Caleres executive chairman Diane Sullivan pledged to donate $100,000 to the Women in the Footwear Industry (WIFI) organization at the Two Ten Footwear Foundation annual gala in New York City on Tuesday.
“I’m making this personal donation to honor all the women in our industry, past, present and in future and to ensure the vibrancy of WiFi in whatever form it takes,” the footwear industry veteran who co-founded the WiFi organization with Carol Baiocchi in 2009, said at Tuesday night’s event.
“When Carol and I decided to create WiFi, it began as a simple meeting of six women who knew that other women needed a way to engage and connect with others in our industry,” she added. “But never in our wildest dreams back in 2009, we imagined that WiFi would become what it is today – a community that has close to 7,500 members representing nearly 400 companies and brands. Plus, more than 10,000 women have participated in WiFi events in the last decade.”
Watch on FN
Sullivan’s donation came as she accepted the 2024 Bob Campbell Lifetime Achievement award, presented by Seth Campbell, corporate president at BBC International and the son of the late Bob Campbell.
“Receiving this honor in Bob’s memory is really just something special,” Sullivan said. “It’s very humbling. I can’t even begin to tell you how I feel. But I have to kind of admit something. I can’t really stand here tonight and tell you that one day I looked around, and I made this conscious choice to try to make a difference or have some kind of impact on things.”
“It truly took seeing people like Bob, and so many other amazing people in this industry, and people in the communities that I worked with, and organizations like Two Ten, to begin to understand that when you’re in the leadership roles, you have the power to make a difference,” Sullivan added. “And more importantly, you have a responsibility to do so. It’s one of the greatest gifts that you’re given when you lead a company and its employees.”
The Bob Campbell Lifetime Achievement award was established in 2009 and is handed out every five years to honor “an individual who has shown extraordinary leadership and deep compassion,” attributes upheld by the late Mr. Campbell, the founder, chairman and CEO of BBC International and veteran of Kinney Shoes and parent firm F.W. Woolworth Co.
Sullivan, the executive chairman at Caleres, has been outspoken about the need to create a caring environment in the workplace and has been a champion for board gender equality, achieving parity at the company. She served as CEO of the St. Louis-based firm from 2011 to 2023.
The executive — who joined Caleres as president in 2004 — nabbed FN’s Person of the Year award multiple times and was inducted into the FN Hall of Fame in 2022.
