Catherine Barba is a French entrepreneur based in NYC since 2015, when she launched the PEPS Lab, a Retail Innovation Center that discovers the newest, most promising omnichannel practices, from fashion brands to global organizations. PEPS Lab has a rapidly growing list of major retail brands, of both French and American origin, including Orange, AccorHotels, L’Oréal, Axa, L’Occitane, Nespresso…

She is the author of several books about e-commerce and retail, including « 2020, the end of e-commerce » or « Stores are not dead ».

A digital pioneer in Europe, Catherine has founded several digital businesses in France. Her consulting firm Malinea was acquired in 2012 by the founders of vente-privee.com, one of France’s first unicorns. Her previous company Cashstore, a cash-back website partnering with over 1,200 e-commerce merchants, was acquired by Plebicom Group in 2010.

A trusted advisor and mentor, Catherine serves on the board of several successful tech startups, including Leetchi, Reech, Retency, and she is a member of the Board of Directors of Renault and Etam.

Since 2009, she serves as a regular commentator on one of the leading French News Programs, BFM Business. In 2014 she launched a TV program series to promote women entrepreneurs in France (Entreprendre C grandir). Over the years, Catherine has actively promoted women in business and women in tech, mostly out of strong gratitude for the opportunities her career path in the tech world has given her. She co-founded the Journee de la Femme Digitale in France in 2013, and founded the Women in Innovation Forum NY in 2016.

As a thought leader in digital entrepreneurship and digital transformation, Catherine had over 200 speaking engagements in 2015 alone. She was named one of 50 most influential figures in Europe’s digital economy in 2015 and 2016 and in 2014 one of 3 most influential female figures in France.