Melissa Campanelli is the co-founder of the Women in Retail Leadership Circle, a unique, members-only networking group that offers enterprise-level women in the retail industry a place to learn, connect and grow. She is also the brand and content director of the Retail and Travel Group at NAPCO Media. Prior to those positions, Melissa spent ten years at DM News, where she was first a senior editor and then deputy editor. She’s also a leading expert in small business e-commerce and author of the books “Entrepreneur Magazine’s Open an Online Business in 10 Days” and “55 Surefire Internet Businesses You Can Start for Under $5,000.” In her free time, Melissa loves exploring New York City and Brooklyn and spending time with her family.
Voting is now open for CommerceNext’s and Women in Retail Leadership Circle’s (WIRLC) Top Woman of the Year Award! As we mentioned before in this space, Women in Retail Leadership Circle (WIRLC) is partnering with CommerceNext to honor a top woman in e-commerce or retail for its 2022 CommerceNexty Awards program. The program, which celebrates excellence in e-commerce and...
Member news! We’re excited to announce that Lockie Andrews, a Women in Retail Leadership Circle board member, was recently named the chief growth officer for Vera Bradley’s Pura Vida brand. In this newly created role, Andrews will be responsible for all of Pura Vida’s channels of distribution. She will also work closely with Pura Vida’s...
Well, it’s the third and final day of the Women in Retail Leadership Summit and we’re feeling the love! It has been a great few days here in sunny Miami. We’ve had the opportunity to listen to insightful content, do fabulous shopping at the assorted pop-up shops here at the event and, of course, make...
I’m so excited to be spending time with our Women in Retail Leadership Circle members, our fabulous sponsor partners, old friends and some great new friends at Shoptalk this week. Our team has been busy at the Women in Retail Pavilion here at the event hosting content and networking sessions on the show floor. Pavilion...
To close out Women’s History Month, we thought we would chat with one of our partners and members, Kate Isler, CEO and co-founder of TheWMarketplace, an e-commerce marketplace that features products and services from women-owned businesses and gender-balanced national brands. In this exclusive interview, Isler offers details about how she got the idea for TheWMarketplace,...
We’re excited to announce that Women in Retail Leadership Circle (WIRLC) is partnering with CommerceNext to honor a top woman in e-commerce or retail for its 2022 CommerceNexty Awards program. The program, which celebrates excellence in e-commerce and digital marketing, features a special award called Women in Retail’s Top Woman of the Year Award. The...
Wintertime may still be in full effect, but if you’re already getting a case of “spring fever,” join the club! I can’t wait for spring! For me, spring is the season that brings life back into what winter took away and reminds me that change, although sometimes uncomfortable, isn’t always a bad thing. And, metaphorically...
Welcome to Black History Month! We here at Women in Retail Leadership Circle (WIRLC) plan to celebrate by featuring content that highlights Black female retail leaders and entrepreneurs in the Inner Circle each week throughout February. This week, we thought we would introduce you to three inspiring Black female entrepreneurs, who also happen be WIRLC...
Meet Sarah Engel, chief marketing officer and chief people officer at January Digital, a strategic digital consultancy and media agency (and one of Women in Retail Leadership Circle’s amazing partners). In this exclusive interview, Engel shares details about her unique role at January Digital, the retail trends she’s currently tracking, her leadership style, how she...
Mark your calendars! Sharon Leite, CEO of The Vitamin Shoppe and Women in Retail Leadership Circle board member, will be featured in the Emmy Award-winning series “Undercover Boss” on Fri., Jan. 21 (8 p.m.-9 p.m. ET). During filming of the episode, Leite took on the guise of a former gift shop manager from Cleveland who...
