Bios

Ewa M. Abrams

Ms. Abrams is Associate General Counsel 

& Chief Privacy Officer of Tiffany & Co. in 

New York. Her work at Tiffany has spanned a 

variety of practice areas including corporate 

intellectual property management, unfair 

competition, anti-counterfeiting, data 

privacy / security and compliance matters. 

For over ten years, Ms. Abrams has been 

responsible for all aspects of the management 

of Tiffany’s worldwide intellectual property 

matters. Ms. Abrams specializes in trademark 

prosecution and enforcement, with an 

emphasis on internet-related issues, including 

advertising and social media. In her role 

as Chief Privacy Officer, she is responsible 

for worldwide privacy compliance for the 

company. Ms. Abrams received her JD from 

Brooklyn Law School in New York and her BA 

from Bucknell University in Pennsylvania.

Michael A. Akkaoui

Mr. Akkaoui attended Providence College, 

graduating in 1980 with a BA. He later 

attended New England School of Law in 

Boston, graduating with a JD, and is a 

member of the Rhode Island and Federal 

Bar. In 1995, he became Chief Executive 

Officer at Tanury Industries, a leader in 

metal finishing technology. Mr. Akkaoui has 

authored many technical articles for the metal 

finishing industry and has given seminars 

on electroplating and PVD coatings for 

many trade groups. He is a member of the 

Environmental Law Committee for the Rhode 

Island Bar Association and a Government 

Official Appointee by Governor Almond to the 

Rhode Island OSHA Commission. He is also 

a past Chairman of Manufacturers, Jewelers 

and Suppliers of America (MJSA). 

David A. Bouffard

Mr. Bouffard is the Vice President, Corporate 

Affairs of Signet Jewelers Ltd., the parent 

company of Kay Jewelers, Jared the Galleria 

of Jewelry, and other regional brands in the 

U.S., as well as H. Samuel and Ernest Jones in 

the U.K. Over his 32-year career with Signet, 

Mr. Bouffard has held roles which include: 

Director of Sales, Merchandising, and 

Advertising; estate jewelry general marketing 

manager; Marketing Director of Corporate 

Store Promotions; Marketing Director of Public 
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Relations and Promotions; and Vice President 

of Public Relations. Mr. Bouffard is actively 

involved in Jewelers of America (JA), the 

Jewelry Information Center (JIC, consumer 

education arm of JA), and Responsible 

Jewelry Council. Mr. Bouffard received 

his undergraduate degree from Widener 

University, his MBA from Case Western Reserve 

University, and his Graduate Gemologist 

accreditation from the Gemological Institute of 

America (GIA).

Lisa Brooks-Pike

Ms. Brooks-Pike is the Founder and former 

President of Jewelers Ethics Association (JEA). 

JEA is a trade organization dedicated to 

promoting ethical practices and full disclosure 

within the gemstone and jewelry trade. JEA 

also serves to educate and assist consumers. 

Ms. Brooks-Pike is currently Vice President of 

Sales for Sapphires of Montana.

Brian G. Clapprood

Mr. Clapprood is the Vice President of 

Engineering at the LeachGarner Company 

in Attleboro, Massachusetts. Mr. Clapprood 

began his career in the precious metals 

industry in 1995. Throughout his career, Mr. 

Clapprood has been responsible for product 

development, operations management, 

quality assurance, as well as engineering 

and technical services. Mr. Clapprood’s 

experience with precious metals manufacturing 

spans the areas of raw materials and finished 

goods product and process design. Mr. 

Clapprood received a BS in Industrial 

Engineering from the New England Institute of 

Technology.

Valerie J. Falen

Ms. Falen is the Director of Corporate 

Manufacturing and Sourcing of Sterling 

Jewelers, Inc., the largest specialty retail 

jeweler in the U.S., including Kay Jewelers 

and Jared the Galleria of Jewelry. Ms. Falen 

began her career with Sterling Jewelers, Jared 

division in 1999. She has since served as 

the Jared Diamond Fashion Buyer, Sterling 

Diamond Fashion Buyer, Sterling Sr. Buyer 

Diamond Fashion, and Director of Jared 

Diamond Fashion, Color and Gold before 

assuming her current position in March 2012. 

As Director of Corporate Manufacturing and 

Sourcing, Ms. Falen focuses on manufacturing 

for core products, diamond melee pricing for 

vendors, and also oversees the scrap budget 

and policies and procedures for previously 

owned merchandise. Ms. Falen received 

her BSBA from The Ohio State University in 

Columbus, and certifications for Certified 

Purchasing Manager (CPM) and Accredited 

Purchasing Practitioner (APP) from the Institute 

for Supply Management.

Suzan Flamm

Suzan Flamm is Senior Counsel at the Jewelers 

Vigilance Committee, a non-profit trade 

association that promotes legal compliance in 

the jewelry industry. 
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She prepares compliance and educational 

materials for jewelers, conducts seminars 

on current legal issues, and writes articles 

on those matters for the jewelry trade press. 

Additionally, she prepares submissions for 

government agencies with regulatory authority 

over the trade, such as the Federal Trade 

Commission and the Security and Exchange 

Commission, to present relevant facts and 

industry practices. Ms. Flamm’s legal 

experience includes work as a prosecutor 

with the New York County District Attorney’s 

Office, and as the Attorney in Charge of a 

regional office for the New York State Attorney 

General’s Office. She has also worked as 

a litigation consultant, and as a teacher of 

Courtroom Communication and Investigative 

Interviewing at John Jay College in New York. 

Ms. Flamm received her BA and JD from the 

University of California at Los Angeles. 

Mark Hanna

Mr. Hanna is the Chief Marketing Officer of 

Richline Group, Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway 

Company. During Mr. Hanna’s 42 years in 

the jewelry industry, he has had experience 

in all facets of management, manufacturing, 

marketing, and sales. Prior to this position, 

from 1996 to 2004, he served as the EVP 

of Sales and Marketing for Michael Anthony 

Jewelers. From 1990 to 1995, Mr. Hanna 

was President of Leach & Garner International. 

A patent inventor of Reverse Hardenable Karat 

Gold, in 2012, Mr. Hannah was honored as 

one the U.S.’s top 200 CMOs. Mr. Hanna’s 

additional activities include Board Member 

of Special Olympics and active membership 

and contribution to the Responsible Jewellery 

Council, the Manufacturing Jewelers 

Association, the Jewelers Vigilance Committee, 

the CMO Club, and the American Marketing 

Association. Mr. Hanna received a BS in 

mathematics from Manhattan College and an 

MBA in marketing from NYU Stern. 

Robert Herskovits

Mr. Herskovits is the Vice-President of Sales 

for Brilliant Jewelers/MJJ Inc., headquartered 

in New York. Brilliant Jewelers / MJJ Inc. 

is one of the leading international jewelry 

manufacturer and wholesale distribution 

companies. Throughout Mr. Herskovits 

career, he has been responsible for product 

development and design, including copyright 

and trademark applications and approval. 

In addition, his involvement with the 

marketing and sales of “Yellora,” a mixture 

of 24K gold, palladium, and sterling silver, 

has made him a key member of Brilliant 

Jewelers. Mr. Herskovits is actively involved 

in industry associations in conjunction with 

Brilliant Jewelers. He is a member of the 

Jewelers Vigilance Committee, Jewelers Ethics 

Association, and The Plumb Club. 

Susan M. Kelly

Ms. Kelly is a Product Quality Engineer for 

Corporate Jewelry Quality Assurance at 

QVC U.S. In that role, she is responsible 

for providing technical support to corporate 
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quality assurance processes, investigating 

customer experience and product ratings, and 

supporting the Product Compliance Manager. 

In addition, Ms. Kelly is an appraiser of 

fine jewelry for Guild Retail Stores and is a 

member of the National Association of Jewelry 

Appraisers. As the Director of the Leased 

division Estate Jewelry Program, Ms. Kelly 

evaluated and acquired period and estate 

jewelry. She also has been a designer for the 

American Gem Society Retailer and a bench 

jeweler. Ms. Kelly has a Graduate Gemologist 

Diploma from the Gemological Institute of 

America Inc. (GIA). 

Stuart Lee

Mr. Lee is the Senior Vice President and 

General Merchandising Manager for Sterling 

Jewelers Inc., headquartered in Akron, Ohio. 

Sterling Jewelers has approximately 1350 

fine jewelry retail outlets within the U.S., 

operating under the brands of Kay Jewelers, 

Jared the Galleria of Jewelry, Ultra Jewelers, 

JB Robinson Jewelers, and other regional 

brands. Sterling is part of the Signet brand, 

which also operates approximately 560 fine 

jewelry outlets within the U.K., operating under 

the brands of H. Samuel and Ernest Jones. 

Combined, they comprise the world’s largest 

diamond and fine jewelry retailer. Mr. Lee’s 

duties encompass the Merchandising/

Buying departments and the companies’ 

Impact (analysis/planning), Special Order, 

and E-commerce initiatives. Mr. Lee began 

his jewelry career in 1975 with the DeVon’s 

Jewelry retail chain in Sacramento, California. 

Over a 20-year span, he advanced from 

store sales to store management to buying. 

From 1996 to 2006, Mr. Lee was the 

Merchandising Director for the Jared division. 

In 2006, he was promoted to Vice President 

of Corporate Merchandising. Mr. Lee is 

an active participant in the jewelry industry, 

currently serving on the Board of the M.J.S.A. 

(Manufacturing Jewelers and Suppliers of 

America), as well as being a member of the 

Jewelers for Children fundraising committee, 

the jewelry industries largest charitable 

organization. 

Dee Marino

Ms. Marino is the Chief Operating Officer 

at Roman & Sunstone. Over her 13 years 

with Roman & Sunstone, she also has been 

Vice President of Operations and President. 

Prior to her work in the jewelry industry, 

Ms. Marino held several positions at Edison 

Brothers Stores, Inc., with a primary focus on 

Logistics and Operations. Ms. Marino also 

worked for Laventhol & Horwath CPA firm 

as a staff auditor and then senior auditor. 

Ms. Marino graduated magna cum laude 

from the University of Missouri St. Louis. 

Ms. Marino is a board member of the Fashion 

Jewelry & Accessory Trade Association and 

has active membership in the Manufacturing 

Jewelers and Suppliers of America, Jewelers 

Board of Trade and the ASTM International 

organizations.
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Ajit Menon

Mr. Menon is the Director of Technology at 

United Precious Metal Refining, Inc., a global 

supplier of master alloys for the manufacturing 

of gold, silver, platinum, and palladium 

jewelry. Mr. Menon has earned both a BS 

and MS in Metallurgical Engineering and a 

MBA in Business Administration. He also has 

spoken on a variety of topics at the Santa Fe 

Symposium, receiving awards for the best 

speaker, technical paper, and ambassador. 

In addition, Mr. Menon has given technical 

seminars in numerous countries worldwide. 

He is the author of several articles related 

to jewelry technology and metallurgy, the 

science that deals with procedures used in 

extracting metals from their ores, purifying and 

alloying metals, and creating useful objects 

from metals. In addition to his extensive 

education, he has acquired vast knowledge 

and technical expertise through his 25 years of 

manufacturing experience.

Pamela S. Mortensen

Ms. Mortensen is Senior VP and General 

Merchandise Manager of Jewelry, Watches 

and Fashion Accessories at jcpenney. Prior to 

joining jcpenney in 2009, Ms. Mortensen was 

the VP and Divisional Merchandise Manager 

for the Fine Jewelry and Watch Division at 

Wal-Mart and VP and Divisional Merchandise 

Manager for Service Merchandise. 

Ms. Mortensen began her jewelry career 

at Zale Corporation in Dallas and began 

her retail career at Federated Department 

stores. Ms. Mortensen has been integral in 

implementing innovative initiatives to help 

establish jcpenney as a style authority and 

drive sales growth for the company. With a 

focus on making jcpenney a key destination 

for bridal customers, Ms. Mortensen led the 

launch of the company’s Modern Bride® 

initiative, as well as the recent launch of 

the new Bijoux Bar @JCP, which features 

designer fashion jewelry. During her tenure 

at Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the largest jewelry 

retailer in the United States, Ms. Mortensen 

was instrumental in developing Wal-Mart’s 

standards and criteria for responsible jewelry 

sourcing and developing the Love, Earth® 

jewelry collection, which gave customers the 

ability to trace the path of their jewelry from 

mine to market. Ms. Mortensen presently 

serves on the Jewelers Vigilance Committee 

board of directors. She also serves on the 

board of Jewelers for Children, a non-profit 

organization donating over $40 million since 

its inception to programs benefiting children 

in need. Ms. Mortensen earned a BS from the 

University of Arkansas.

Charles A. Wagner, III

Since 2003, Mr. Wagner has served as 

Vice Chairman and General Counsel of 

Multimedia Commerce Group, Inc., parent 

company of Jewelry Television. In his 
position at Jewelry Television, he oversees 

the company’s compliance programs. Mr. 

Wagner is a graduate of The University of 

Tennessee College of Business Administration 

and The University of Tennessee College of 

Law. After practicing in Chattanooga, Mr. 

Wagner joined the Tennessee Valley Authority 

as Senior Trial Attorney. He then served as 

Assistant General Counsel, and finally as 

Associate General Counsel for Litigation. Mr. 

Wagner practiced in Knoxville with Gentry 

& Wagner, then Wagner, Myers and Sanger, 

where he is currently Of Counsel. The 

principal focus of Mr. Wagner’s practice has 

been contract, commercial and regulatory 

litigation. 

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