Board of Directors
Patrick J. Connolly – Williams-Sonoma, Inc
(co-founder, Chairman)
What he does for VA: Provides the marketing, systems, and strategic direction for the company.
Background: Pat is executive Vice President/Chief Marketing Officer of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. For the past 32 years, Pat has focused on building the direct-to-consumer business at Williams-Sonoma. He serves on the board of directors of Williams-Sonoma, Inc and Cafe Press, Inc. Pat holds an MBA from Stanford University and a BS in engineering from Oregon State University.
Ahin Thomas – Vintners’ Alliance
(co-founder, President)
What he does for VA: As co-founder and President, Ahin oversees all corporate activities.
Background: Prior to Vintners’ Alliance, Ahin was the Director, eCommerce for Sears Holdings. He holds his MBA from Wharton, BS from Georgetown University (Government). A Bay Area native, Ahin is also an experienced musician and songwriter.
Jorge del Calvo – Pillsbury Law
What he does for VA: Jorge provides counsel on a variety of issues and is particularly experienced with the business and legal issues experienced by rapid growth companies.
Background: Jorge has been the go-to Silicon Valley lawyer for many, many years. Since the year 2000, Jorge has led the nation in representing issues in completed technology IPOs.
John Eastburn – Kohlberg Ventures
What he does for VA: A Private Equity and Venture Capital veteran, John has unique insights in nurturing early and growth stage companies.
Background: John has been with Kohlberg Ventures since 2007. Prior to that, he was a senior executive in entertainment, manufacturing, and retailing companies
Thampy Thomas – Nexgen Microsystems
What he does for VA: Thampy is systems expert- both technology and business processes.
Background: At Nexgen, Thampy led the development of the first competitive alternative to Intel’s Pentium processors. He’s an investor and director of several early-stage companies. Fun fact: He is also Ahin’s Dad.