
David Gallon is a marketing executive who leads brand and integrated marketing for Tory Burch, the New York luxury fashion house. He joined the company in 2016 and rose through digital, social, and brand roles to Chief Marketing Officer, North America. His path runs from local TV newsrooms to teen retail at Aeropostale and into luxury fashion, giving him a storyteller's instinct for how a brand shows up across social, e-commerce, and physical stores.
Bezel is a Y Combinator (W25) startup that generates studio-quality photos and videos of apparel on photorealistic AI human models. Fashion and e-commerce brands upload a clothing image, pick a preset model, and get shoot-ready stills and video in seconds - replacing shoots that cost thousands of dollars and take days. Founded in 2025 in New York by Kashyap Achar, the company positions itself as an on-demand content engine for brands that need constant creative variety for ad testing.
Bikry, built by Bizrise Technologies (Y Combinator W20), is a no-code direct-to-consumer platform that lets Indian retailers and small business owners launch an online store in minutes at 0% commission. It bundles a shareable catalog, 40+ digital payment options, and 35+ pan-India delivery partners so shop owners can sell through WhatsApp and social media without building a website or paying marketplace fees.
QUIK is a Maracaibo-born super app that lets Venezuelans pay, save, shop and get food or groceries delivered in about 30 minutes, all from one phone. Its stablecoin-backed wallet lets users hold and spend in a currency that holds its value in a country long battered by inflation, while its QUIK Pro side gives merchants the software to run their storefront, inventory and logistics. Backed by Y Combinator in the Winter 2022 batch, it was the first startup from Maracaibo to be accepted into the accelerator.
Topship is a Lagos-based digital freight forwarder that lets African businesses and individuals ship parcels, cargo and freight to and from more than 150 countries. Founded in 2020 and part of Y Combinator's Winter 2022 batch, it functions as an asset-light shipping layer - booking, tracking, insurance and, increasingly, an AI shipping assistant - aimed at the merchants who move goods across borders but were previously stuck with informal agents and opaque pricing.
YC Ventures is a Dubai-based diversified investment company built on a maritime core. It owns and operates dry-bulk ships, manages technical and crew operations for a wider fleet, and recycles the returns into technology ventures spanning maritime fintech (Shipfinex), marine e-commerce procurement (Shipskart), lithium energy storage (Terranova), and youth leadership education. Led by Group CEO Yasovardhan Chinni, the group works across the UAE, India, Singapore, Nigeria and the USA under the operating idea of owning the asset, running the voyage, and compounding the capital into the next venture.

Drew Eakins is a marketing leader in the outdoor industry and the marketing chief for Reima's North America business, the 80-year-old Finnish children's outdoor clothing and footwear brand. Based in Colorado, he has spent more than a decade building outdoor brands, with earlier stops at Cotopaxi, Hestra Gloves, and Great Trango Holdings. He is known for connecting technical outdoor products with the audiences who actually use them, and for leaning into brand storytelling, wholesale partnerships, and channel strategy.
GudangAda is an Indonesian B2B e-commerce marketplace founded in 2019 that connects manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers and retail stores across the country's fragmented fast-moving-consumer-goods supply chain. Alongside its marketplace it offers logistics, merchant tools and financing so small retailers can source, order, pay and receive goods in one app. After scaling to roughly half a million SMEs and about $6 billion in transaction value on more than $135 million of venture funding, the company retrenched from its capital-intensive FMCG model and pivoted toward beauty and personal-care retail under its Kaka Beauty brand.
MNT-Halan is an Egyptian fintech that digitally banks the unbanked and underbanked across emerging markets. Founded by Mounir Nakhla, it combines microfinance, consumer and business lending, buy-now-pay-later, mobile wallets, payments and an FMCG/appliance e-commerce marketplace into a single app, all powered by its proprietary Neuron core-banking technology. It became Egypt's first fintech unicorn in 2023 and now operates across Egypt, Turkey, Pakistan and the UAE, having disbursed billions of dollars in loans to millions of customers.
Jenny Campbell is a Los Angeles-based brand, performance and growth marketing executive who has spent more than two decades moving between advertising agencies and the brands they serve. She began at Wieden+Kennedy, spent over seven years at Nike working across Nike Women's, brand innovation and the Nike+ ecosystem as senior global brand director, then became managing director at 72andSunny, where clients included adidas, Google, Starbucks, Uber and eBay. In September 2018 she joined Tinder as chief marketing officer, and in November 2020 Kate Spade New York named her CMO with a brief spanning brand marketing, direct-to-consumer engagement and digital. She later served as interim head of creative at Athleta and is currently interim chief marketing officer at Frank & Eileen, the woman-owned, B Corp-certified apparel brand in downtown Los Angeles. A Morehead-Cain Scholar and 1995 journalism graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, she has served on the board of MAKERS and mentors young women entering the industry.
Jonathan Bottomley is EVP and Global Chief Marketing Officer of Calvin Klein and, since May 2026, EVP of Group Consumer & Brand Strategy at parent company PVH Corp. Oxford-educated in modern languages, he spent roughly two decades in advertising - most notably eleven years at BBH London, where he rose to joint chief strategy officer and worked on Axe/Lynx, Google, Audi and Samsung - before crossing to the client side as Ralph Lauren's first-ever CMO in 2017 and later CMO of Boll & Branch. Since joining Calvin Klein in June 2022 he has rebuilt the brand's marketing around what he calls an 'entertainment mentality': casting talent with 'cultural velocity' rather than raw follower counts, and pairing archival brand DNA with modern CRM and first-party data. The results have been loud - the January 2024 Jeremy Allen White underwear campaign generated an estimated $74 million in media impact value and roughly 30% year-over-year growth in underwear sales the week it launched, followed by Bad Bunny in 2025 and Dakota Johnson in 2026.
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) is a Columbus, Ohio-based global specialty apparel retailer that operates a family of brands - Abercrombie & Fitch, abercrombie kids, Hollister, Gilly Hicks, Social Tourist and the YPB activewear line - across roughly 840 company-operated stores, a franchise network and a digital business that accounts for close to half of revenue. Founded in 1892 as a Manhattan outfitter that supplied Theodore Roosevelt's safaris and counted Ernest Hemingway among its customers, the company spent the 2010s dismantling the exclusionary teen-mall identity it had built in the 1990s and 2000s. Under CEO Fran Horowitz, who took over in 2017, it split its two flagship brands into distinct demographic lanes - Abercrombie for millennials in their twenties and thirties, Hollister for teenagers - shrank store footprints, and rebuilt merchandising around a lean-inventory 'chase' model that reads early demand signals and reorders fast. The approach produced record fiscal 2025 net sales of $5.27 billion, a third straight year of double-digit operating margin, and one of the more complete reputational reversals in modern American retail.
ANINE BING is a Los Angeles-based global fashion house founded in 2012 by Danish designer Anine Bing and her husband Nicolai Bing. Built out of a Silver Lake garage and scaled through a highly engaged social-media audience, the brand pairs Scandinavian minimalism with American energy to make timeless wardrobe essentials - leather jackets, denim, knitwear, jewelry and accessories - sold direct-to-consumer online and through a growing network of global retail stores. Backed by Index Ventures, Greycroft and Felix Capital, ANINE BING has grown into a nine-figure business operating dozens of stores worldwide.
Ann Taylor is an American specialty retailer of women's clothing, shoes, and accessories, founded in 1954 and known for polished, tailored wardrobing aimed at professional women. Headquartered in New York's Times Square, the brand operates a network of stores and an e-commerce platform, and sits alongside sister label LOFT under KnitWell Group, a portfolio company of private-equity firm Sycamore Partners.
Ariat International is a Union City, California footwear and apparel company founded in 1993 that applied athletic-shoe technology to riding boots and grew into the world's largest equestrian sports brand. Today it designs performance boots, western wear, workwear and flame-resistant gear for riders, ranchers, tradespeople and outdoor enthusiasts, sold globally through retailers and direct-to-consumer channels.
Billy Reid is an American luxury fashion house based in Florence, Alabama, founded by four-time CFDA-winning designer Billy Reid. Known as 'American luxury built to last,' the brand blends Southern craft and hospitality with a New York sensibility, offering menswear, womenswear, custom tailoring, footwear and accessories through freestanding stores, wholesale partners and a direct-to-consumer site. Beyond clothing, Billy Reid is a culture brand - its Shindig festival brings together music, food, art and design in the Muscle Shoals region.
Bloomingdale's is an American upscale department store founded in New York City in 1861 and now a division of Macy's, Inc. It sells designer fashion, beauty, accessories, and home goods across a national fleet of full-line stores, small-format Bloomie's locations, outlets, and bloomingdales.com. Known for its flagship at 59th and Lexington, the Little Brown Bag, and Forty Carrots frozen yogurt, it positions itself as America's only nationwide full-line luxury department store and has been Macy's fastest-growing banner through the mid-2020s.
Branded Bills is an Arizona-based premium headwear and apparel company that started in a garage in 2015 with a branding iron, a knife, and a leather patch hat. It grew from one-of-one state-pride caps into a direct-to-consumer and business-to-business brand offering custom and stock hats, apparel, and corporate branding. The company has sold more than $50 million of product, employs roughly 200 people, and operates the first Branded Bills retail store inside the Phoenix Suns' Footprint Center.
Brooks Running is a Seattle-based company that designs and sells performance running shoes, apparel, and accessories, and does nothing else. A subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, it narrowed its focus to running in 2001 and turned a near-bankrupt shoe maker into a category leader, closing 2025 with roughly $1.5 billion in revenue and its ninth straight year of growth. Its core franchises - the Ghost, Glycerin, and Adrenaline GTS - anchor the No. 1 position in U.S. specialty running retail, built on cushioning and support technologies like DNA LOFT, BioMoGo DNA, and GuideRails.
Calvin Klein is an American global fashion house founded in 1968 by designer Calvin Klein and business partner Barry Schwartz. Known for minimalist design, denim, underwear, fragrances and provocative advertising, the brand elevates everyday essentials to iconic status. Now owned by PVH Corp., Calvin Klein products generate roughly $9 billion in global retail sales annually and are sold across apparel, underwear, fragrances, accessories and home through wholesale, retail and digital channels worldwide.
Cartier is a French luxury jewellery and watchmaking maison founded in Paris in 1847 by Louis-François Cartier. Dubbed the 'Jeweller of Kings and King of Jewellers' by Edward VII, it built its reputation supplying royal courts and later defined 20th-century design with icons like the Tank watch, Santos, Trinity ring and Love bracelet. Now the flagship brand of Switzerland's Richemont group, Cartier operates more than 200 boutiques across roughly 125 countries and anchors Richemont's jewellery division, the largest and most profitable part of the group.
Century 21 Stores is a New York City off-price fashion retailer, founded in 1961, known for selling designer and luxury apparel, footwear, handbags and accessories at deep discounts. After filing for bankruptcy and closing all 13 locations in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Gindi family reacquired the brand and reopened its Financial District flagship at 22 Cortlandt Street in May 2023. Rebranded 'Century 21 NYC,' the retailer pairs its trademark 'treasure hunt' in-store experience with a growing e-commerce presence, live shopping and a TikTok Shop.
DITA Eyewear is a Los Angeles-founded luxury eyewear house that designs and handcrafts high-end sunglasses and optical frames in Japan. Founded in 1995 by childhood friends Jeff Solorio and John Juniper, DITA is known for meticulous production - a single pair can involve more than 100 steps and months of finishing using beta-titanium and premium acetates. The brand sells direct through dita.com, its own flagship boutiques, and a network of premium optical retailers, and has built a cult following among musicians, athletes, and film celebrities. It positions itself as 'A Category of One' in discreet, design-led luxury eyewear.
Edikted is a Los Angeles-based, Gen Z-focused online fashion brand founded in 2020 by former Adika executives Dedy Shwartzenberg and Zvika Alon. It sells trend-led, affordable women's apparel and accessories - dresses, denim, tops, swimwear and more - and rose to prominence through viral TikTok marketing. After starting online-only, Edikted has expanded into physical retail, opening flagship stores in major U.S. malls and moving into Europe, positioning itself as a curated, community-driven alternative to ultra-fast-fashion players like Shein and Temu.
FIGS is a direct-to-consumer healthcare apparel brand that reinvented the medical scrub. Founded in 2013 by Heather Hasson and Trina Spear, the Santa Monica company sells comfortable, technical scrubs, lab coats, footwear and lifestyle wear made from its proprietary FIONx fabric, sold almost entirely online to nurses, doctors and other healthcare professionals. FIGS reached $631 million in revenue in 2025, serves roughly 2.9 million active customers, and trades on the NYSE under the ticker FIGS after a landmark 2021 IPO.
Fleet Farm is a Midwestern big-box retail chain founded in 1955 that sells farm and ranch supplies, hunting and fishing gear, automotive parts, hardware, lawn and garden, pet supplies, clothing, footwear, toys and groceries under one roof. Headquartered in Appleton, Wisconsin, it runs roughly 50 stores across Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, North and South Dakota - most paired with an auto service center, gas mart and car wash - plus a growing e-commerce operation. Known for its orange-roofed silo storefronts and the tagline 'Built for real life,' the company serves rural and outdoor customers who want everyday-value one-stop shopping.
Foot Locker, Inc. is a leading specialty retailer of athletic footwear, apparel, and accessories, connecting sneaker culture and sports lifestyle to consumers through roughly 2,400 stores across about 20 countries plus digital channels. Founded in 1974 as a division of the Kinney Shoe Corporation, the company operates a portfolio of banners - Foot Locker, Kids Foot Locker, Champs Sports, WSS, and atmos - and built its reputation on exclusive product launches, close ties to brands like Nike, and its striped, referee-styled store associates. In September 2025, Foot Locker was acquired by DICK'S Sporting Goods in a roughly $2.4 billion deal, becoming a subsidiary while retaining its brand banners.
Footwear etc. is a family-owned California comfort-shoe retailer that has been fitting customers since 1986. It grew out of Rapp's Shoes, a Palo Alto family store dating to 1948, and today runs about 10 stores across the state plus a Shopify-powered online shop. The company specializes in comfort and foot-health footwear from brands like Hoka, Birkenstock, Dansko, Naot, Aetrex, Vionic and Mephisto, with a simple guiding rule: if it's uncomfortable, they don't sell it.
Frances Valentine is a New York-based, vintage-inspired fashion label founded in 2016 by Kate Spade, Andy Spade, Elyce Arons and Paola Venturi - the same circle behind the original Kate Spade brand. It designs joyful, color-forward apparel, handbags, shoes, jewelry and accessories built to transcend trends, sold primarily direct-to-consumer online and through a small network of owned stores. The brand pairs quality craftsmanship with a playful, heritage-minded aesthetic drawn from mid-century style icons, aiming to make everyday dressing fun.
Free People is a Philadelphia-based bohemian lifestyle brand for women, part of Urban Outfitters, Inc. (URBN). Rooted in the counterculture store that Dick Hayne opened near Penn's campus in 1970 and relaunched as a wholesale label in 1984, it now sells eclectic, vintage-influenced apparel, accessories, shoes, intimates and beauty across its own boutiques, wholesale accounts and freepeople.com. Its fast-growing activewear spin-off, FP Movement, has made Free People URBN's second-largest brand, with roughly $1.5 billion in annual revenue.