Navigating the Transformation of Retail, Together
The Center for Retail Transformation team aims to be the foremost academic institution driving transformation in retail.
The Center's leadership, advisory council, and affiliate faculty are working together to develop educational programs for current and future retailers, to generate impactful research addressing critical issues in retail, and to foster partnerships and collaborations with the retail industry, trade associations, and other governmental actors.
Leadership and Staff
Center leadership, consisting of the Center director and associate director, are responsible for the management of the Center. Working with the advisory council and affiliate faculty, the Center’s leadership guides the education, research, and industry outreach activities of the Center to achieve our vision of addressing emerging challenges caused by the transformation of retail.
Advisory Council
The Center for Retail Transformation Advisory Council, consisting of senior leadership from traditional and new retailers, retail solution providers, and industry experts, was established to support the Center’s mission and activities designed to help businesses navigate the transformation of retail.
CEO, Cathy Hotka & Associates
Cathy Hotka knows most of the retail chief information officers in North America, and creates opportunities for retail leaders to network with one another.
Chief Technology Officer, Custom Ink
Gihad Jawhar is the chief technology officer at Custom Ink. He has a successful track record of driving explosive growth and delivering digital transformations sustainably for three major well-entrenched national brands.
Co-founder, To&From
Bridget is the former CMO and head of growth strategies at RetailNext, one of the oldest in-store retail analytics company. Bridget was responsible for both marketing and the end-user experience with RetailNext.
Senior Director of Engineering, Zebra
Kaushik is the Senior Director of Engineering at Zebra.
Founder & Owner, NXTLVL Experience Design; VP of Brand Experience, Aedifica
David Kepron is the founder and owner of NXTLVL Experience Design and the VP of Brand Experience at Aedifica.
Fractional COO, BCL Consulting
Brittain has 20 years of experience in supply chain management and logistics. Brittain is currently the Fractional COO at BCL Consulting and is recognized as a leading expert on the topic of growing the market for micro-fulfillment.
Chief Operating Officer, The Vitamin Shoppe
Andrew Lautado currently serves as the chief operating officer at The Vitamin Shoppe. In this role, he leads operations across e-commerce, information technology, enterprise project management, supply chain, planning and allocation, strategic sourcing and scientific and regulatory affairs.
Founder, Syntasa
Jay is an American serial entrepreneur, businessman, software engineer and philanthropist. He has founded several successful companies.
President and COO, KLNB
Marc is the President and COO of KLNB. At KLNB, Marc is responsible for the high-level oversight and operational management of the firm.
GP and Co-Founder, Refashioned Ventures
Lisa Morales-Hellebo is a venture capitalist, seasoned entrepreneur, product strategist, and community builder backed by 25 years of experience working with startups to Fortune 500s on strategy and execution across branding, product development, and innovation.
Affiliate Faculty
The affiliate faculty, consisting of faculty with expertise across the many domains of retail, assist the Center in achieving its goals of providing transformational educational opportunities and producing cutting-edge research.