The WIE Suite turned five this year, and we decided to celebrate where all the best things happen, around a table full of incredible women, this time in Chicago. We started in New York, but the real story of The WIE Suite has been watching it grow beyond any single city. We're building community across the country and around the world, which is why celebrating our fifth anniversary in Chicago felt exactly right.
And who better to partner with than with one of our remarkable members, Emily Hikade, Founder and CEO of Petite Plume, the luxury nightwear brand that's celebrating its own milestone, 10 years and counting. From its beginnings at her kitchen table to becoming a global, multimillion-dollar success, Emily’s story is the very embodiment of the entrepreneurial spirit that defines The WIE Suite.
Dinner took place at Cira, with forty trailblazing women filling one long, beautifully set table.
The WIE Suite CEO Dee Poku kicked things off with a welcome that got to the heart of why we do what we do: the power of connection. "Men play golf, we host dinners," she said with a smile. She talked about the difficulties of navigating corporate cultures in her former career and why access was so important.
Emily followed with reflections on her extraordinary journey, from dreaming up Petite Plume in her kitchen to building a multi-million dollar global business. She also gave us a peek into her background before Petite Plume. Let's just say it involves classified information and the entire room was absolutely riveted.
Later in the evening, Dee opened up a conversation about legacy, a topic that's been coming up more and more with our members. So many accomplished women are starting to think about their next chapter, their third act, and what they want to leave behind. Dee posed a simple but profound question: How do you envision the next five to ten years of your life?
Kitty Brandtner, Founder of March Fourth, spoke about continuing to “protect childhood and elevate women-owned brands.” Melissa Ackermann, CEO of Planet Harvest, shared her focus on tackling food waste and championing “food as medicine.” Sherina Williams, Chief Executive and Board Member at Red Art Capital, reflected on her time at Spelman College, saying her mission is to ensure “every little Black girl can experience the gift of Spelman - the strength and confidence it gives you to take on the world.”
Other guests included Jiseon Lee Isbara, President of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago; Ofa Stead of Blackstone Capital; and Alisa Wolfson, EVP, Head of Design at Leo Burnett.
It was an evening that captured everything The WIE Suite stands for - connection, purpose and the collective power of women leading with intention.
Here’s to the next five years of building powerful rooms!
