What do Project Runway, gardening, and the stock market have in common? Alicia Hardesty! Life is a journey, best led with curiosity, and she’s an example of that. She’s lived and worked all over the country, designing a range of products from menswear to westernwear to activewear, and along the way competed in season 10 of Project Runway.

Since leaving corporate retail last year, she’s been focused on investing and trading stocks, her love of gardening, and her own startup projects:

Geoffrey Henning “The Designing Mind” is a descriptive of Geoffrey Henning, whom brings over 25 years of design experience to the retail industry from designer brands, specialty retailers and department stores. JCPenney is where Geoffrey today leads and inspires the design team and fashion for menswear and womenswear private label.

Marla Cotten A New York City transplant, Marla’s interest in fashion design began early when she was faced regularly with the challenge of finding suitable party dresses for various formal events. Marla began sketching out dress design ideas and using her mother’s excellent seamstress skills to create and construct various eveningwear ensembles.