FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 2009

The USC Marshall School of Business and the USC Roski School of Fine Arts present

Captains of the Fashion Industry Lecture Series: “How to Set Up and Start an Apparel Fashion Company”

A panel discussion featuring

RON FRIEDMAN, CPA, Principal, Stonefield Josephson, Inc.
ILSE METCHEK, President, California Fashion Association
LARRY RUSS, Attorney, Founding Partner, Russ, Kabat & August

moderated by MARK I. WERTS, Founder and CEO, American Rag Cie.

Monday, November 2, 2009 | 7–9 pm
Gin D. Wong Auditorium
Harris Hall 101 USC University Park Campus

Free and open to the public

Ron Friedman, CPA, is a principal at Stonefield Josephson, Inc., a California-based accounting, audit, tax, and consulting firm. Mr. Friedman provides consulting for closely held and emerging businesses. His services to these clients include forecasting and budgeting, profit enhancement, succession planning, exit strategies, preparation for sale of a business, assistance in procuring financing, and workout and reorganization consulting. His industry concentrations include apparel, manufacturing, distribution and retail.

Ilse Metchek is president of the California Fashion Association. Established in 1995 in response to circumstances surrounding an egregious act of subverted labor law issues, the CFA has since become a multi-pronged association, dealing with all the significant issues affecting the apparel and textile industry of California. Ms. Metchek has run the CFA since its establishment and has continued to grow individual corporate memberships, with an outreach to allied associations globally.

Larry Russ is a founding partner and the head of the litigation department of Russ August & Kabat. Directly after being admitted to the California Bar in 1978, Mr. Russ launched his career by successfully compelling Levi-Strauss & Co. to cease fixing resale prices on men’s jeanswear. Throughout his career, Mr. Russ has successfully represented clients in the direct marketing industry and the apparel industry. Additionally, Mr. Russ consults with established and emerging companies in connection with e-commerce, financing, expansion, mergers and acquisitions, initial public offerings, strategic alliances and intellectual property issues.

In addition to his law practice, Mr. Russ serves as a member of the Board of Directors of American Rag Cie. Mr. Russ has also served on the Board of Tarrant Apparel Group (TAGS) and regularly participates as a consultant to various Boards of Directors in connection with business management and legal issues.

The Captains of the Fashion Industry Lecture Series is organized by the USC Marshall School of Business and the USC Roski School of Fine Arts and is sponsored by Mark Werts. The series began in February, 2008, with a lecture by Millard “Mickey” Drexler, Chairman and CEO of J. Crew Group and former CEO of Gap Inc. Since then, the Captains of the Fashion Industry Lecture Series has hosted an impressive roster of fashion magnates, including Robert Hanson, President of Levi Strauss Americas; Mossimo Giannulli of Mossimo; Bob McKnight, cofounder, Chairman of the Board, President, and CEO of Quiksilver; Jerome Dahan, founder and CEO of Citizens of Humanity; and Adriano Goldschmied, cofounder of Diesel S.p.A. Lectures and panel discussions in the series have covered a wide range of fashion-related topics and issues, from creative design, to brand building, to business decisions, attracting attention from students, faculty, the fashion industry, and the press.

For more information, please contact Donna Stein, USC Roski School of Fine Arts, at 213-740-6261or donna.stein@usc.edu.