b'ALUMNISTORYGDS did a great job of creating a supportive, safe environment in which the focus was on the learning and growth rather than achieving a perfect outcome.By Caroline Brown 10ALEXANDRA FORTUNE 10Odds are you have visited a weddingAs Art Director, Fortune plans to website or registry on Zola. Did you knowcontinue making changes. The company Alexandra Fortune 10 was most likelyhas evolved, and I think theres a lot of behind the design? When Zola launchedroom for opportunity for the visual brand their wedding planning platform, sheto evolve as well, so its exciting and designed almost all of the weddingdaunting to have that much opportunity.websites. The years she spent on GDSs athletic As the 44th employee of a now nearlyteams helped her prepare for her 200-person company, Fortune has beencurrent role. I feel cheesy saying this, but on the front line of its growth. Since sheI learned a lot about leadership through started, Zola has added a whole suite ofplaying sports at GDS. Understanding wedding planning tools, opened offices inthat being a good leader isnt necessarily Charlottesville and Canada, gone throughabout being the best or having all the Series D fundraising, and launched ananswers has allowed me to be a better invitations and paper business.manager and mentor.My job description has practicallyFortune studied journalism at UNC. After rewritten itself every year, she said. Igraduating in 2014, she moved to New feel really lucky to have joined when I didYork City to work for Rent the Runway and to have had the opportunity to growhaving successfully interned with them with the company. Most people I talked tothe summer before. While at RTR, she hadnt heard of Zola when I started, so itslearned what a creative career path could been exciting to see how those responseslook like and formed a group of mentors. shift over the years into people who have actually used it. The greatest lesson Fortune took with her from her time at GDS is that its OK to It was notably special the first time shetry things and fail. GDS did a great job received a save the date from her line inof creating a supportive, safe environment the mail. Even though I had seen thesein which the focus was on the learning a million times, it was still so exciting toand growth rather than achieving a perfect think, I made that! and now someone isoutcome.using it for their wedding.More than anything, the people made When they launched their paperher time as a Bengal so memorable. Our invitation business in 2018, she andgrade had a lot of lifers, and it was both only one other designer created over 150a nightmare and a delight to share in designs. Its fascinating to be a part ofthe awkwardness of adolescence/early building platforms like that from theadulthood with the same group of people. ground up. I love that I get to problemI think its really rare and special that, to solve without working in a spreadsheet allthis day, many of my closest friends are day. classmates I met at age 5 at GDS. Somebody grab me a tissue.At the start of this year, she was named Art Director, a big milestone that reflects her dedication, creativity, and leadership. 74 | Summer 2019'