Retail Concepts provides assistance to new business owners to help them turn their vision into reality. We provide services to supplement their individual creativity and help them achieve the business they envision from the idea stage through the first day of business.We focus on start-up businesses or those with an entrepreneurial spirit and whom are looking to grow their current business through new locations, concepts, or strategies.

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An avid shopper and food fanatic, you won't find this king anywhere near a Burger King. He can always direct you to the latest and greatest store or restaurant, just ask him. He acts as our in house retail expert and strategist. Mike has spent most of his life working in or surrounded by retail. He co-founded Gatepost, a specialty clothing store which operated eleven stores in three states. As COO, he managed all facets of the business, allowing him to understand the unique challenges that independent retailers face. Mike also boasts a background in corporate retail, having served as an executive with Filene's and Filene's Basement involved in buying, merchandise management and store management. Working in these various environments has shown him how each store is truly different and needs a custom approach.

In addition, Mike teaches retailing at Bentley College, which allows him to share his knowledge in the classroom. He has served as a board member for the Boston Chapter of the American Marketing Association, the Prince School of Retail at Simmons College, and the Fashion Advisory Board at Fisher College. He is also a member of the Council of Advisors and a RetailWire BrainTrust panelist. Mike graduated with a BA in economics from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and an MBA in marketing from Boston University.

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This is Alyson and she is a shopaholic. While she may claim an MBA from the University of Chicago, it is much more likely to find her at the closest shoe sale than in the back room crunching numbers. Like Mike, she grew up in a retail environment and worked in stores from a very early age.

Alyson brings a customer perspective to the team having worked at such ad agencies as Leo Burnett, marchFIRST and Hill, Holliday. She manages Retail Concepts company operations and client relationships. Her client experience ranges from large retailers such as Marshalls and Dunkin' Donuts to start-ups like Covalex and Aerospan. Her marketing and entrepreneurial background has also involved her in her own purse company, Out of the Box Bags, and the marketing start-up Vicarious Communications, as well as other ventures.

She also has a BA in Communications and Political Science from the University of Pennsylvania. Oh, and not to worry, clients always come before a big sale.

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Kylie may work behind the scenes, but she keeps Retail Concepts website and technology up and running. Poised in Portland, Oregon, she keeps RC and its clients up on all the latest technologies. Additionally, Kylie manages research, which often means finding all the little tidbits that give our customers an added edge over the competition.

Most recently, Kylie has served as executive producer for the travel Web site, RedWeek.com. She has worked as an advertising campaign analyst for a major weather Web site in the Boston area and a media planner/buyer for Eyescream Interactive in Portland.

Kylie has a BA in marketing from Bentley College. Her west coast location offers a geographic balance to Retail Concepts so customers are not just getting the "east coast perspective."

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Ani Collum

Merchandising Maven

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Ani is our resident business development and merchandising maven. Whether you need help understanding how Retail Concept's services can best meet your needs, or want some direction with your merchandising challenges, such as how to put together your first buy or shop a trade show, Ani is your go-to girl. As an entrepreneur herself, she understands the challenges that start-ups and existing stores face, and is a valuable resource for our clients. 

While Ani brings an MBA in Marketing and Entrepreneurship to the table, her true passion lies in merchandising, specifically in buying and planning. She has spent her career in merchandising and marketing at firms such as TJX, Tommy Hilfiger and Federated, and most recently, has been planning the opening of her own clothing boutique.

Of course Ani loves to shop and you can always find her at the newest boutique or at a New York trade show, searching for the latest fashions.She currently resides in the Boston area and enjoys frequent trips to New York to keep up on the latest styles.

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                                   Cristina O’Keeffe

Copy Cruncher

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Tina is what we like to call a “hybrid” freelancer.  She has worked in public relations as a writer, in marketing as a communications specialist, in an auction house handling data management, in the Peace Corps as a business development volunteer and for us doing a little bit of everything.  Her expertise has helped big clients like Domco, Lutron and SAP as well as smaller firms such as the Anti-Violence Partnership of Philadelphia and the Lviv Youth Employment Center. 

We find Tina’s most enticing quality is that she hates to shop.   So she brings the outsider perspective to the retail business.  Plus, she types 90 words per minute so when we say she crunches copy, we mean it. 

A graduate from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Communications and English, Tina is a published author whose first book, Finding Francis, made its way to print in 2003.  When she is not crunching copy for Retail Concepts, she works on her second book of letters to a lost friend, Letters to Helen.  In addition, she writes short fiction, personal essays and poetry. 

Tina is a huge fan of Little House on the Prairie and her husband, Thomas, with whom she lives in Douglaston, Queens. 

 

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The Rest of the RC Kingdom

In order to best meet the needs of our clients, we work with partners and freelancers with a wide range of experiences. Depending on the skills required by each project, we may work with or refer you to one of the professionals in our network.