Rachel Zsembery is honored with 40 Under 40 award

Rachel Zsembery, a Principal at Bergmeyer, was recently named one of design:retail magazine’s 40 Under 40 recipients in their inaugural awards program! The editorial team culled down the list of nominees to those that had the biggest impact on the industry through their leadership and accomplishments. Rachel and the other honorees will celebrate at the New York CitySCENE event on May 18 and will also be featured in the April/May issue of design:retail. She is incredibly well-deserving of this award and we couldn’t be prouder.

Check out the full April/May issue of design:retail to see all the honorees. In the Executive Editor’s note, Alison Embrey Medina introduces the program. “In this issue, we launch design:retail’s first-ever 40 Under 40, a listing of the next generation of superstars that will drive retail’s future. Our own ‘awesome’ list, if you will. All of the 40 industry professionals that made our list were nominated by peers – colleagues, clients, vendors, bosses and even a few direct reports – who submitted enough praise of these outstanding individuals to catch our attention. This list is a mix of retailers, designers, architects, manufacturers, technology experts, entrepreneurs, and innovators. The common chord is what each has been able to achieve in the (relatively) short time they have been in the industry, and the impact they have already made.”

Here’s the nomination letter, eloquently written by Principal Lewis Muhlfelder:

“Rachel has boundless energy and a ravenous appetite for all things retail. She is indefatigable in her pursuit of knowledge. She has the highest expectations for herself and inspires others to reach their fullest potential.

Rachel loves the architectural profession with a special focus on experiential retail design. Her range of knowledge and talents is broad encompassing retail prototyping through its implementation. Her special areas of expertise include sustainability (e.g., instituted a master sustainable action plan for Staples) and client account management. In her role as Principal-in-Charge/Account Manager on retail accounts, Rachel is widely known to be fair, honest, detailed, thorough, organized, and well-versed in the national retail scene. She is a natural mentor and leader, a great conversationalist who is comfortable in the limelight, is easy to talk with, has wide-ranging knowledge, and a hearty laugh.

Within the firm she has established the Practice Committee, authored the QA/QC program, and co-authored the firm’s Sustainability Action Plan. Rachel’s understanding of the human fabric of teamwork is clear though her great communication skills and open, collaborative style of working.

Rachel is a dynamic speaker and has led a highly-regarded seminar titled “Innovation in Retail” at ABX, the annual regional AIA design conference in Boston.

Rachel does everything to the “nines” and never backs down from a challenge. She is the ultimate role model.

Rachel is the youngest Principal at Bergmeyer, and won the PAVE (Planning and Visual Education Award) Rising Star Award in 2008.

Many of her projects have been recognized with prestigious design awards. The flagship store for Restoration Hardware, a 40,000 square foot gut historic rehab in the heart of downtown Boston, garnered many awards including the 2014 ARE Design Award for Store of the Year, the ARE Design Award for Grand Prize Specialty Store, Best Retail Design from the IIDA New England Interior Design Awards, and First Place for Hard Line Specialty Store and Innovation in Store Planning from the Retail Design Institute.

The West Marine Flagship Store in Fort Lauderdale, Florida received the 2011 Chain Store Age Store of the Year Award. The L.L. Bean Outdoor Lifestyle Store received awards for IIDA New England’s award for Best Retail Design and the IESNA Guth Award for Excellence in Lighting.

Other notable projects include: the flagship store for Staples in New York City; the 80,000 square feet Department Store Interiors for Lord&Taylor in Ridge Hill, NY; and programs for Victoria’s Secret, Bassett Furniture, Cabela’s, Nike, Talbots, and Aeropostale.

Rachel recently spoke at the Boston Society of Architect’s Architecture Boston Expo (ABX) with a talk entitled “Listen. Anticipate. Innovate: Creating Value Through Design”. She has been a frequent panelist at GlobalShop, the Retail Design Collective, the Green Retail Conference, and the Retail Design Institute.

Her volunteer work in the Boston design community is long and distinguished serving or having served on or as: Retail Design Institute Board of Directors, VMSD Editorial Advisory Board, USGBC Special Events Committee Chair, USGBC GreenBuild 2008 Host Committee and Director of Volunteers, Boston Society of Architects Membership Committee, and design critic at New England School of Design.”