Coworking with Laura Willensky

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Early in her professional life, Laura Willensky got the worst piece of business advice she’s ever received: She had a prestigious job in finance, but wanted to pursue a role in fashion—something Willensky told us she “was far more passionate about.” Not only was she advised not to go for it, but a former boss told her, “This will be the biggest mistake of your career.”

Well, after years of working at the likes of J.Crew, Victoria’s Secret, and Talbot as an exec, Willensky is now the chief commercial officer at Away.

How would you describe your job to someone who doesn’t work in retail? At its core, my role as the chief commercial officer is to ensure that Away’s business, product strategies, and customer expectations are aligned with—and deliver against—the company’s financial goals. To do that, I oversee a team responsible for providing our customers with seamless, engaging, and revenue-driving touchpoints across our e-commerce site and our retail locations. Managing the end-to-end process from product concept to launch, our team works in close partnership with colleagues in design, development, marketing, and finance in order to ensure our customers love their experience with our brand as much as they love Away’s products.

One thing we can’t guess about your job from your LinkedIn profile: Driving commercial success is so much more than just selling products and driving growth. For me, true commercial success comes from working across the entire organization to ensure that we are always putting our customers first: anticipating their wants and needs, solving for their pain points, and nimbly responding to evolving trends.

One trend that you’re most excited about: I am incredibly excited to see retail leaders continuing to discuss health and wellness as a pillar within their industries, especially within the travel sector.

What was the most memorable job you had in high school or college? One summer in high school, I worked in a men’s suit factory on the sewing line. I worked long hours, alongside expert suit makers, in a very technical environment. Although I had very little experience, I was driven to learn as much as I could from the experienced craftsmen and craftswomen beside me. Not only did I learn how to make a suit, but the job instilled a deep value for the skill and craftsmanship it takes to make any product. And for that, I’m immensely grateful, as it still informs how I work to this day.

What’s the most embarrassing product in your order history from Amazon that you’re actually willing to admit? Nothing too embarrassing to admit to, but the sheer quantity of my family’s online orders can sometimes make my entryway look like a FedEx processing center.