Events

John Thompson is the former SVP & GM of BestBuy.com (CEO equivalent), the wholly owned Internet subsidiary of Best Buy Co., Inc., a multinational retailer of technology and entertainment products and services. Thompson joined Best Buy as SVP of supply chain and business systems for Best Buy stores in April…Read More

Oliver Chen, CFA, Cowen and Company Oliver Chen has joined Cowen and Company’s Equity Research department as a Managing Director and Senior Equity Research Analyst. He covers over 30 stocks in the Retail & Luxury Sectors. He is a graduate of Georgetown University, The Wharton School at the University of…Read More

Melissa Christian (WG14) currently serves as VP, Divisional Merchandise Manager, at Dick’s Sporting Goods. In this role, she oversees merchandising efforts and driving sales for all Kids’ apparel, including Athletic Apparel, Outdoor Apparel, Outerwear and Swim. Prior to, she spent most of her career at DICK’S within the marketing department,…Read More

How do you make the popular tween-oriented retailer Five Below even more crowd-pleasing, successful, and profitable? On September 22nd, some intrepid Penn students tried their hand at it, competing for a total of $30,000 in prize money at the third annual Baker Retailing Center Ideathon.  A Candy-Fueled Competition  The students…Read More

If you’ve ever walked into a mall in America, you’ve probably seen a Lids store, says Lawrence Berger. Berger co-founded Ames Watson, the company that bought the struggling cap brand four years ago for $101 million. Today Lids is a 1,400-store worldwide retailer of hats and licensed sports goods, with…Read More

WITH SUPPORT FROM THE SILVERSTEIN FAMILY Eric Ryan is an American entrepreneur who co-founded successful companies, Method, Olly, Welly, and Cast. He graduated from the University of Rhode Island with a BA in Communications. Under his leadership, Method became one of the fastest-growing private companies in America, producing eco-friendly cleaning…Read More

Since November 2017, Lawrence Berger has held the position of Co-Founder and Partner at Ames Watson. In addition to this, he has been serving as the Chairman for FanzzLids Holdings since February 2019. Prior to these roles, Lawrence held various other positions including Chairman of NSA Media from 2017-2019 and…Read More

In collaboration with Penn Fashion Week, we hosted Raissa Gerona, Chief Brand Officer at Revolve. She launched the company’s successful influencer marketing strategy, bringing the REVOLVE brand to life through social media and events. Prior to her role as CBO, Gerona co-founded Lovers + Friends, which is now one of…Read More

Craig Elbert is the Co-Founder and CEO of Care/of, holding this position since November of 2015, for a total of 7 years. Previously, Craig served as the Vice President of Marketing for Bonobos from March 2012 to November 2015, where he first served as the Director of Finance and Analytics…Read More

On the evening of October 29th, against the stunning backdrop of the Rainbow Room in New York City, we celebrated our 20th anniversary. We gathered to recognize the pioneers of the retail industry and the impact The Baker Retailing Center has made since its inception. Among the speakers were the University of…Read More