LILLIAN VERNON

Lillian Vernon is a pioneer in direct marketing and retail and is the first woman to have a company listed on the American Stock Exchange. She is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Lillian Vernon Corporation, a leading national catalog and online retailer that markets gift, housewares, gardening, children's and Christmas Products. Born in Germany, Lillian fled to the United States with her parents before the onset of the World War II and settled in New York City. She started her company on her kitchen table in 1951 with $2,000 of wedding gift money. Since then, sales have grown to over $238 million. Last year the company received more than 3.7 million orders and employed over 5,300 people during its peak season.

Lillian Vernon Corporation is headquartered in Rye, New York with a National Distribution Center in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The company published seven catalog titles: Lillian Vernon, Rue deFrance, Lilly's Kids, Personalized Gifts, Christmas Memories, Favorites and a Sale catalog. Lillian Vernon's online catalogs can be found at www.lillianvernon.com and www.ruedefrance.com. The company also sells to the Business-to-Business markets and has 14 outlet stores in New York, Delaware, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, and Virginia and two Rue de France stores in Rhode Island.

Her company has donated funds and merchandise to more than 5,000 charities. Lillian serves on the boards of several non-profit organizations, including New York University, Lincoln Center and the Kennedy Center National Committee for the Performing Arts.

Lillian was named one of the 25 most fascinating people by Fortune Magazine and is a frequent speaker on the subjects of entrepreneurship and women in business. Lillian has received several honors including the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, Big Brother/Big Sisters National Hero Award, and Gannett Newspapers Business Leadership Award, and induction into the Direct Marketing Association Hall of Fame. She resides in Greenwich, Connecticut with her husband Paolo Martino. She has two sons, Fred and David Hochberg. 

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