Spring 2000
VOLUME 12, ISSUE II
Web Address: www.eddiebauer.com


Dulce Villalobos
Keeps Eddie Bauer in Balance


For Dulce Villalobos, life is one big balancing act. Not only is she a wife of a busy attorney, mother of a 19-month old daughter (Olivia Isabela), and expecting another baby in August, but Dulce holds down the vital job of Senior Manager of Development for Eddie Bauer. In this position, she "balances what the company is looking for aesthetically against what is achievable from a garment manufacturing standpoint and which fits in with the company's financial parameters."

The job, a newly created one at Eddie Bauer, fits Dulce's background perfectly. At the international retailer for the past 10 years, she has held a variety of positions, starting on the catalog side of the business, moving on to retail as a Buyer, then landing in the Sourcing division. In Sourcing, Dulce traveled regularly to Asia and Latin America meeting with factories, working through production issues, and settling on garment prices. She also advised the company about which countries were best for business, based on such weighty concerns as tariffs, duties, quota and import issues.

A graduate of the University of Washington, Dulce grew up in Seattle with a sister and working-class parents in a neighborhood she describes as "multi-cultural but predominantly African American." She entered the retail industry in 1984 out of college through a management training program at the former Frederick and Nelson company in Seattle, working her way up to a position as a buyer. She traveled regularly to New York to work with vendors until she left the company in 1990 to join Eddie Bauer.

"Ten years ago, I felt a sense of isolation here, but Eddie Bauer has made great strides in its commitment to diversity. Now, the company gives high visibility to issues of diversity and the associate population is more reflective of the communities we serve. I'm encouraged and feel much more of a comfort level here," Dulce explained.

In part, her optimism comes from participating in the company's Diversity Advocates committee. The committee, with representatives from various parts of the company, focuses on ways to strengthen existing diversity programs and creates new initiatives.

When she addresses young people at the Hispanic Career Fair, sponsored by the Professional Latino Network in Seattle annually, Dulce said she tells them to "have an open mind" when entering a corporate job. "See what it is you can do, as an individual, to advance the company. Maybe you are the one that can help enlighten them, to lead them to where they need to be."