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COVER STORY
JACKIE FERRARI
An issue near and dear to her heart Ken Sturtz
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wo years ago, the fashion design firm Jackie Ferrari built from scratch was on life support after having been battered in the pandemic. Millions of dollars in orders vanished overnight. She was forced to furlough most of her two-dozen employees, including her son-inlaw, an experience so painful that discussing it brings her to tears. Exhausted from holding everything together, she thought about quitting and doing something else, maybe consulting. “I was very seriously considering closing,” she says. “Then after deep thought I emerged and said, ‘I’m just not done yet.’” Now, nearly two years later, Ferrari has rebounded. Her company, American Fashion Network, hung on. With the business on firmer footing, Ferrari was able to rehire her employees. She created a startup focusing on government contracts and corporate apparel and workwear with an emphasis on women. Last year her company landed a contract worth $47 million over five years to produce a new line of fitness training apparel for the Marine Corps. She also got married over the summer.
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ith her business in a better place, Ferrari felt that it was time for her to invest in her community and grow her philanthropic footprint locally. She says she had a desire to do more than simply write a check; she wanted to find a way to use her skills to help. She met with Laura Serway, former owner of Laci’s Tapas Bar in Syracuse. Serway’s philanthropy and community activism impressed Ferrari and she asked her for guidance. That relationship led her to become involved with The American Heart Association. Last year her company participated in a fundraising event, hosting a pop-up shop to sell products from their retail line, specifically their athleisure wear. The event was a success. Now Ferrari is serving as the chairwoman of The American Heart Association’s 2022 Go Red for Women Campaign. “It’s near and dear to my heart because there are heart issues in our family,” she says. Ferrari lost her maternal grandfather to heart disease and her mother, who is 83 years old, has heart issues that affect her health and quality of life. Continued on page 20
SYR ACUSE WOMAN MAGA ZI N E
SYR ACUSE WOMAN MAG.COM
