THE
CRITICS
Rachael E. Edmiston
Rachael E. Edmiston is a 2007 graduate of Kent State University. She is the lead designer for Huntworth hunting gear in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She has designed for Huntworth for five years. In 2015, the NRA awarded her glove design the Golden Bullseye Award for best gear of the year. When she began her career at Huntworth, she was the sole designer in development and production. She has helped to establish the brand as an authority in true hunting apparel and initiated a large expansion in the women’s active category and lifestyle camo apparel. Her work has led to the hiring of three Kent State design graduates for full-time positions and three internships for Kent State students.
Gina Ritter
Gina Ritter grew up in Avon Lake, Ohio, and graduated from Kent State University with a B.A. in fashion design and a business minor in 2006. That year, Ritter received the Critics Choice Award for her collection at the annual Fashion Show. Ritter moved to New York and worked for Ellen Tracy; after a year, she returned to Ohio to design for Abercrombie & Fitch, where she worked for nearly nine years. Most recently, Ritter was a design director for Hollister female product and successfully changed the product as well as brand-handwriting to help rebuild their business. While in Columbus, she and her husband, Ryan, started a family and love spending time with their three-year-old daughter, Lilli Rose. Ritter has now chosen to forge her own career path by starting an interior decorating and custom art business called Blue Lilli.
Gigi Musarra
Gigi Musarra grew up in Parma, Ohio. She attended Kent State University and in the summer of 1994, which was her junior year, she interned for Isaac Mizrahi and Kalinka. She graduated with a B.A. in fashion design in 1995. Since moving to New York in 1995, she has worked for Old Navy, Dana Buchman, Ann Taylor and Lord & Taylor. For the past eight years, she has worked for Sears and Kmart Design Studio in Soho. She was promoted to divisional vice president as head of women’s ready-to-wear and has relaunched nine brands over the last year.
THE
JURORS
Sean Bilovecky
Since 2006, Sean Bilovecky has been passionately involved in the apparel industry. His first menswear brand, Wrath Arcane, quickly grew to over 80 accounts worldwide, with distribution in Japan and the U.K. The Great Recession convinced Bilovecky to change his business model from wholesale to direct to retail. In 2010 he branded, designed and developed men’s apparel for The Dredgers Union, located in downtown Cleveland. In 2015, he was instrumental in launching Whiskey Grade, which now has stores in Cleveland, Denver, Los Angeles and Miami. Currently, Bilovecky owns an apparel development company, The Pattern Makers, helps established brands from around the world, as well as start-ups, develop new styles, fix fit issues and more.
Kristen Jufko
Kristen Jufko is a merchandise buyer for the Cleveland Indians Baseball Co. In this role, she buys for the headwear and novelty departments to maximize revenue for the Cleveland Indians retail business and spring training. Jufko holds a B.A. in fashion merchandising and is about to start her sixth season with the Indians.
Lindsey Marsico
Lindsey Marsico was given the opportunity to buy the boutique she was managing at the age of 24. With a degree in fashion merchandising and a Master of Business Administration, she found the decision an easy one to make. Her business, e.j. hannah, has been a community fixture in Boardman, Ohio, for almost 29 years, and with nearly six years of ownership, Marsico has continued to grow the business while maintaining its original appeal. She has recently partnered with Shoptiques to expand into the e-commerce business, bringing e.j. hannah’s contemporary, unique and handpicked apparel and dresses to customers across
the country.
info@kent.edu
PHONE
330-672-3000
STREET ADDRESS
800 E. Summit St., Kent OH 44240
MAILING ADDRESS
P.O. Box 5190, Kent, OH 44242-0001