Bid to win the chance to meet with Gary Wassner, Fashion Financier, CEO at Hilldun Corp & Chairman of Interluxe Holdings, via Zoom!
Gary serves as the Chief Executive Officer at Hilldun Corporation, providing some of the most notable, creative designers in the industry with factoring, financing, accounts receivable, purchase order funding, back office support, and mentoring since 1958. Gary’s first official client was iconic designer, Betsey Johnson, who had recently left her job to begin her own brand, and was trying to fill her first purchase order. Together they sat cross-legged on her showroom floor and started drafting ideas, and creating a functional business structure. Soon to follow were Hilldun’s next few clients, Michael Koors, Badgely Mischka,Tommy Hilfiger, & Marc Jacobs.
In 2014 Gary embarked upon a new phase in his relationship to the fashion industry. As a founding member and Chairman of Interluxe Holdings LLC he has partnered with Lee Equity in order to purchase equity stakes in luxury, designer and contemporary apparel and accessory brands. Interluxe’s first of multiple prospective investments was in the iconic designer, Jason Wu in September, 2014 and the second investment was in the contemporary brand, ALC in 2015. He has also since made a personal investment in Cushnie et Ochs alongside of Farol Investment Management, and serves on their Board of Directors. Gary expects to expand the Interluxe portfolio to 5 brands within the next 3 years.
Gary is a principal cast member on Lifetime’s new series Project Runway: Fashion Startup which showcases aspiring fashion and beauty entrepreneurs as they pitch their concepts to a panel of investors. As a member of this panel, Gary is also joined by fellow investors Katia Beauchamp, Christine Hunsicker and Rebecca Minkoff. Gary is also a member of the CFDA Advisory Board and a mentor for the CFI Incubator program. He serves on the advisory board of Fordham Law School’s Fashion Law Institute as well as the board of FGI. Gary is an instructor for the NYCEDC program, and a mentor for DENYC, as well as a member of Senator Gillibrand’s Fashion Industry Working Group and Mayor De Blasio’s Fashion Working Group. He is a passionate supporter of the Save The Garment Center movement and all causes related to the Fashion Industry in NYC and globally.