Debra G. Perelman '00

Debra G. Perelman is an award-winning CPG leader who has driven transformative growth for global businesses in her roles as CEO, board leader, and strategic investor. Recognized for her paradigm-breaking approach to scaling operations, embracing digital innovation, pursuing market expansion, and adopting strategic portfolio optimization over the past 25 years, she has earned broad industry acclaim for her record of delivering sustainable financial performance across public and private global businesses.

With a keen ability to assess operations, leadership, finances, and staffing, Debra pinpoints exactly what a company needs to achieve its goals. Those who have worked with her recognize her rare talent for seeing the full picture — connecting the numbers that tell a story with the people who drive the business forward.

Today, Debra is a successful advisor and angel investor focused on partnering with investors and management teams to scale CPG brands including Stripes Beauty, Sakara Life, RescueMD, Powered by Hue and Mizz Korea. While currently serving as executive chair of Stripes Beauty and as a director at Sakara Life, she continues to drive impact in her board roles within larger corporations such as AMC Networks (AMCX), the Audit Committee, Sally Beauty (SBH), and more. She also sits on Mastercard's CPG innovate steering committee.

In 2021 Entrepreneur Magazine named Debra one of their 100 Women of Impact, and Dealmakehers.com listed her as one of the year's top retail CEOs. In addition, in 2018, she was named the Newsmaker of the Year by Women's Wear Daily (WWD) Beauty Inc Awards for becoming the first female CEO of a large, publicly traded global beauty company after Revlon's board appointed her as their first-ever female president and chief executive officer.

As CEO of Revlon (May 2018-September 2023), Debra recharted the company’s course, devising a new corporate strategy prioritizing profitable growth, innovation, and digital transformation across the organization. Prior to that, she was a senior executive at MacAndrews & Forbes, managing a diversified portfolio of public and private companies. She also supported M&A activities for Scientific Games, Clarke American, the John H. Harland Company, and Valassis Communications.

Debra is also a dedicated philanthropic leader. In 2010, she co-founded the Child Mind Institute (CMI), a nonprofit dedicated to destigmatizing mental illness, providing advocacy and evidence-based treatment options for childhood mental illnesses. She has been on the Partnership for New York City's executive committee, on the boards of numerous hospitals, and held advisory roles on the board of overseers at Columbia Business School, where she earned her MBA. She also served on the president's advisory council at Princeton University, where she earned her BA, cum laude.

Debra lives in New York City with her husband, four children, and three dogs.