April Uchitel, 58: Leaning In

True success lies in how you show up and how your presence can shift the energy in a room for the better. As the chief executive officer and co-founder of THE BOARD—a hybrid community/agency of over 250 value-driven fractional executives from fashion, beauty, wellness, consumer packaged goods, media, and technology, bringing c-level “dream team” expertise—April Uchitel is a leader whose influence is fueled by a desire to nurture, collaborate, and champion compassion. Her power isn’t about posturing. It’s about presence, purpose, and connection.

As the former CEO at Violet Grey, interim CEO at ONDA BEAUTY, and CBO at tech start-up and marketplace Spring, April’s expertise traverses industries and has positioned her as a respected voice and visionary. Before Spring, April spent 25 years in fashion, with nearly a decade as executive vice president at Diane Von Furstenberg (DVF), where she played an essential role in developing DVF into an iconic global brand. A respected thought-leader, April is a frequent guest on panels and podcasts, serves as a mentor in the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) incubator program, sits on the style board of Glam4Good, and is an investor and advisor to ShopMy, TryNow, CAKE, and MADA. (If you had to take a breath while reading that, so did we. What can’t this woman do?)

April is a listener, a collaborator, a visionary, a changemaker, a matchmaker, a community-maker, a creative (though she doesn’t think of herself that way), a loving mother and wife, a trendsetter, and a trend spotter. She is vibrant, stylish, bold, powerful, and always leans in. A true force that follows her instinct.

How old are you?
Fifty-eight.

Are you married? Kids?
Yes—24 years in October! Kids? Luella (19) and Sebastian (17), both rising juniors (one in college, the other in high school).

Where are you from and where are you currently based?
I am from Boulder, CO; spent the ‘90s in Los Angeles, then 19 years in Tribeca and Woodstock, NY; and am now based in Laurel Canyon in Los Angeles. (Laurel Canyon is as if Tribeca and Woodstock had a baby!)

You’ve helped build and revive some of the most iconic brands in fashion and beauty. What do you think legacy brands often get wrong when trying to evolve for modern audiences—or appeal to an over 50 audience?
Legacy brands often age with their consumer and wait too long to engage the next generation. At DVF, this was a real challenge. When the brand relaunched in the early 2000s, Diane assumed her customer had aged gracefully alongside her. Then a major Saks rollout followed—only for returning fans to discover the clothes no longer fit them. Sales stumbled. The team considered winding down…until they noticed Madonna, Gwyneth, and others snatching up vintage DVF wrap dresses. DING, DING, DING. They’d been targeting the wrong generation. A pivot to Barneys with vintage prints reinvigorated the brand and cemented its place in the contemporary market. Fast-forward to now, and it’s hard to tell who the DVF customer today is.

With THE BOARD, you’re championing a new way of working through value-driven fractional leadership. How do you see this model supporting longevity, not just in business but in personal careers?
When I left my last CEO role in 2020, I set three non-negotiables for my “what’s next”: 1) agency, 2) flexibility, and 3) for as long as I wanted!

When I worked in tech, I’d started quietly matchmaking—connecting founders, leaders, and designers to share knowledge and prevent each other from repeating their missteps. I kept seeing the same pattern: Brands were building in silos, all needing similar expertise but struggling to find it. At Violet Grey, it was only amplified—as so many brands came to me for help to find formulators, sales agents, CMOs, recruiters…

When the pandemic hit, corporate talent went independent and suddenly; it was clear: The future wasn’t full-time—it was fractional, flexible, and deeply connected. Creating massive upside for both talent and the brands who needed their seasoned and specialized expertise.

I built THE BOARD to join forces, be stronger together, become a trusted destination for brands who need help, incentivizing members to share opportunities, and help each other up-skill, re-skill, and look to the future.

The best part is that we are just getting started. The shift in how people live and work and companies hire is only accelerating. The opportunity to reshape what talent looks like for modern brands and for seasoned talent is massive. The key is staying curious—always be learning and leaning into your networks authentically. There is no one over the age of 40 NOT thinking about the rapidly changing landscape and how to navigate it. I purposely built THE BOARD on a community model, as it is simply impossible to do it alone.

Having navigated both start-up chaos and corporate scale, what keeps you creatively engaged at this stage of your life and career?
I’ve never thought of myself as a creative, as I was always the SALES girl—but in building THE BOARD, an itch has been scratched that I did not realize I had. I’ve built the look (not corporate), the feel (a little edgy and provocative, but human all the way through), and the voice (sassy with wit, humor, integrity, and brilliance) as our members are all contributors. I am in Canva more hours than I should admit. I am a visual person and the glass doors in my home office are often covered in colorful lists and idea dumps that turn into operating plans.

You’ve mentored through the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) and advised next-gen companies like ShopMy and CAKE. What patterns are you seeing among the most promising female founders of today?
When I left the slow moving, frenetic hierarchy of fashion for tech, I was blown away by “stakeholder mentality” culture. That is where I started to see (at 47!) women as founders uniquely poised for opportunities. This was different from the female fashion designers of the ‘90s and early 2000s. This was Nasty Gal, Reformation, Glossier, Rent the Runway, The Wing, The Real Real, Outdoor Voices, Bumble…full girl boss/lean-in era. Women openly pushing into spaces and conversations they were not driving before, amplified by social media.

While the culture has since shifted to a “no-boss” culture, there are founders out there who continue to raise the bar: Dianna Cohen at the Crown Affair (we worked together at Spring), Babba Canales at Ceremonia, Ally Webb from DryBar to her newest Venture Messy…and countless others. The patterns I see are they are building loyal communities, being openly vulnerable and inclusive in very authentic ways. They are clear on the problems they are solving and are hyper focused on making sure the promises they make are kept both on product and experience.

At DVF, you helped shape a global brand that empowered women. Looking back, how has your definition of power, especially feminine power, evolved over the years?
Diane used to say, “You can have a man’s life in a woman’s body.” While I was going through years of IVF, she confided in me that you just can’t have it all at the same time. That something always has to give. The career, the kids, yourself, your spouse… and, generally, the spouse took the back seat if there were kids involved. When I think about feminine power, I think of role modeling for my daughter. I want her to see a woman with a strong sense of self, of right versus wrong, who is high functioning, purpose driven, generous, and has self respect and deep integrity. These qualities all embody feminine power. I’ve worked hard to remove the male armor I unknowingly donned as a corporate leader to build THE BOARD from a place of the divine feminine—to nurture, collaborate, and champion compassion, wisdom and connection. In leadership, it looks like listening deeply, moving with intention, building with heart, and knowing when to hold space or burn it all down.

You’ve made bold pivots throughout your career. What advice would you give to someone in their 50s or 60s considering a reinvention or second act?
I’ve always played the long game. I overstayed my welcome in my 20s (nine years at my first job, five at my second, seven at my third) as I clung to job security. I made up for it with three industry pivots in 10 years ignited by the boom I saw coming for fashion in 2013, from which I dove Superman-style at the tailpipe of the tech bus as it sped by—and hung on for the ride. My biggest advice is to stay curious, to ALWAYS be learning, to immerse yourself in AI and emerging tech as this is what is disrupting every industry. To look back at decades of life and work experience and write down your SUPERPOWERS. What do you love to do? What lights you up? What are you confident about that you can bring to others, that will make a difference in their lives or their businesses? Lean into that!

Wellness and beauty are core to your world. How do you personally approach “aging well,” and how has your perspective on beauty shifted over time?
I am lucky to live in Laurel Canyon and have a stunning 45-minute hike across Mulholland just a block away that I do at least five times a week. It’s great cardio, but more importantly, getting out into nature is food for my soul. The birds, the flowers, the critters (bunnies, snakes, skunks, and coyotes…) all nestled in the middle of a sprawling city, and the magic light reminds me each day is a gift. I’d say my approach to “aging well” has become more and more about cultivating gratitude (plus testing the latest beauty products!). Sure, I look in the mirror and mourn the lines, the sagging skin, the age spots, and google how much to save for the face lift…but then I remind myself I (hopefully) have decades still to go and that today is the youngest I will ever be. (Then I thank God for Zoom filters!)

How do you define success at this stage in your life—and how different is that from your definition in your 30s or 40s?
It is SO different!!! Success used to be defined by titles, bonuses, prestige companies, invites to events, seats at industry dinner parties, and now it is defined by meaningful connection and purposeful impact. That said, I do still like being invited to great dinner parties.

You’ve cultivated a powerful network of change-makers. What’s one relationship or collaboration that profoundly shaped your journey—and what did it teach you about longevity in leadership?
I think the collaboration that profoundly changed my journey with THE BOARD was with one of our first clients: Farfetch. My friend Holly Rogers, the then-CBO, gave us a shot to test our “dream team” model to help them launch Beauty. It taught me that I was trusted by the industry, that my reputation and history afforded me new opportunities, and that I could move forward in my goals to change the way talent is tapped to help companies scale.

What’s a recent piece you just added to your closet that you can’t stop reaching for?
I live in denim, love collared shirts under men’s blazers or vintage sweatshirts, and joke that I dress like a tomboy. I steal a lot of my husband’s shirts and recently thrifted a men’s silk cream-colored paisley pajama top for $6 that I wear with ripped boyfriend jeans and a pointy toe heel—and feel like a million bucks!

What album or song is April Uchitel currently listening to on repeat?
I am a total ‘80s girl through and through. I have a few hundred songs I’ve SHAZAMMED over the years from movies, shows, other peoples playlists, restaurants etc. when a song comes on that brings me back. Echo & the Bunnymen, Joy Division, The Cure, Bauhaus, Stone Roses, The Motels, The Psychedelic Furs, T. Rex, Brian Ferry, Radiohead, Iggy Pop, The Replacements, REM… So it’s become a crazy playlist that I could have never created otherwise!

What does a typical weekend look like for you? How do you recharge?
I love mellow Friday nights with takeout and movies or Netflix binging. Saturdays are hiking and yoga, errands, calling my mom or dad, and seeing friends. Sundays are farmers markets (when I can rally), early family dinner, and then I work for a few hours to get ahead of the week, so Monday morning is not super brutal.

Your partner, Diego Uchitel, is a wonderful photographer and creative. What’s it like being in a long-term relationship with another creative?
As mentioned, I never think of myself as a creative, and in fact, I used to be SO jealous of his career with all the incredible travel, amazing people he was meeting, celebrities he was shooting, and money he was making as I slogged through the land of 9-to-5. I was such a creature of security that I never imagined I’d ever work for myself. The photography industry has been pretty devastated over the past five-plus years—with everyone being a photographer, magazines dying, content becoming disposable, user-generated content replacing brand campaigns, and now add in AI… As he continues to adjust, he is an incredible cheerleader for me as I evolve my path as well.

What are your three life non-negotiables (i.e., the things you can’t live without)?
My family, my girlfriends, and my hikes.

Editor’s Note: Some answers may have been condensed and/or edited for clarity.

Connect with April:

Website (THE BOARD) / LinkedIn / Instagram (@apriluchitel) / Substack (ABOVE BOARD)

April and her husband, Diego, also co-own the gorgeous DISH Studios in Downtown Los Angeles. Check them out!

Cover photo by Diego Uchitel