Board of Directors

Ms. Baekgaard  co-founded  Vera Bradley in 1982. From 1982 through June 2010, she served as  Co-President.  In May 2010, she was appointed Chief Creative Officer. She currently serves as a board member of the Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center Development Board and the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer.

As  Co-Founder  of Vera Bradley, Ms. Baekgaard serves a key leadership role on our Board of Directors and provides the Board with a broad array of institutional knowledge and historical perspective. Since our founding, Ms. Baekgaard has provided leadership and strategic direction in our brand’s development by providing creative vision to areas such as marketing, product design, assortment planning and the design and visual merchandising of our stores.

Mr. Baum is the managing partner of Consumer Growth Partners, a private equity firm with an exclusive investment focus on specialty retail and branded consumer products companies, which he helped to found in 2005. Prior to founding Consumer Growth Partners, Mr. Baum spent more than a decade serving in various equity research roles with investment banking, securities and investment management firms Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs and Sanford Bernstein.

Mr. Baum brings to the Board of Directors particular knowledge and experience in finance and capital structure, strategic planning, consumer brand strategy, retail merchandising and operations. 

Mr. Hall has served as Chairman of the Board since September 2010. Mr. Hall is the President of Green Gables Partners, a private investment firm that he founded in 2010. Prior to founding Green Gables, Mr. Hall started Andesite Holdings, a private equity firm, where he served as principal from 2007 to 2014. Mr. Hall served as an Executive Director for UBS Financial Services from 2000 to 2007.

Mr. Hall provides our Board of Directors with insight and perspective on general strategic and financial matters stemming from his extensive experience in investment banking, investment management, financial planning and private placements. 

Ms. Kelley served as President,  E-Commerce  for Best Buy from April 2014 through March 2017. Prior to joining Best Buy, Ms. Kelley served as Senior Vice President,  E-Commerce  for Chico’s FAS Inc. from June 2010 to March 2014. Ms. Kelley formerly held the posts of Vice President of Retail Real Estate and Marketing and Vice President of  E-Commerce  for L.L. Bean. Previously, she also held key marketing positions with Ashford.com and Ben & Jerry's and was an Engagement Manager at McKinsey and Company.

Ms. Kelley has deep capabilities in developing the retail omni-channel experience, as well as  e-commerce,  marketing and strategic planning experience. She provides insight and counsel on a variety of issues as the Company continues to pursue our long-term strategic plan, which includes elevating our marketing efforts and growing our verabradley.com digital flagship. 

From February 2014 through May 2014, Mr. Kyees served as the interim Chief Financial Officer of Destination XL Group, Inc., the largest multi-channel specialty retailer of big and tall men’s apparel. In 2010, Mr. Kyees retired as the Chief Investor Relations Officer from Urban Outfitters, Inc., a retail chain headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, after serving as Chief Financial Officer from 2003 to 2010. Mr. Kyees formerly held the position of Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administrative Officer for bebe stores, Inc., a retail chain headquartered in San Francisco, California, from 2002 to 2003.

Mr. Kyees brings to our Board of Directors over 40 years of experience in the consumer products retail and manufacturing industries. He has over 30 years of experience as a chief financial officer and nine years serving in that role for a public company.  Institutional Investor Magazine selected Mr. Kyees as a top specialty retail chief financial officer on five separate occasions, evidencing his strong skills in corporate finance, strategic and accounting matters. 

Mr. McEvoy served Chief of Strategy and New Business Development at Burberry Group plc, a luxury apparel and accessories company based in London, through September 2017. Prior to joining Burberry in 2002, Mr. McEvoy worked for nearly 15 years at Goldman Sachs & Co., a global investment banking, securities and investment management firm, where he held positions of increasing responsibility, including Vice President of the Retail and Apparel Focus Group from 1993 to 2001.

Mr. McEvoy brings to the Board of Directors extensive experience in retail operations and strategic planning, years of experience at an international retail public company and a proven track record of driving international growth and expansion. 

Ms. Miller  co-founded  Vera Bradley in 1982. From 1982 through June 2010, she served as  Co-President.  In June 2010, she was appointed National Spokesperson for the Company where she continued to promote our brand until her retirement in October 2012. Ms. Miller served as the first Secretary of Commerce for the State of Indiana and the Chief Executive Officer of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation from 2005 to 2006. Ms. Miller serves as a director for the Indiana University Foundation and for the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer.

 As  Co-Founder  of Vera Bradley, Ms. Miller brings to our Board of Directors a broad array of institutional knowledge and historical perspective. Ms. Miller also provides insight and perspective on general strategic and business matters, stemming from her extensive executive and finance experience. Until her retirement from the Company, Ms. Miller provided leadership and strategic direction to the business, guiding the development of our operations and supply chain infrastructure and the growth of our employee base, giving her a unique perspective as a Board member. 

In 2013, Mr. Miller retired as a senior partner in the law firm of Hunt Suedhoff Kalamaros LLP, where he served as a partner from 1997. From 1990 through June 2010, Mr. Miller served as our Secretary and Treasurer. Mr. Miller also serves on the Board of Directors of the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer.

Mr. Miller has been involved with Vera Bradley since its inception and brings to our Board of Directors a broad array of institutional knowledge and historical perspective. Mr. Miller also provides insight and guidance on legal and business matters, stemming from his years of experience as a practicing attorney prior to his retirement. 

From 1994 to 2011, Ms. Philip held positions of increasing responsibility at L.L. Bean, Inc. a privately-held outdoor apparel and equipment retailer based in Freeport, Maine, including Chief Merchandising Officer from 2002 to 2011. Prior to working at L.L. Bean, Ms. Philip was one of three principals who launched the innovative fresh flower catalog, Calyx & Corolla, and she served in a variety of roles with other specialty retailers, including The Nature Company, Williams-Sonoma and The Gap.

Ms. Philip brings to our Board of Directors extensive experience in product design and development, multi-channel merchandising and the retail and consumer products industry.

Since 2009, Mr. Schmults has served as the Chief Executive Officer and a director of Wild Things, LLC, a privately-held company that provides technical apparel, packs and bags to the U.S. military, federal and state law enforcement agencies and the consumer market. From 2005 to 2009, Mr. Schmults served as the Chief Executive Officer of FAO Schwarz, a toy retailer. Prior to joining FAO Schwarz, he was employed at RedEnvelope, Inc., a catalog and internet retailer of affordable luxury goods, where he started as Senior Vice President of Operations in 2004 and was promoted to Chief Operating Officer in 2005.

Mr. Schmults brings to our Board of Directors over 20 years of experience in branded consumer products,  direct-to-consumer sales, finance, information technology and socially responsible business practices. 

Mr. Wallstrom most recently served as President of Saks Fifth Avenue's OFF Fifth division. Previously, he was Group Senior Vice President and General Manager of Saks' flagship New York store from 2002 to 2007, where he articulated a vision to return the store to its luxury heritage and dramatically improve merchandising, service and the in-store experience. During his five-year tenure at the New York location, he helped grow annual sales from $450 million to more than $600 million and designed and developed the iconic eighth floor shoe store — the first with its own zip code — setting the stage for highly productive relationships with key luxury manufacturers around the world. Prior to joining Saks, Mr. Wallstrom held a variety of roles of increasing responsibility at Macy's Inc. from 1987 to 1995 and began his career in 1983 at J. W. Robinson department stores, a division of Associated Dry Goods Corp., which was later acquired by May Department Stores Company. Mr. Wallstrom holds a BS in business administration/accounting from San Diego State University.