Selena Senora Cuffe, née Saunders (born 5 November 1975 in
Culver City, California
Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. Founded in 1917 as a "whites only" sundown town, it is now an ethnically diverse city with what was called the "third-most ...
) is an American
businesswoman. She is best known for co-founding Heritage Link Brands, LLC, the largest global importer of black produced wine, with her husband, Khary Cuffe. In January 2024, Selena Cuffe was appointed to the Federal Reserve Bank, Los Angeles Board of Directors.
Early life and education
The only joint child of Dr. Joseph Saunders and Veronica Saunders, Cuffe was raised in the
View Park-Windsor Hills community of
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is th ...
,
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
by her mother. Cuffe's father, Joseph, died one month before her second birthday.
Cuffe's paternal great-grandfather, J. Saunders, was born into slavery. A descendant of the
Ashanti tribe of
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...
, he was freed by the
Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation, officially Proclamation 95, was a presidential proclamation and executive order issued by United States President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, during the Civil War. The Proclamation changed the legal sta ...
at the age of eight. He had 16 children, the youngest of whom was Cuffe's grandfather, Titus Saunders Sr., a de-segregationist of the
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to t ...
public school system who founded the state's first integrated school transportation system. Both of Cuffe's paternal grandparents graduated from college in the 1920s.
Cuffe graduated with an AB in International Relations from
Stanford University. During college, she became a member of
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She also completed the Sponsors for Education opportunity (SEO) program, where she interned for an investment bank on Wall Street. Cuffe also holds a
Master of Business Administration
A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accou ...
, with honors, from the
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA ...
and is certified, with merit, by the
Wine and Spirits Educational Trust. Cuffe is chair of the Nominating & Governance committee of the Harvard Business School Women’s Student Association Alumnae Advisory Board, Vice President Emeritus of the Harvard Business School Alumni Board, and she currently serves on Stanford University's Bing Overseas Studies Program Advisory Council.
Early career
Early in her career, Cuffe worked for
United Airlines
United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois. . During her tenure at the airline, her responsibilities included territorial sales, the promotion of new routes, and business development initiatives related to
united.com and the launch of online travel websites,
Hotwire and
Orbitz
Orbitz.com is a travel fare aggregator website and travel metasearch engine. The website is owned by Orbitz Worldwide, Inc., a subsidiary of Expedia Group. It is headquartered in the Citigroup Center, Chicago, Illinois.
Background
Origina ...
.
She received her marketing training from the
Procter & Gamble Company
The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer ...
in
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state lin ...
, where she served as Assistant Brand Manager for the
Pringles
Pringles is an American brand of stackable potato-based crisps. Originally sold by Procter & Gamble (P&G) in 1968 and marketed as "Pringle's Newfangled Potato Chips", the brand was sold in 2012 to the current owner, Kellogg's.
As of 2011, Pr ...
brand,. Her primary responsibility was managing marketing plans for the
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
and
Mexico
Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...
markets.
In her final position before founding Heritage Link Brands, LLC, Selena was a Director for the
Council on International Educational Exchange
The Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE) is a non-profit organization promoting international education and exchange. It was founded in 1947 and is based in the United States. The organization is headquartered in Portland, Maine.
...
(CIEE), overseeing the promotion of student and work exchanges for 50,000+ people worldwide. She left CIEE in January 2007 to work for Heritage Link Brands, LLC full-time.
Heritage Link Brands
While on an unrelated business trip to
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...
in September 2005, Cuffe decided to visit the first annual Soweto Wine Festival in
Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a Megacity#List of megacities, megacity, and is List of urban areas by p ...
, organised by the Cape Wine Academy. There, she met vintners from the Seven Sisters winery, one of the only black-owned wineries in South Africa. The Seven Sisters were having difficulty exporting to the United States and finding a distributor in their local market. At the same festival Cuffe found that out of South Africa's $3-billion wine industry, less than two percent was owned by blacks. Seeing the inequality – blacks made up over 80 percent of the country's population – and wanting to help the indigenous vintners she had encountered, Cuffe began to craft the idea Heritage Link Brands, LLC.
Heritage Link Brands was founded in October 2005. Cuffe remained with the Council on International Educational Exchange while she financed the new company with her savings and credit cards. In 2006 she brought M'hudi, the first black owned family vineyard in South Africa, post-apartheid into the company's wine portfolio. In January 2007, Cuffe left her job to run Heritage Link Brands, LLC. In the following month, February, the wines were first launched in a test market with
Whole Foods Market
Whole Foods Market IP, Inc., a subsidiary of Amazon, is an upscale American multinational supermarket chain headquartered in Austin, Texas, which sells products free from hydrogenated fats and artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives. A U ...
.
That spring, Heritage Link Brands Wine Club and Shop were established, and
TIME magazine
''Time'' (stylized in all caps) is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on M ...
featured Cuffe and her company in September 2007, exactly two years after Cuffe visited the Soweto Wine Festival. Heritage Link Brands wine can now be found in over 40 states. The company also imports wines from the
Fair Trade certified
A fair trade certification is a product certification within the market-based movement fair trade. The most widely used fair trade certification is FLO International's, the International Fairtrade Certification Mark, used in Europe, Africa, ...
community of Koopmanskloof (producing under the label One World). One World holds the distinction of being the first Fair Trade certified wine to be served onboard any US airline.
Heritage Link Brands has since expanded its horizontal and vertical presence within the wine industry. In 2015, Cuffe began importing wine from France to produce the house red and white wine for the musical ''
Waitress
Waiting staff (British English), waitstaff (North American English), waiters (male) / waitresses (female), or servers (North American English), are those who work at a restaurant, a diner, or a bar and sometimes in private homes, attendin ...
'', Broadway's first ever, all-female creative production team in history. Tickets for the world premiere production sold out. Heritage Link Brands also produces the house wine for Broadway plays,
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and
War Paint War paint is paint ritually applied to the face and/or body prior to going into a battle.
War Paint or Warpaint may also refer to:
Music
* Warpaint (band), an American indie rock band from Los Angeles
** ''Warpaint'' (Warpaint album), 2014 album b ...
.
In 2016, Cuffe negotiated exclusive rights to import award-winning Brazilian wine producer Casa Valduga, home to the largest sparkling wine cellar in South America and famously listed as one of ''1,000 Places to Visit Before You Die''.
In
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...
, in partnership with Burdell Properties, Selena Cuffe negotiated interest acquisition of Silkbush Mountain Vineyards, a property in
Breedekloof
The Breedekloof wine district is one of three districts in the Breede River Valley wine region. It boasts a total of 28 wine cellars (11 producer cellars and 17 private cellars). The Breedekloof represents 14.24% (13 029 hectares) of wine grape vi ...
, 90 km east of
Cape Town
Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second larges ...
, South Africa, in the famous Western Cape Winelands. Its cultivars, planted on sloped hillsides, up to 700 m above sea level, include: Cabernet Sauvignon (26.97 ha), Pinotage (12.85 ha), Shiraz (12.81 ha), Merlot (7.26 ha), Cabernet Franc (4.89ha), Malbec (3.55ha), Petit Verdot (3.95ha), Viognier (3.09 ha), Petit Syrah (2.59 ha), Pinot Noir (2.2ha), Grenache Noir (1.76 ha), Semillon (1.5ha), Sauvignon Blanc (1.5ha) and Mourvedre (1.35ha).
SodexoMagic
In March 2020, Cuffe was named as president of SodexoMAGIC, a joint-venture between
Magic Johnson Enterprises
Magic Johnson Enterprises is an American investment company owned by retired NBA Hall of Fame legend Magic Johnson. In 1995, after some criticism that he only invested with other people's money, Johnson took an equity stake along with what was the ...
and
Sodexo
Sodexo (formerly Sodexho Alliance) is a French food services and facilities management company headquartered in the Paris suburb of Issy-les-Moulineaux. It has 412,088 employees as of 2021, operates in 55 countries and serves 100 million cust ...
, Inc, based in
Beverly Hills
Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...
.
Blackstone Consulting, Inc. & RJB Properties
In April 2023, Cuffe was named Chief Growth Officer for Blackstone Consulting, Inc., an $800M, 9,000-person international service provider, minority business enterprise (MBE), and Corporate Plus member of the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) with a client base that includes the U.S. Department of Defense, Fortune 500 companies, hospitals, schools, universities and industrial sites. In addition, she is Chief Growth Officer of RJB Properties, Inc., a leader in the “K through 12” educational market for janitorial and maintenance services as well as higher education campuses, commercial office spaces, convention centers, military installations, and banks.
Personal life
A mother of three children, Cuffe is married to fellow co-founder of Heritage Link Brands, Khary Cuffe, a graduate of Harvard University's
Graduate School of Business and
John F. Kennedy School of Government. Khary's parents emigrated from
Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispan ...
to the United States in the 1960s. His maternal uncle is
Derrick F. Kellier, Jamaica's former Member of Parliament and Minister of Agriculture.
Honors
* 2022 UCLA Riordan Programs Hall of Fame Induct
* 2019 Brooklyn Library Women Trailblazers Awa
* 201
Les Batisseurs de l'Économie Africaine (Africa Economy Builders Award)* 2016 Life Member, Council on Foreign Relations
* 2016 Riordan Program Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award, UCLA Anderson School of Management
* 2016 Vision in Wine Award, BCAGlobal
* 2015 WABF Venture Competition Judge, University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business
* 2015 Brooklyn Honors, Bedford Stuyvesant YMCA
* 2010 League of Black Women Black Rose Award Recipient
* 2009
Black Enterprise
''Black Enterprise'' is a black-owned multimedia company. Since the 1970s, its flagship product ''Black Enterprise'' magazine has covered African-American businesses with a readership of 3.7 million. The company was founded in 1970 by Earl ...
Magazine, "B.E. Next Entrepreneur of the Year"
* 1993 Glamour Magazine College Woman of the Year (whose winners have also included Hillary Clinton, Oprah Winfrey, Condoleezza Rice, Alexandra Keeman, Martha Stewart and Diane Sawyer)
References
Publications
*International Business, 8th Edition:
Michael Czinkota (Georgetown University),
Ilkka A. Ronkainen (Georgetown University), Michael H. Moffett (Thunderbird School of Global Management), August 2010, ©2011 pgs. 675-678
*How to Open & Operate a Financially Successful Import Export Business: With Companion CD-ROM, Maritza Manresa, Paperback, Atlantic Publishing Company April 1, 2010, pg. 101
*The $100 Start Up: Reinvent the Way You Make a Living, Do What You Love, and Create a New Future, 2012, pgs. 103, 270, 276
External links
Heritage Link Brands, LLCSeven Sisters WineryM'hudi WineryOne World wines
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cuffe, Selena
1975 births
Living people
African-American businesspeople
Businesspeople from California
Harvard Business School alumni
People from Culver City, California
Stanford University alumni
American women in business
People from Ladera Heights, California
21st-century African-American businesspeople
21st-century African-American women
20th-century African-American businesspeople
20th-century African-American women