Amber M. Brookman

President & CEO, Brookwood Companies Incorporated

As President and CEO of Brookwood Companies, a textile & apparel company, Amber M. Brookman manages the activities of five divisions, as well as Brookwood’s wholly owned subsidiaries, Brookwood Laminating, Kenyon Industries, Inc., XtraMile, Inc. and Solutions 4, Inc.

Over the past fifteen years, Ms. Brookman has implemented strategic moves to establish Brookwood as a leading source of textile nylon products to a diverse market. In addition to developing numerous new products in collaboration with mills, finishers and fiber manufacturers, she has refined the dyeing and finishing capacities of Brookwood’s subsidiary, Kenyon Industries, providing Brookwood with processing capabilities of 38 million yards annually. Brookwood, with more than 450 employees, has one of the best management information systems in the industry permitting superior inventory management and cost control.

Ms. Brookman spent the early part of her career in the fashion industry as a top model and industry spokesperson. She then spent several years as Strategic Marketing Manager for Allied Chemical, Inc., where she was responsible for isolating new markets, introducing new products, managing market intelligence as well as creating and managing promotional events such as the America’s Cup, American Men & Women on Everest and Lou Whittaker’s Everest Assault.

In 1984, as President of Amber Brookman Fabrics, Ms. Brookman created a new business for a woven nylon converter consisting of the product development and distribution of woven nylon fabrics designed for lifestyle markets. The division was generally recognized as the most successful start-up in the industry. In 1989 she restructured the assets of the parent company forming a new business encompassing a wider distribution strategy.

In 1995, Ms. Brookman assumed direct management, as acting President, of a dyeing and finishing division which required extensive restructuring to meet changing market requirements. She implemented an aggressive operations plan, including reorganization of the management team, process improvements which resulted in significant manufacturing efficiencies and established cost systems to improve controls and achieve major cost savings. Performance of this division was stabilized within three months. The business has operated profitably since the restructuring. Recently, using the company’s extensive apparel contacts, Brookwood launched Solutions 4, a packaging division targeting four market segments: Apparel, Accessories, Luggage and Industrial Products.

In 2001 Brookwood Companies, through a newly formed subsidiary became the second supplier of waterproof breathable fabric trademarked Assaultä to the U.S. Military for the Extended Cold Weather Clothing System (ECWCS). Brookwood is currently one of only two suppliers of this product.