Kara O’Brien is SVP of Marketing at Rue Gilt Groupe, where she leads engagement and growth strategy for a portfolio of leading off-price fashion retailers. She is known for building high-performing, data-driven marketing organizations that connect brand storytelling with measurable business impact.
Prior to Rue Gilt Groupe, Kara spent over a decade at Wayfair, where she held senior leadership roles across merchandising, performance marketing, media, and brand. Her innovative approach to brand media and measurement earned her recognition as an Ad Age Leading Women honoree in 2025. Prior to Wayfair, Kara began her career at Oliver Wyman consulting for large retail organizations to deliver operational improvements by democratizing data and insights.
Kara holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BA from Harvard University. Outside of work, she can often be found searching for sea glass on the beach with her kids, exploring the outdoors as a hiking novice, or squeezing in nine holes of golf.