Meet E19 Team
Finance
Logistics
Communication
Finance
Logistics
Visuals
Communication
Visuals
Logistics
Producer
Creative Director
Meet E19 Jury
Senior Vice President of
Sales & Operations
LE CHÂTEAU
Franco Rocchi is the Executive Vice-President at Le Château of Montreal, where he began his retail career 35 years ago. Franco is proud to be part of a global team that has elevated Le Château to one of Canada’s most respected, successful and fashion-focused brands. Mr. Rocchi is also the proud President of the Conseil Regional des Ages Italo-Canadiens, a board that governs the activities of 75 Italo-Canadian Golden Age Clubs, which maintains a membership of over 12,000 members.
Vito Cassotta is the Merchandise Manager for Michael Kors Canada and currently pursuing an EMBA at the John Molson School of Business. He has over ten years ‘experience in the retail sector working in various different departments such as operations, visuals before finding his true calling in buying and merchandising. A graduate from LaSalle College in 2004 he continued his education at McGill University in Public Relations Management while working for brands such as Levi Strauss & Bestseller Canada where he played a crucial role in the expansion of the Jack & Jones retail stores. During his time off Vito enjoys volunteering for organizations such as the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Mariya brings over 12 years of Human Resources Experience. Mariya’s expertise includes talent management, organizational development, leadership and management coaching. A graduate from Concordia University, Mariya began her career as an Industrial Recruiter in the staffing industry where she discovered her passion and love for Recruitment and finding the right “fit”. In 2012, while landing her first HR Management role, she discovered her true passion and calling for Human Resources. In 2017, Mariya joined the Lamour Group as an HR Director, overseeing all implementation of HR policies, initiatives and full-cycle recruitment. Joining the apparel industry for the first time, Mariya enjoyed the learning curve and challenge of creating an HR department whilst learning a whole new industry. Mariya is responsible for overseeing all HR activities that involve Lamour, BMHL Equities, Tefron, Cory Vines and Terramar. Mariya firmly believes that a healthy work environment can breed the best talent. “When people go to work, they shouldn’t have to leave their hearts at home”.
Gildas Messan Awuye is a young entrepreneur and co-founder of Montreal based clothing brand Atelier New Regime. His business ventures started in his early teens serving as a director at Benjamin Bros, the creative agency founded by his two eldest brothers. In 2011, he chose to focus his efforts on Atelier New Regime transforming the company from a local t-shirt brand into a full fledged clothing and lifestyle brand. Over the years he’s acquired a variety of skills becoming Atelier New Regime’s business strategist, production manager, creative director, and a key player in the brand’s marketing efforts
Tanya Iermieri is the Director of Global Communications at the ALDO Group. Born and raised in Montreal, Tanya started with the ALDO Group in 2010, working in Corporate Marketing and Wholesale branding before joining the Global Communications team in 2015.
As a Director of Global Communications, she oversees Store Communications, Internal Communications, Visual Communications and Design, Corporate PR and Translation.
Tanya graduated with a BA from Concordia University, double majoring in History and Community & Public Affairs. She furthered her studies at Concordia University and completed a Graduate Diploma in Journalism.
In addition to her role in communication, Tanya also creates innovative strategies to amplify the ALDO Group’s culture, including implementing progressive Work/Life integration policies and making Female Leadership a key priority for the company.
Tanya believes that the key to building a strong company culture from within, is with clear, exciting and transparent communication.
Jackie Tardif joined Reitmans Canada Ltd in 1995 and she successfully progressed through a series of roles gaining extensive management and leadership experience in the retail and fashion business. Jackie was appointed as President of Reitmans banner in December 2017. Jackie is a member of the Equilibre Board of Directors since November 2018 and serves as Treasurer. She is involved as Mentor in Women in Governance’s mentoring programs with a mission to support women in their leadership development and career advancement.
Jackie has consistently been recognized for her strong business and financial acumen and the ability to link an overarching strategy and results directly to the company financial goals, focusing on profitable sustainable growth, influencing trends, redesigning business processes, brand repositioning, leading and developing teams.
Passionate, dedicated and driven leader, Jackie always provides guidance to her team to inspire innovative business strategies and high standards of brand execution. Also known for her customer experience, she believes fashion empowers women to put their best foot forward, and she continuously finds new ways to create memorable shopping experiences for Reitmans customers.
