations. Magruder worked previously with companies such as Asics Tiger Corporation, Burlington Industries and Cargill Dow. She has been a Contributing Editor for TEXTILE INSIGHT since its first issue.

In her role as Vice President at Pantone, Laurie Pressman is responsible for creating the strategic vision and developing the marketing platform for Pantone’s fashion, home, and interiors division on an international basis. With over 20 years experience in product development and merchandising for the fashion and home furnishings markets, Pressman recognizes that color is an intrinsic part of the visual experience and plays a significant role in consumer purchasing decisions. Pressman is involved in the development of Pantone’s color forecasting products, is the managing editor of TONES (Pantone’s color newsletter), sits on the board of the Home Products division at the Fashion Institute Technology, is a vice-chairman of the color standards committee for the Color Marketing Group, and has most recently joined the fashion advisory board of the Savannah College of Art and Design.

Edward Hertzman received a degree in economics from NYU and then 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. Hertzman sits on the Leadership Board for Fashion Delivers, a charitable organization that channels the resources of the fashion industry to those in need. In 2009, in response to a gaping need in the industry, he founded Sourcing Journal Online. With more than 50,000 subscribers, Sourcing Journal Online is the largest trade journal devoted to the sourcing apparel and textile industry supply chain in the world.

Fran SudeVP, Design Options

Tricia CareySen.Merchandising Manager, Lenzing Fibers Inc

Nate HermanVice President International Trade, AAFA

Fran Sude, a native New Yorker, is the creative force behind Design Options, Inc., the only color and lifestyle forecasting company in Los Angeles for over 23 years.With an extensive background in Retail, Design, Merchandising, and Manufacturing, Sude is an international authority on color and trend forecasting. Her client list reads like a Who’s Who in both the ready-to-wear and home fashion Industries today, with a winning track record amongst retailers, textile converters, and manufacturers…when Sude talks COLOR AND TREND….people listen, very closely!With corporate offices in Los Angeles, New York, and a marketing presence in major cities throughout the world, Design Options is dedicated to bringing Southern California’s unique aesthetic to the world. Its singular cutting edge perspective, coupled with a comprehensive knowledge of the current marketplace, fuels the company’s imaginative products and high-end consulting services.

With a Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Merchandising from Marywood University and Associate’s degree in Textiles from the Fashion Institute of Technology, Carey has held positions in fabric sales and development. Over fourteen years ago she started with Courtaulds Fibers in New York City as Apparel Merchandising Manager for TENCEL®. Lenzing Fibers acquired Tencel Inc in 2004 and Carey continued her role in downstream marketing for the apparel market. Her global sourcing experience assists brands and retailers to evaluate supply chains and realize effective means of using Lenzing Fibers. Carey is Vice-Chair at Textile Exchange, a non-profit organization that promotes the use of sustainable textiles. She is also a member of Underfashion Club and Fashion Group International. In her spare time, she enjoys being outside with her family and two young children who keep her laughing!

Nate Herman joined AAFA in 2001. Mr. Herman manages AAFA’s regulatory and legislative affairs activities, advocating on behalf of, and providing information to, the industry on international trade and corporate social responsibility issues. Mr. Herman also handles product safety, customs, transportation and other technical (slip resistance, safety toe, etc.) issues as well as labeling matters for AAFA’s footwear members as co-leader of AAFA’s Footwear Team. In addition, Mr. Herman develops all apparel and footwear industry data and statistics as AAFA’s resident economist. Prior to joining AAFA, Mr. Herman worked for six years at the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) assisting U.S. firms in entering the global market. Mr. Herman spent the last two years as the Department’s industry analyst for the footwear and travel goods industries. Mr. Herman received a Masters of Public and International Affairs (MPIA) from the University of Pittsburgh in 1994 and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and Economics from the University of Delaware in 1992.

Arthur FriedmanSenior Editor, Textiles and Trade, WWDArthur Friedman is a senior editor for textiles and trade at Women’s Wear Daily, covering and overseeing WWD’s coverage of the global apparel, manufacturing and sourcing, as well as fabrics and sustainability. In his 22 years at WWD, Friedman has gained extensive experience in the complexities and nuances of the fashion industry, which in addition to his current responsibilities has included ready-to-wear, sportswear, accessories and activewear, as well as labor-management relations.Friedman is also an adjunct professor of history at Montclair State University, from where he received his Masters degree in U.S. History.

david SassoVP International Sales, Buhler Quality YarnsDavid Sasso has a BS in Textile Management from North Carolina State University and has held various positions since 1983 ranging from production planning, manufacturing, engineering, and sales. Background is mostly in yarn spinning, but also includes, weaving, and knitting. Currently he is employed at Buhler Quality Yarns and since 2001 as VP of International Sales and Marketing for Buhler Quality Yarns, USA with a major focus in establishing retail and brand relationships and integrating ourselves into their supply chains as a major contributor in value added apparel.

Gail StricklerUSTR Assistant Trade RepresentativeGail W. Strickler, AUSTR for Textiles and Apparel, joined USTR after almost 30 years in the textile and apparel industry. Ms. Strickler is responsible for supervising negotiations affecting textile and apparel products, advising Ambassador Michael Froman on textile and apparel trade policy matters and working to expand the industry’s access to foreign markets. Ms. Strickler worked for Saxon Textile Corp from 1980 -2007 serving ultimately as its President and CEO until it was acquired by Patriarch Group in 2007 and became a division of Duro Textile LLC., where she served as Vice President of the Global Apparel Division. Prior to joining USTR, Ms. Strickler served as the Assoc. Director of The Institute for Textile and Apparel Product Safety (I.T.A.P.S.) at Philadelphia University (the former Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science) where she oversaw textile research and development programs for the Institute, and developed sustainability and environmental strategy programs for brands and retailers.Ms. Strickler served as president of the Textiles Distributors Association for five years. She served on the board of directors of the National Council of Textile Organizations from its inception in 2004-2006 as a member of its Trade Policy committee. She was a board member for the USDA Cotton Board from 2002 - 2009, serving as Chairman of the Textile Research Committee. She has served on the board of directors at the Fashion Institute of Technology’s Education Foundation since 2004 and its executive committee from 2006-2009. Strickler received her B.A. from Clark University and completed coursework in Textile Technology and Textile Chemistry from the Fashion Institute of Technology. She did advanced work in textile, environmental chemistry at Philadelphia college of Textiles and Science (now Philadelphia University).

louis Gerin & Grégory lamaudFashion Designers, Art Directors of Texworld Paris, Owners & Creators of 2G2L FASHION DESIGN & CONSULTING – Paris (Trend Office)2G2L Fashion Design & Consulting is a trend and fashion bureau created in 2009 by Louis Gérin and Grégory Lamaud: Les Garçons. Two designers from the Parisian Fashion scene : a « couplicity » in every way. Their trend table, composed of stylists, designers, graphic designers, and writers offers each season an authentic and original overview of tomorrow’s inspirational currents. Their exclusive method combines sociological studies, marketing approaches and creative development. With wide opened eyes, they detect and bring in the starlight the moods of the future.

Michael GorelickFounder and President of Gorelick Consulting, Inc.

Carol MeekOwner and Creative Director of Color Portfolio Inc.

Michael Gorelick is the founder and president of Gorelick Consulting, Inc. The company was founded in 2002 and services the textile and apparel industries. Gorelick Consulting, Inc. (GCI) represents fabric mills and a garment manufacturer, all located in Asia. Primary responsibilities include sales and facilitation of communication between clients and customers. GCI sells to menswear, ladies, and children’s manufacturers and importers.

Prior to forming Gorelick Consulting, Inc., Michael held executive management positions with domestic wholesale/retail companies specializing in menswear and boys wear. Michael has traveled extensively and sourced woven and knit fabrics as well as garments in Asia and Europe, as well as domestically.

Carol Meek has had over 21 years experience in the fashion industry. She has an extensive product development and fashion direction background in Women’s, Men’s, Home and in Children’s. Carol understands the importance of color and trends in today’s market place for retailers and manufacturers. She has worked extensively in the European, Tokyo, Asian, India, and South American Markets. Carol is owner and creative director of Color Portfolio Inc. located in Dallas, Texas, for the last twelve years. Color Portfolio offers affordable color books and trend information to retailers, manufacturers, and allied industries, providing directional and understandable recommendations for successful color, trend, textile merchandising for markets world-wide. Color Portfolio creates personalized design and trend packages for companies with specific market needs. Color Portfolio is also available for private consultations or projects. Selling Representatives for Color Portfolio are located in New York, Los Angles, and Montreal.