Liz Wald
President, EDImpacts

Liz Wald launched her consulting practice, Economic Development Impacts (EDImpacts), in 2008 with the goal of assisting socially-minded businesses achieve both their financial and mission related goals. This focus grew out of her work during the previous five years founding and managing a fair trade import business, Economic Development Imports (EDImports), that sourced goods handmade by women living in marginal socioeconomic conditions throughout Africa. While no longer directly importing or selling these products, EDImports exists as the parent company of the consulting practice.

Prior to founding EDImports in 2003, Liz Wald spent ten years in strategic consulting and retail management. With two partners, Liz built, managed and sold a consulting firm that focused on classic strategy disciplines (e.g., business planning, market and financial analysis, partnership structure, and organization management) for Internet businesses and traditional companies looking to move into e-commerce. While honing these skills, she simultaneously gained valuable entrepreneurship and operating experience by building a company, hiring and managing a team, and forging client-relationships with junior staffers and senior executives alike.

After five years, two acquisitions and a public offering, Liz left her firm and stepped out of the workforce to explore the world. A year of travel to the remote regions of India, Pakistan, Bhutan, China, and Central Asia enhanced her global perspectives and helped shape her desire to use her business talents to effect change both domestically and abroad.

In 2002 Liz returned to New York where she volunteered as the Chief Operating Officer for a nonprofit service organization, MBA Corps, whose mission is to create jobs and stimulate sustainable development in financially disadvantaged communities throughout the U.S. This experience both solidified her resolve to focus on economic development and further equipped her with the skills necessary to accomplish her goals.

Liz's professional history also includes work with The Disney Stores and Nike Inc., where she opened the first Nike Town superstore and developed procedures for launching and managing retail outlets nationwide.

Liz holds a master's of business administration (MBA) in marketing and finance from Northwestern University's Kellogg School, and a BA in sociology from Harvard University. A natural explorer, she has traveled to more than 50 countries, and enjoys adventure activities, softball, skiing, and crossword puzzles.