Berglass + Associates
Team
Every member of our recruiting team comes from the industries in which Berglass+Associates recruits, and they’re selected not only for their impressive, broad base of knowledge, but also for their forward-thinking. They have experience in – or exposure to – virtually every position and function that we encounter. It would be difficult to find a group of recruiters with a more seasoned background yet contemporary perspective than ours.
Les Berglass
In the early 1980’s, Les recognized that distribution channels were changing. He saw the walls between wholesale and retail dissolving. Wholesalers had to redefine themselves because vertical retailers were on their way to revolutionizing the way consumers buy product. Recognizing this change, he left the world of consumer goods marketing and opened Berglass+Associates. He directed the firm’s energy towards finding executives who can work in an environment that is constantly changing – executives sensitive to verticalization, the power of brand, multi-channel distribution and globalization. Les also saw that the pressure on leaders of public companies was for growth and increasing shareholder value. Cross-functional training, succession planning and mentoring were, regrettably, put on the back burner. With dramatic growth being part of the business landscape, Les knew that contemporary talent would be in short supply. He dedicated his company to filling that void. Les has created a recruiting firm that houses a recruiting team that is committed to understanding their client’s needs before making hiring recommendations. Under Les’ leadership, Berglass+Associates has become one of the most effective and well-respected search firms in the consumer goods space today.
Matt Berglass
Matt’s experience began in consumer goods. Since joining Berglass+Associates in 1994, Matt has concentrated his recruiting efforts in apparel, home, hard goods, restaurants and fitness. Today his work focuses on placing senior management at leading retail, direct and wholesale companies, with clients ranging from major U.S. corporations to investment firms. Matt started his career in Liz Claiborne’s management training program, then managed a specialty and department store account structure for two of their largest divisions. Matt has also worked in finance and retail.
Cynthia Aherne
Cynthia has been with Berglass+Associates since 1999. Recently, she has led her recruiting team in placements for general management, marketing, creative, merchandising, merchandise planning, finance and operations positions. Cynthia brings more than 13 years of management and operating experience from wholesale and retail cosmetics as well as fashion companies. Before she joined Berglass+Associates, she was the field sales director and vice president for international sales and marketing for Donna Karan Cosmetics Company. Cynthia has also worked as a regional sales manager for Ralph Lauren Fragrances, and began her career as a merchant in the Executive Management Training Program at Bloomingdale’s.
Jeannie Amos
We recruited Jeannie to join us based on her impressive career in the luxury market. Jeannie has more than 25 years’ marketing and operating experience and has held executive positions with global fashion companies including Calvin Klein, Giorgio Armani, and Ermenegildo Zegna. Fitting perfectly with the Berglass+Associates vision of the ideal recruiter, Jeannie has been a top sales executive who worked cross-functionally with design, merchandising, marketing, manufacturing and finance – an exceptional foundation for her work in executive search. Following her start in Bloomingdale’s Executive Management Training Program, Jeannie was recruited into wholesale by designer Joseph Abboud and was instrumental in launching his first collection at Neiman-Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman and Saks Fifth Avenue.
Julie Gartell
Julie joined Berglass+Associates in 2006 with more than 14 years’ experience in marketing, advertising and management. Most recently, she served as account director at Laird+Partners advertising agency, managing a portfolio of clients including Nautica, Tanqueray and Ciroc Vodka. Earlier in her career, Julie worked for a number of iconic brands, including Chanel, Ralph Lauren and Donna Karan, where she refined her skill at using customer insights to develop marketing plans that move a brand forward.
Diane Lavietes
Diane brings more than 20 years’ experience in publishing, advertising, beauty and retail. At Berglass+Associates she recruits for general management, creative, marketing, finance and operations. Diane has built teams for start-ups and also rebranded, repositioned and relaunched legacy businesses. In her career, she has worked as a senior executive at big brand companies including The Walt Disney Company, American Express, Conde Nast, The New York Times, Elizabeth Arden Red Door Spa and Georgette Klinger. She has also served as SVP of Marketing for the Magazine Publishers of America.
Katie Glowski
Katie joined berglass+associates in 2008 after spending 16 years in the beauty industry. She gained a broad range of experience at the Clinique division of Estee Lauder where she was involved in all aspects of the business from concept development to point of sale, and was ultimately promoted to Executive Director of Sales. During this time, Katie worked cross-functionally with the creative, product development, sales, education, forecasting, finance and visual merchandising teams. In her most recent role at LVMH as Regional Sales Director for Fresh, Katie participated in a major re-branding effort, repositioning the company in the specialty retail arena. She began her career in the Lord & Taylor Executive Training Program.