Behind Our Business

RACHEL YEOMANS
Publisher / Editor-in-Chief

Rachel Yeomans, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Forbes-recommended blog TheWorkingWardrobe.com, has coveted fashion since her first magazine purchase. Upon entering into the corporate world, she found herself constantly pondering how her business fashions could still pull off a sense of style. With a degree in Magazine Journalism from Columbia College Chicago, she decided to take her love of fashion to the workplace, and see if her working wardrobe – while continuing to work for her – could work for others. TheWorkingWardrobe.com was published in 2009; and the endeavor led her to several exciting endeavors and partnerships, including launching her own consulting company and working as a Social Media Manager for the fashion and apparel businesses within Sears Holdings Corp. In 2010, TheWorkingWardrobe was listed as #4 in a list of the top 20 fashion blogs to follow by professional women. Rachel currently works with clients on managing their social media presence at Astek, LLC. You can also read Rachel’s thoughts on social media and its role in the fashion industry at her Tumblr blog. Follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/RachelYeomans, and listen to her podcast, SpeakingOfFashion.
 

HUMA RASHID

Contributor, Business Casual Superstar

Huma Rashid is a self-proclaimed root beer connoisseur and a second year law student at John Marshall Law School in Chicago. She publishes her own law blog, The Reasonably Prudent Law Student, the home of her popular series, Business Casual Superstar. She likes to address herself by the name of her alter-ego, the Hoomster, and lives in the Chicagoland suburbs with Mama Hoomster, Papa Hoomster, her little brother, and Eustace, her ulcer. In her free time, she likes to write, indulge her graphic design hobby, watch obscure British comedies starring Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry, and think about cupcakes.

 

ALAN NEFF
Contributor, The Working Man

Alan Neff has been dressing for the workplace for more than 20 years and hasn’t embarrassed his employers to date.  So far as he knows.  He’s married to an accomplished playwright-director and the father of two sons.  By day, he’s a local-government lawyer, but he’s also a minor American novelist (one published so far – a near-death experience), occasional mercenary op-ed contributor, and former performance “poet.”  He has written a play called “Observer Effect,” which is circulating among theaters (not unlike a stray clot in a sclerotic bloodstream), and has other writing projects in train.  You can find him on Facebook and Twitter.

 

 

 

EMMA PRETTO

Contributing Writer/Editor

A born and raised Floridian growing up on the sandy beaches of Pensacola, Emma Jane Pretto learned to love fashion at a young age from her glamorous and trendsetting mother. In college Emma dabbled in millinery, costume design, and while abroad in Florence, Italy, textile design. With her appetite whet, she now finds herself in Chicago, pursuing a fashion design degree. While enamored of the world of high fashion, she loves thrifting vintage clothes and creating things by hand, and is especially excited to explore the intersection of fashion and D.I.Y. crafting. Emma is eager to bring a hint of nostalgia, resourcefulness, and creativity to the working world. She devotes her free time to exploring the city, sewing up a storm, and slowly growing her Etsy shop. You can also follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

 

KATE JACOBSEN
Contributing Writer / Events Manager / PR

Even though she lives in the city now, Kate is a farm girl at heart growing up in the middle of cornfields in south central Nebraska. Since she can remember, Kate has always LOVED fashion and was even voted best-dressed her senior year of high school (don’t know if it counts when the class had 55 students). At the mere age of 18, she moved to California to be apart of a traveling performing arts group called the Young Americans. She taught, sang and danced her way around the world. In 2008, she knew it was time to make a change in her life so she moved to Chicago to pursue fashion Journalism at Columbia College Chicago. After one year, she switched to Fashion Business with a minor in Public Relations and hasn’t looked back since. Kate has held numerous internships in the fashion industry and has loved redefining professional dress through her quirky sense of style. She is passionate about supporting local, independent artists and finding the piece no one else will have. Kate is excited to use her journalism skills and industry knowledge fused with her unique fashion sense to bring TheWorkingWardrobe readers a fresh perspective on dressing for the workplace. When she has free time, Kate attends events, plans fashion shows and produces photo shoots.  She currently works at AllSaints on Michigan Avenue. Upon graduation, Kate plans on living in Europe as well as start Canadian Vogue.