As legend has it, my grandmother was in such a rush to catch the bus to B. Altman’s and Orbach’s that she occasionally forgot her shoes. During my childhood, my textile-savvy mother was just as happy searching for quality goods in New England mom-and-pop chains. Between them, my retail education began early.

By my teens, I had found the worlds of fashion and pop culture. I fell for the Mizrahi and Blass gowns I saw in Vogue and on Elsa Klensch, and developed an understanding of zeitgeist in Sassy. But what really interested me was the business behind the glamour. I dove into the history of the retail industry, its players and evolution. I began to work at small shops in my hometown, getting a sense of customer service and inventory management. As a sales associate at Louis Boston, I was introduced to luxury brands and shoppers. At an internship with a Boston-based designer, I watched garments go from patterns to production, and learned there’s no such thing as ‘that’s not my job’ in a wholesale/retail company. By the time I was in college, I traveled to Europe with an FIT summer program, visiting mills, factories, workshops, and ateliers.

But my real retail training began when I arrived in NYC post-college, to take a job as assistant to Liz Lange. Over the next seven years, I rose through the ranks to Director of Marketing at Liz Lange Maternity, and was fortunate to take part in the growth of a successful brand under a dedicated founder. My job encompassed broad operational roles: driving partnerships with Target, Nike, Nikon, and Bliss and developing new business opportunities in the mom/baby, fashion and beauty spaces; managing all retail and online marketing, catalog production; planning and executing ad buys; orchestrating e-commerce web design, merchandising and marketing; producing Fashion Week shows, sample sales, public and private events; dressing celebrities, and managing public relations. I stayed with the company until 2007, when Liz Lange was sold to private equity investors for $50m.

I left to start JG & Co., combining my love of growing businesses with the belief that public acclaim only matters when it helps to increase the bottom line. Over the last three years, I’ve worked with established companies like Hayden-Harnett (where I served as interim CMO for over two years), Lauren Moffatt, Anna Sheffield, and Lucy Sykes, as well up-and-coming brands such as Rachel Antonoff, Henrietta Pertuz, Wren, Katie Ermilio, Silver Lining Opticians, and CrossFit NYC.

Now, I continue to work with retail and lifestyle businesses big and small. I live in NYC with my husband, I still read Vogue, and though Sassy may be gone, I watch the zeitgeist on Twitter all day long.