In this session, I sat down with a person who is near and dear to me. ( My uncle) Carlos Torres who is the Executive Vice President of Omni Retail for Tommy Hilfiger’s NA business. In his current role, as head merchant, he leads the teams responsible for developing and executing the full go to market product strategy, starting with the creation of robust assortment plans all the way through final in store/ on-line execution.
He started his career over 20 years ago in retail at Lord and Taylor, and since then he has held various management positions at Tommy, Calvin Klein, and Esprit. He has proven record for leading product teams that successfully deliver innovative, trend and brand rignt assortments that exceed the company’s goals and financial performance.
He is known for being a high energy roll up sleeves, results oriented, analytical thinker with entrepreneurial spirit that optimistic and collaborative, both personally and personally.
Carlos graduated from Montclair State University earring B. S. in Business Administration with concentration in Accounting. During his time off, he enjoys the outdoors, family gatherings, traveling and dinners with, yes, me!
Q: You’ve worked for great fashion brands for over 20, does it get old? What keeps you motivated, what inspires you?
A: What keeps motivated is the idea of winning. Every year we set new goals & financial targets for our brand, and knowing that my team and i play a role in achieving them never gets old. Product is our currency and having control over that inspires me to ensure its the best it can be.
Q:As it pertains to your journey navigating through the business world what accomplishment are you most proud of, why?
A: I am proud of that fact that i have been able to work my way up from the assistant buyer to where i am today. I am also proud of the relationships i built, those people who surround and support me, i call them my TRIBE. without them, i would never be where I am today.
Q: You mentioned teamwork and cross functional partnership. Why do you think it is so important? What advice can you share?
A: I am a firm believer that it takes a village. I have seen so many smart people fail because they wanted to do it alone ” their way” and did not seek input from others. Most of the time it was because they wanted to receive all the accolades. I always felt they lacked one, or more of the three main ingredients that highly functioning teams needs need to be successful which are Integrity, Passion, and Accountability. Those qualities are how you gain trust and across teams.
Q: Do you think it is more important to be creative or strategic in business? Where do you excel? Does it tie back to what you enjoy most?
A: I think both are important but without strategy, creativity could go nowhere. I personally feel like I fall in the middle in the terms of where I excel, but I certainly enjoy the creative part of my job the most. It is what inspires me.
Q: Giving or Receiving feedback can be difficult for most people. What is your approach? What advice can you give based on your experience?
A: I like to provide or receive both positive and constructive feedback as often as possible and preferably in the moment. It allows you or others to connect the feedback to a specific action.
Q: Have you achieved everything you sought out to accomplish or is there more? What is next for you?
A: I feel that I have accomplished a lot but I am still young so I have a long road ahead of me. For now, I will continue to do what I love to do which is work hard to play hard.
Q: Do you have any advice any words of wisdom?
A: I actually do! First is to identify your tribe, people who you can trust and who will encourage & believe in you, but more importantly to be honest with you. Second, seek out to become part of a diverse team, who are life long learners, have a strong sense of self, and are not afraid to use their voices. Then listen to what they have to say. Lastly, I would say to never give up, no dream is too big if you believe in your heart that you can do that.
Best fortune to all,
CT
Sessi. Dancing Corners 