A WOMAN YOU SHOULD KNOW: Esi Eggleston Bracey-VP & GM Global Cosmetics Innovation, Branding and Operations Procter & Gamble

Actress Drew Barrymore and P&G VP, Esi Eggleston Bracey If you've never heard of Esi Eggleston Bracey before, then I'm sure you're quite familar with the advertising campaigns that she's been responsible for. Does any of the Cover Girl ads ring a bell? Or how about The Queen Collection? Or how about the new Old Spice ads featuring that gorgeous actor named Isaiah Mustafa? By now you should remember all of these advertisements. Now meet the woman responsible for the outstanding increase in sales for these products, Esi Eggleston Bracey. Esi Eggelston Bracey is a 1991 graduate of  Dartmouth College. The media concentrates only on the celebrities while negating those responsible for their exposure to simply being in the background without realising the real genius of remarkable women like Miss Bracey and my job is to highlight them and their accomplishments by bringing them into the forefront.   Esi Eggleston Bracey-VP & GM Global Cosmetics Innovation, Branding and Operations Proctor & Gamble.   In my: 'Woman You Should Know' blog posts, I will search the world for these remarkable and talented women to give our daughters and even some of you examples of women worth emulating and aspiring to become. Photos:Getty Images and Proctor & Gamble

A WOMAN YOU SHOULD KNOW:Comme des Garçons' Melissa Prospere

I guess when we seek someone or something we'll always find what we're looking for and everyday that I find 'them' I will post something about the women who work behind the seams, the scenes and in the boardrooms of many of the worlds global brands who many of you don't often hear about nor read about.
~Divalocity

Melissa Prospere is the VP of sales at Comme des Garçons International. Comme Des Garcons is a high end fashion line created by Rei Kawakubo. The trendy fashion line specializes in clothing for those who desire to stand out in their own individualism from the pack, plus they also produce a line of fragrances as well.

Photos: Phil Oh| Darryl Calmese

A WOMAN YOU SHOULD KNOW: Trenesa S. Danuser, Vice President, Global Communications-Estée Lauder Inc

Trenesa Stanford-Danuser is the Vice President, Global Communications and Strategic Alliances, for Origins Natural Resources and Ojon Corporation, divisions of The Estée Lauder Companies. Since early 2004, her strategic communications acumen and creativity have led the brand"s global media interactions, launching well-known franchises such as the delectable, trend-leading cocoa therapy™, the groundbreaking integrative skin-care philosophy of Dr. Andrew Weil for Origins™ and, an industry first, Origins Organics™, the first prestige, multi-skin beauty line with a USDA organic certification.

 

Her global strategy development and communications responsibilities span the 27 countries and territories where Origins is sold, including Japan, Hong Kong, Spain, France, Australia and the United Kingdom. Her recent involvement with Ojon has opened the door for strategic avenues the brand has yet to fully explore. Marketing wild-crafted beauty products found in the world"s rainforest's, Ojon"s unique story and commitment to environmental sustainability creates an exciting new challenge for the New Yorker.

 

She is a graduate of the University of Florida, earning a BS in Broadcast Journalism. She is an active member of eWomenNetwork Foundation Advisory Board, Fashion Group International and Cosmetic Executive Women. Stanford-Danuser has been featured in Harper's Bazaar, Essence, Redbook, BE, Family Circle, Shape, Self, Beauty Fashion and Cosmetic World. She lives in New York City with her husband and children.

To learn more about this inspiring woman, click here.
Photos: Estée Lauder Inc and Darryl Calmese Jr.

WHO WHAT WHERE: PURE LEGENDS

WHO: PURE LEGENDS/STYLE ICONS
WHAT: WEARING ALL THAT MAKES THEM FABULOUS!
WHERE: STEPHEN BURROWS 2011 FALL/WINTER RTW

Journalist and newly appointed E-I-C of ESSENCE Magazine,
Constance White at the Stephen Burrows Fall/Winter 2011 runway show.


Legendary Super Model, Scholar and Author, Barbara Summers


ESSENCE Magazine Fashion Director Celeste Harwell


The Glamtastic Legendary Super Model Pat Cleveland


Glamtastic legendary Super Model and Editor at Large, VOGUE Black, Bethann Hardison.

Photos: Darryl Calmese Jr.










Photo: Darryl Calmese Jr.

A WOMAN YOU SHOULD KNOW: CEO AVA D. YOUNGBLOOD

I first saw Chicago area businesswoman, Ava D. Youngblood on the pages of Town and Country Magazine and of course I had to learn more about her. Not only is she a beautiful woman, but behind all that beauty is an highly accomplished and talented woman. Read on and be inspired.




Bio: Ava D. Youngblood, is the President and CEO of Youngblood Executive Search, Inc., and possessing over 25 years of corporate and recruiting experience founded Youngblood Executive Search, Inc. in 2002. Youngblood Executive Search, Inc. recruits high impact executive leadership talent for its clients who trust their broad experience and ability to recruit diverse talent.

Before establishing Youngblood Executive Search, Ms. Youngblood was Senior Vice President with the executive search firm of Deborah Snow Walsh, Inc. (DSW, Inc.). She was responsible for business development and maintaining client relationships. Ms. Youngblood successfully expanded the firms client relationships into the energy, pharmaceutical, technology, telecommunications and insurance industries.

Ava is a graduate of Northwestern University, where she earned a bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering and the University of Chicago, Graduate School of Business where she earned her MBA. To learn more about this fascinating businesswoman click here.

A WOMAN YOU SHOULD KNOW: JUNE HORNE

JUNE HORNE

June Horne and Suzanne Stemper-Johnson


JuneHorne and June Haynes ( Director of Retail Operations for Valentino)

While the media wants everyone to zero in on the celebrities whom the designers pay to sit front row, many of you need to know about the ones who actually sit front row on a regular basis and June Horne is such a woman who not only sits regularly as a front row fixture but she ensures that many of these designers clothing appears in luxury retailer, SAKS 5TH AVE. Department Store's throughout the country.

Bio: June Horne, Senior Buyer of American and European Designer Collections, of retailer Saks Fifth Avenue Enterprises (SFAE) is a trailblazer in the fashion industry.Horne has served as Senior Buyer for Designer American and European Collections since 1993. She joined Saks Fifth Avenue in the early seventies as Executive Trainee and was appointed Assistant Buyer soon thereafter.

She rose to the rank of Buyer and was given responsibility for Designer Sportswear in 1979. She was promoted to General Manager of the Garden City store beginning in 1982 where she served for four years. Horne returned to the buying office and has fulfilled roles of increasing responsibility since that time. Over the years Horne has worked with many of the brightest in the industry including Calvin Klein, Donna Karan, Ralph Lauren, Marc Jacobs, Isaac Mizrahi, Michael Kors, John Galliano, Jil Sander, Junya Watanabe, Zoran, and Patrick Robinson. In her duties with Saks, Horne travels to Europe four times a year visiting Germany, France and Italy to find the latest in trends and fashion collections.

She is a member of Fashion Group International and Fashion Outreach, a not for profit organization of fashion industry professionals dedicated to improving minority representation in the fashion industry. Amid her busy schedule she devotes time to mentoring programs reaching out to students at Fashion Institute of Technology and Parsons.

June Horne, is a native New Yorker, and was born and raised in Harlem. Her Aunt worked in the bridal market and introduced her to the world of fashion at the age of 14. She worked in local boutiques to gain experience and knowledge of the industry. Horne attended F.I.T. and graduated with a degree from the Laboratory Institute of Merchandising. Horne lives in New York and is married to entrepreneur and restaurateur Frank Horne.

Photos: Getty,BFA, JPC

A WOMAN YOU SHOULD KNOW: EXECUTIVE PRODUCER GERALDINE MORIBA

Soledad O'Brien and Geraldine Moriba



CNN'S Geraldine Moriba, Darius Walker and Soledad O'Brien

Geralidine Moriba is an award-winning producer and most recently has been named the executive producer of CNN's "In America" unit, the network's newly created division which will extend the “In America” franchise anchored by Soledad O’Brien. Moriba has more than 20 years of journalism experience.

Moriba comes to CNN after 16 years at NBC News, for 12 years she served as a producer for Dateline NBC. Most recently she has served as senior producer for Broadcast Standards, monitoring news reports on all NBC News platforms. During this time, Moriba also served as an executive and senior producer on various multi-platform projects including: Obama’s America 2010 with Chris Matthews and Tom Joyner, an MSNBC special town hall on race; About Our Children with Bill Cosby, a two-hour MSNBC special on education; Making Your Vote Count, an election unit covering election fraud and irregularities in the 2008 elections; and the critically acclaimed Father’s Promise with Al Roker and Tiki Barber about the crisis of absent African American fathers.

While at Dateline NBC, she produced numerous breaking news reports, as well as an investigative report on a NYC Child Services, various 9-11 stories, and an in-depth report tracing the lives of students in a 1982 fourth grade class photo to determine the impact of crime, poverty and broken homes. While at NBC News, Moriba was appointed a prestigious Visiting Ferris Professorship of Journalism position at Princeton University. During her tenure she developed and taught a seminar on how to use digital journalism skills to get more untold stories on the air.

She was also the co-chair for NBC News’ Diversity Committee developing diversity programs to support leadership development and diverse content across NBC News programming. Moriba has won five Emmy Awards, a Peabody Award, and numerous other awards and accolades. Moriba received her honors bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Women’s Studies from the University of Western Ontario. She is married with two children. The second of four children, Moriba grew up in Toronto, Canada. To learn about this beautiful and talented woman click here.


Photos: Wire Image/CNN

I Am Legend: Fashion Maven Audrey Smaltz

"It's all about hustle, and those who relax are destined to be replaced." ~ Audrey Smaltz, CEO of The Ground Crew


There are only a few people in the fashion industry that I want to meet today who are on my "to do list" before I leave this earth and I most definitely want to meet Audrey Smaltz because this woman, along with Andre Leon Talley are walking encyclopedias of the fashion industry.
 
For years the glamorous Audrey Smaltz, was a commentator for the EBONY FASHION FAIR traveling fashion show. There she sat high on her stool on that stage and began and ended the show with a flourish. You'd have to be there to listen to her commentary to witness it. I had my first experience listening to her diction as she discribe the couture worn during my first show while living in Texas and left there feeling that I had left an YSL showing or some other exclusive fashion showing. I was hooked and tried to attend as many FF Shows regardless of where I was living.
 
Historically, Mrs. Johnson brought couture to us in a way like no other. Now in the age of technology we can view live shows on our computers, yet Mrs. Johnson had already done that and all we had to do was buy a ticket. Audrey and Mrs. Johnson were also part of the front-row fixtures at many couture showings as Mrs. Johnson picked out the best designs to bring to us the best from Paris, Milan, New York and London.
 
Audrey worked as a model in her earlier years and was the first black woman allowed to participate in the Miss New York contest, that eventually became the Miss America pageant. Audrey was Mrs. Johnson's right-hand when it came to reviewing collections because of her discerning eye for style. Audrey has shown that there is life after the runway because she now helms The Ground Crew, which is a NYC based company that provides behind-the-scenes support services to fashion shows, ranging from seamstresses, to assistants who unpack and steam clothing, to dressers who change the models during fashion shows.


I Salute you Audrey Smaltz for Being an inspiration.

A Woman You Should Know: Dr. K. Aletha Maybank

"STYLISH RIGHT DOWN TO THE DETAILS"

While some people look to the stars for style inspiration and beauty to imitate. I look to real everyday women for their style and beauty, those under the radars of everyone else who eventually end up being on their lips. So far I have picked four beauty's who were under everyone else's noses and now they're the talk of the world.

I have an eye to pick out stylish women who have an imitable style that stands apart from the pack. They don't wear a "uniform" and they don't look like everyone else and Dr.Maybanks style says just that, she stands out from everyone else and she's her own woman. I've seen her photos on the social pages of essence.com and had to find out more about her. The woman is accomplished, not just by her choice of fashion, but how she contributes back to her community as a whole. Giving back by supporting your community is more beautiful than any red carpet look.

Bio: K. Aletha Maybank, MD, MPH, is the Assistant Commissioner in the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, serves as Director of the Brooklyn District Public Health Office located in Central Brooklyn since April 2009. The mission of the District Public Health Offices is to reduce health inequalities and promote health equity across New York City by targeting resources, programs, and attention to high-need neighborhoods in the South Bronx, East and Central Harlem, and North and Central Brooklyn.

To learn more about this fascinating woman click here.

Photos: Darryl Calmese, Jr.

A Moment In Afro Herstory: Dr. Shirley A. Jackson

In 1973, Dr. Jackson became the first Black woman to graduate with a Ph.D. in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After graduating from MIT, she became a research associate at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, a visiting scientist at the European Organization for Nuclear Research in Geneva, Switzerland. Jackson was faculty at Rutgers University in Piscataway and New Brunswick, New Jersey from 1991 to 1995, in addition to continuing to consult with Bell Labs on semiconductor theory. Her research during this time focused on the electronic and optical properties of two-dimensional systems.

She lectured at the NATO International Advanced Study Institute in Antwerp, Belgium in 1982. Her research on high-energy theory has given her international recognition. In 1995, President Clinton appointed Jackson to serve as Chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), becoming the first woman and first African American to hold that position. 

Dr. Jackson is presently the 18th President of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where she became the first woman to hold this prestigious position in 1999.

Woman of Style: Suzanne Boyd

Suzanne Boyd

Only one form of communication can convey a mix of emotions at a single glance...the language of style. Full voluminous hair along with the unexpected sends a message of confidence and Suzanne Boyd is the epitome of style. Personally, with the editor of Essence leaving maybe they need to consider her for the job, because it could use a serious overhaul.

Occupation: Editor-in-chief of Zoomer Magazine, former editor in chief of Flare and Suede magazines.

Home Base: Toronto, Canada

Fashion Philosophy: Bold, striking, statement-making, comfortable and feminine. Best dressed.

Who What Wear: Thelma Golden

Who: Thelma Golden, The Studio Museum of Harlem's Director and Chief Curator.
What: The Studio Museum in Harlem's annual Fall Gala.
Wear: Duro Olowu, her famous designer husband.
Photo: Julie Skarratt

Beauty Profile: Estée Lauder's Susan Akkad

"Susan Akkad, Senior Vice President at Estée Lauder Companies"

Susan Akkad is the Senior Vice President, Corporate Marketing, Diversity for the Estée Lauder Companies. In her position she works in partnership with the 25+ brands of the ELC in marketing, product development, consumer insights and communications to identify and expand business opportunities to increase relevancy to Black and Brown markets globally.

Susan Akkad began her career in cosmetics at Estée Lauder International in the Public Relations department in 1986. She left the company to work with her husband in their start-up design firm in the fashion industry. After spending almost 10 years in fashion -- working in New York and Paris -- they sold their business and Susan returned to cosmetics as the Marketing Director for Fragrances at Lancôme.

In 1999, she rejoined The Estée Lauder Companies as Executive Director, Fragrance Marketing at Clinique. She eventually became Vice President, Global Treatment Marketing, a position she held for six years. Following Clinique, she became Vice President, Global Marketing at Origins. Susan then moved to M.A.C as Senior Vice President, Global Communications and Artist Relations. At M.A.C she oversaw the Communications strategies for the M.A.C brand as well as the M.A.C AIDS Fund.

Susan and her husband, jewelry designer Ahmed Akkad

She is a native Virginian and grew up in Charlottesville. She holds her undergraduate degree in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations from Harvard University and spent time living and studying in Cairo, Egypt. She is both personally and professionally passionate about global and cultural concepts of beauty. She lives in Manhattan with her designer husband, Ahmed Akkad.

Photos: ELC|Julie Skarratt








 

"A Moment In Afro Herstory-Ursula Burns, CEO Xerox Corporation"

Ursula Burns THE CEO of THE XEROX CORPORATION

The joy and elation that I and probably others felt when Ursula Burns was named the new CEO of Xerox was one of great pride in this woman's accomplishments through perseverance and hard work. I also loved the fact that previous CEO Anne M. Mulcahy handed the helm of the company over to her and to me that was what the true succession of power is all about, especially when you know that this individual shares much of the same visions and goals of the company. I wish Ursula Burns immeasurable success for the future of The Xerox Corporation.

The CEO of The Xerox Corporation is a native New Yorker who grew up in a lower East Side housing project and is the first women of African descent to head a Fortune 500 company. Burns ascended the corporate ladder at Xerox, beginning as a summer engineering intern in 1980 and becoming the president of the printing giant in 2002.

In 2008, Burns ranked 10th on Fortune magazine's top 50 Most Powerful Women in America. She's the second-highest placed African-American woman behind only Oprah Winfrey, who was ranked No. 8 that year. Ursula Burns, was and is a math whiz, who graduated from Polytechnic Institute in Brooklyn with an engineering degree. She received a master's degree in mechanical engineering in 1981 from Columbia University. Burns is married to Lloyd Bean, a retired Xerox scientist. The couple have two children.

We tend to celebrate celebrities, but not the real trailblazers who are really the most influential in the world. Even though she's on the cover of Black Enterprise Magazine this month, she should have been boldly front and center on the cover of Essence Magazine instead of their usual celebrities. Sure they wrote a small article about her, but this was a cover defining moment in "Our Herstory" and as usual they saw no significance of her accomplishments.


Many women claim that wearing their hair the way it grows from their scalps feel that they won't get promoted or hired because of their appearance and that our natural hair is too radical. Really? It's not the appearance of your hair that's not accepted in corporate America-it's your inability and unwillingness to succeed for the success of the company that's not.

Failure is not an option and neither are excuses. We're not judged by our hair or what we look like anymore, were judged by are talents. Ursula Burns is an example of many women in corporate America who wear their hair in it's natural state knowing that they are more than a skin color and hair texture. Again, it's not all about ones appearance- it's all about your talents.


"My perspective comes in part from being a New York black lady, in part from being an engineer. I know I'm smart and have opinions worth being heard." ~Ursula Burns