Philanthropy
Accelerating Circularity
Textile-to-textile recycling advocate Accelerating Circularity has named Edd Denes as chief executive officer. Denes has served as the nonprofit’s board treasurer since 2021 and brings 20-plus years of relevant leadership experience. Accelerating Circularity said his transition to CEO reflects the action-oriented organization’s efforts to bolster the textile industry’s shift to circular systems.
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Technology
Worldly
Comprehensive impact intelligence platform Worldly has named Kathryn Smith as vice president, human rights risk solutions. Tasked with leading its social compliance and human rights strategy, Smith will have end-to-end responsibility for the company’s social compliance offerings. She’ll work across Worldly’s product, engineering, sales, marketing and customer teams to address the industry’s operational inefficiencies. Smith joins from Walmart, most recently serving as the multinational’s senior director of responsible sourcing, human rights and environment.
Textiles
Oritain
Origin verification firm Oritain announced the appointment of Dave Fluty as executive director of forensic science. Fluty onboarded following a 30-year career with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Before retiring last year, he served as the CBP’s assistant commissioner of laboratories and scientific services. At Oritain, Fluty will spearhead the direction, credibility and impact of the company’s forensic capabilities across North America. He will report to Oritain’s chief scientist, Russell Frew, and join the company’s Technical Advisory group, which was formed in 2025 following Oritain’s European lab expansion.
Retail
Walmart
Multinational retail corporation Walmart has named Erin Nealy Cox as global governance, chie legal officer (CLO) and corporate secretary, effective April 13. She joins Walmart from Kirkland & Ellis, serving as a partner in the government, regulatory and internal investigations practice group since 2021. Cox previously served as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, where she was appointed to and then chaired the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee. Earlier in her career, Cox was an executive managing director at global cybersecurity and risk management firm Stroz Friedberg.
The RealReal
Luxury reseller The RealReal has announced the departure of member Niki Leondakis (2019-2026) and the appointment of Jennifer McKeehan to its board of directors. While currently serving as chief operating officer of Fanatics commerce at Fanatics, McKeehan previously held senior leadership roles at organizations including Walmart, Peloton and The Home Depot. The RealReal also announced the addition of two senior executives to its leadership team. Former Sephora executive Tiffany Stevenson has joined the company as chief people officer, while 11-year exec at Square, Tom Hanrahan, joins as chief revenue officer, overseeing revenue-generating efforts.
Faire
Wholesale marketplace Faire has appointed Michael Fleisher, former chief financial officer of Wayfair, to its board of directors. Serving as the e-commerce company’s CFO for eight years, Fleisher led Wayfair through its initial public offering (IPO) and helped scale the brand’s annual revenue to $12 billion-plus. He retired in 2022. Earlier in his career, Fleisher led Warner Music Group’s IPO as CFO and, later, served as vice chairman of strategy and operations. Fleisher has sat on the boards of website-building platform Squarespace since 2018, the $3.7 billion-valued marketplace platform Goat Group since 2021, and the restaurant group First Watch since 2024.
Windsor
SoCal-based, trend-driven fashion and occasion-wear brand Windsor has promoted Ike Zekaria to president and opened a new creative hub in Los Angeles as part of its rebrand. Zekaria, of the founding Windsor family’s second generation, will continue his work on evolving the brand’s merchandising strategy and shopping experience.
Brands
St. John Knits
Lanvin Group-owned luxury brand St. John Knits has named Mandy West as chief executive officer. Previously serving as the company’s chief commercial officer, West replaces former CEO Andy Lew, who became Lanvin’s executive president last year. Before joining St. John in 2019, West held management positions at Intermix, Nike and Tesla. The company said the internal promotion comes as St. John continues to develop its retail and commercial operations.
Truewerk
Denver-based performance workwear brand Truewerk has named Matthew Raleigh as chief operating officer. In this role, Raleigh will oversee end-to-end operational functions, including demand and supply planning, inventory procurement and production, fulfillment, logistics and sales operations. He brings more than 25 years of leadership experience in supply chain operations, most recently serving as vice president, Americas supply planning and emerging brand operations, at VF Corporation.
