UPCOMING WEBINAR: Obstacles in the Fashion Industry

Previously the editor in chief of Lucky, Eva has also written for the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, ELLE, Vogue, Teen Vogue, and Vogue China.

She is the New York Times bestselling author of nine books including I Am Golden, Juno Valentine and the Magical Shoes, Roxy: The Last Unisaurus Rex, and A Is for Awesome. She is currently the vice president of fashion partnerships at Instagram and lives in New York City with her husband and three children.

Laura Kim is the Co-Creative Director of Oscar de la Renta and the founder and Co-Creative Director of MONSE. She is one of the most prominent, influential, and respected names in the fashion industry.

Kim was born in South Korea and showed a keen interest in fashion from a young age, where she learned to sketch and sew from her grandparents who made cloth. After growing up in Canada, Kim moved to New York at age 18 to attend the Pratt Institute. During her studies, Laura interned with Donna Karan and Oscar de la Renta. Upon graduation, Oscar de la Renta offered her a position in his studio, and she became Oscar’s design director at the age of 25. Laura worked for Oscar for 12 years until his passing, during which time she honed her skills and gained invaluable experience in the industry.

After Oscar’s passing, Laura and her business partner, Fernando Garcia, started their own brand, MONSE. Within two years of launching MONSE, they were asked to become the creative directors of Oscar de la Renta.

Today, Laura and Fernando run both brands with their unique vision of design, texture, and color. Their versatile designs can be seen on the First Lady of the United States to popular music icons, including Blackpink and Doja Cat.

Roopal Patel joined Saks Fifth Avenue as Senior Vice President, Fashion Director, in September 2015. In this position, Ms. Patel plays a key role in forecasting the trends that underpin Saks Fifth Avenue’s buying activities, articulating the luxury retailer’s seasonal fashion message, and discovering emerging designers and collections. Ms. Patel has the unique ability to source emerging fashion, talent, and trends. Since joining Saks, she has been instrumental in introducing the Saks customer to groundbreaking designer brands including Christopher John Rogers, Pyer Moss, Khaite, TOVE, Reese Cooper, Amiri, and many others. Her taste, experience, and expertise position her as a trusted source for the media, and she is regularly quoted as a fashion industry leader by publications such as VOGUE, ELLE, The New York Times, Business of Fashion, Women’s Wear Daily, and The Wall Street Journal.

In 2017, Ms. Patel was added to Harper’s Bazaar’s “150 Most Fashionable Women” for her exceptional sense of style. Since 2017, Ms. Patel has served on the Selection Committee of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund, where she is involved in selecting and mentoring top emerging designers in the program. She also sits on the founding Board of Directors for RAISEfashion, an organization connecting black-owned brands and individuals to fashion industry leaders for mentorship.

Additionally, she serves on the Executive Committee for the Whitney Museum Contemporaries. Prior to joining Saks, Ms. Patel founded and directed Roopal Patel Consulting, a creative consultancy focused on brand development, positioning, merchandising, retail strategy, and trend forecasting. Additionally, Ms. Patel previously served as Moda Operandi’s Executive Fashion Director, Neiman Marcus’ Senior Accessory Market Editor and Bergdorf Goodman’s Senior Fashion Director. Ms. Patel has a degree from NYU’s Stern School of Business and currently resides in New York City.

Peter Young is CEO and President of Young & Partners, a boutique corporate strategy and investment banking firm focused on the life science and chemical industries. He manages the firm and is actively involved in client projects, transactions, and financings. Under his leadership, Young & Partners has established and maintained its position as a highly regarded firm serving the corporate strategy, M&A, restructuring, and financing needs of clients worldwide. He was previously head of industry groups at Salomon Brothers, Schroders, and Lehman Brothers, a senior private equity executive with J.H. Whitney & Co., and a senior member of Bain & Co., a corporate strategy firm.

Mr. Young received a BA in Economics from Yale, an MS in Accounting from NYU, and an MBA from Harvard Business School where he graduated as a Baker Scholar. He is a CPA and a Chartered Global Management Accountant. He serves on several boards of directors, both corporate and non-profit; and is a board member of Société de Chimie Industrielle, a leading life science and chemical industry non-profit organization; and on the Editorial Advisory Board of Pharmaceutical Executive. He is also the New York Regional Chair for Committee of 100.