DUBAI — Former Saks Fifth Avenue media relations chief Lori Rhodes has moved to fashion and retail specialist agency Berns Communications Group as its global director.

Rhodes, who is based in Dubai, joins the New York agency to lead its global brand marketing expansion. She was previously head of luxury and retail business development at integrated marketing firm OneCMG, where she ran activations for The Dubai Mall, The Galleria in Abu Dhabi and other brands in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

Previously, she headed up retail marketing for Al Tayer Group, leading the company’s department store, luxury, beauty, hospitality and lifestyle marketing teams. Rhodes has worked on brand development, content creation, customer engagement and partnerships in the US and the Middle East for retail, fashion and luxury brands including Bloomingdale’s Middle East and Harvey Nichols Dubai.

Before moving to the Middle East in 2015, Rhodes was partner and MD at Lividini & Co in New York, where her clients included Hudson’s Bay Company, Tiffany, Godiva and Fossil. Earlier in her career, she was VP, media relations and special events, at Saks Fifth Avenue, where she created some of the store’s most memorable campaigns and partnerships. She began her retail public relations career at Cartier.

BCG president Stacy Berns said: “The pandemic-accelerated consumer shift toward e-commerce has prompted many brands in the US and elsewhere to seek new avenues of growth by expanding internationally. As brands navigate a hyperconnected global community, it’s imperative that we offer our clients deeper international market knowledge.

“Lori’s expertise in brand development, digital content creation, and retail marketing and communications will be invaluable to us as we expand our international footprint. Lori will serve as our anchor in the Middle East to support our many clients based in Europe.”

Rhodes added: “Retail is borderless and the industry has repositioned itself for a post-Covid world that’s more digitally driven, customer-centric, and both globally and sustainably oriented. It’s an exciting moment to help brands tell their stories to new audiences in new geographies and I’m thrilled to join Stacy and her team, whom I’ve known for years.

“Stacy’s ability to stay ahead of shifts in the retail industry has always impressed me, as has her focus on women-led businesses and her ability to facilitate access to capital. The breadth and depth of the BCG team’s media and industry relationships is a testament to their expertise.”

BCG’s current client roster includes Alibaba, Chargeurs, eShopWorld, Klarna, Wefox and other US companies expanding globally. The agency is a champion of women-led initiatives and facilitates access to capital through The DealmakeHers, a network of leading female dealmakers in the retail and consumer industries that was co-founded by Berns.