Who We Are

Cate Luzio

Founder and CEO, Luminary

Cate Luzio is the Founder and CEO of Luminary, the premier collaboration hub for women who are passionate about professional development and expanding their networks. This 15,000 square foot meeting space in New York City includes a rooftop deck and two floors of open workspace, conference rooms and meeting space, a fitness studio, beauty bar, locker room, lactation room, prayer/meditation room and much more. Luminary is the ultimate career advocate offering members unparalleled programming from office hours with dynamic leaders to a pioneering speaker series. A long-time advocate for empowering women and girls, Cate serves on the National Board for Girls Inc. 

Cate has over twenty years of leadership experience in financial services. Previously, she was the Executive Vice President and Global Head of Multinational Corporate Banking for HSBC managing roughly $2 billion in revenue and teams in 72 countries. Cate also served as a Managing Director and Head of Multinational Corporate Banking at J.P. Morgan. She has received numerous recognitions including being named to the Most Powerful Women in Banking List by American Banker multiple times as well as a two-time recipient of the Financial Times and Heroes Global Diversity Champion in 2017, 2018 as well as Yahoo Finance Heroes Role Model in 2019. Cate was named to Inc.'s 2019 Female Founders 100 List and has also been featured in the Financial Times, Forbes, Wall Street Journal, CNBC, Fast Company, Bloomberg, USA Today, NowThis News, Cheddar, WWD, Robb Report, Women's Health and more. She is a Forbes and Fast Company contributor. 

She holds a master’s degree in International Relations from Georgetown University and a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Maryland. She’s a global traveller having visited more than 114 countries. Cate also sits on the Advisory Board of Girls Inc. NYC as well as the National Board of WaterAid.

Luminary: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook: @BeALuminary 

Cate: @CateLuzio (Instagram) / @KTLuzio (Twitter) 

 

 

 

Erica Lerner

Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel

Erica Lerner is an experienced founder in the real estate and health and wellness industries, with a demonstrated history working in project finance, tax and corporate law, international tax, due diligence, and corporate structuring, as well as mergers and acquisitions. After nearly a decade of working in legal and corporate environments, most recently in mergers and acquisitions at Deloitte, Erica sought out new projects to foster her curiosity and develop her strengths and achieve independence.

In 2017 she co-founded Xtend Tribeca, a premier fitness studio and the first Manhattan location for Xtend Barre. Since Xtend Tribeca’s opening, Erica has been on a mission to provide a home for thousands of women looking for creative and effective workouts in a secure, safe, judgement-free setting. Erica is excited to continue her mission in her role as the Chief Operating Officer of Luminary and to develop a new home for thousands of professional women throughout New York City and beyond.

Surabhi Lal

Chief Impact Officer

Surabhi is passionate about developing talent, cultivating good management, and creating cultures where individuals and teams thrive. She is especially interested in understanding the workplace and how it impacts people’s lives. As a skilled career coach and Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach she has a natural ability to see someone's unique talents and motivations in people and knows that a career impacts many facets of one's life. She gets great joy from making the unwritten rules of a job search more explicit to create equity and guiding others on their journey to career success.

She spent the last four years sitting at the intersection of conversations with job seekers and employers in the social impact space, as the Director of Career Services at NYU Wagner. Her career has spanned launching an educational site in India from the ground up, working in grant-making, and building capacity with young talent in New York City. Surabhi holds a M.Ed from The University of Vermont and two undergraduate degrees from Virginia Tech and has presented at conferences nationally. She is an Assistant Adjunct Professor of Public Service at NYU Wagner.

When she’s not savoring her craft as a coach, manager, mentor, and mother, you can find her feeding her creativity, traveling, exploring food markets, cooking, and (of course) eating.

Romana Ryals

Head of Programming and Affiliate Partnerships

Originally from the Bay Area, I moved to NYC almost a decade ago. I've spent the majority of my career working in nonprofits focused on empowering and preparing young people to pursue their own dreams. Along the way, I've been extremely fortunate to have empowering supporters pour into both my professional and personal development. I know I would not be where I am without these champions so I look forward to joining an even more expansive community of dedicated professionals. I believe that finding the best solutions involves elevating as many voices as possible so with my background in program development I hope to create opportunities that do just that.

Christine Cook

Director of Events & Program Strategy

Christine is the Events Manager at Luminary. She has a background in event planning and digital marketing and a passion for making a difference in the community around her. She loves to execute seamless events that create opportunities for women to develop, network, and connect. Christine enjoys working alongside energized and driven colleagues who are just as passionate about empowering women, which makes Luminary a perfect home for her!

Before joining the Luminary team, Christine planned corporate events for a nonprofit consulting company and a New York City charter school. She was born and raised in New York and received her Bachelors degree in Psychology from University of Maryland. In her spare time, Christine likes to try new foods, experience new cultures, and run along the East River. 

Rachel Basoco

Head Of Community Experience

Radha Mantri

Head of Customer Insights

Radha holds an MBA degree from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA) and has 4+ years of experience in brand management, business development and strategic planning. After graduating she worked as a Brand Manager with India’s largest retail chain “Future Group” and launched a baby care brand “Puretta”. She independently defined product portfolio, pricing strategy, go-to-market strategy for the brand and launched in 100+ cities. She also served as a Chief of Staff to the CEO and worked on business strategy and sales acceleration projects.  

Radha then moved to an ecommerce furniture market place - “Pepperfry”. During her stint there, she successfully led a team of 8 and developed a robust lead management system and CRM for a new business function. She was also responsible for Data analytics and Category management of Kitchen Appliances and Modular Furniture.

Radha is excited to be part of Luminary and its enthusiastic team which is driven towards the mission of creating a gender equal world.

Radha is a trained classical Kathak dancer and spends her free time learning new dance forms and choreographies. She is a board game enthusiast and loves traveling. 

Jen De Leon

Wellness Director

Born and raised in Sydney, Australia, Jen de Leon moved to New York City to work as a singer and dancer in musical theatre and commercials. In 2012, after moving back to her hometown, Jen kicked off her career in fitness, managing Australia's XTEND BARRE flagship studio in Sydney. Just two years ago, she took her leadership skills back to the Big Apple to manage the city's first XTEND location. Now she serves as Fitness Program Manager for Luminary, a dream job for her as it combines her two greatest passions: spreading the joy of movement and promoting women empowerment.

Melissa Keller

Director of Partnerships and Engagement

Melissa joins the Luminary team after most recently serving as Senior Director of Strategic Partnerships at Tina Brown Live Media for the past six years.  At TBLM, she managed partnerships and on-site sponsor activation for the renowned Women in the World summits and salons presented domestically and internationally.

Prior to that, Melissa spent her 20+ year career in media—ranging from digital, print and custom publishing to graphic design, events, and sports marketing. This included more than 14 years at Time Out North America with her last position as Associate Publisher.

Melissa holds a degree in Journalism & Public Relations from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. 

Lauren Mcarthur

Community Manager

Lauren McArthur is a Community Associate at Luminary. She is passionate about female empowerment and cultivating diverse and inclusive spaces. She is especially interested in expanding employment opportunities for neurodiverse women. Her strengths include a keen eye for detail, innovative ways of problem-solving, and seeing the best in people.

Born and raised in New Jersey, she has a passion for film, dogs, and helping people. She used those passions when working at Uplift Studios, International Charter School of NY, Bow Tie Cinemas, and volunteering with PAWS NY. She is very excited to be part of Luminary and contribute to the success behind the scenes.

Kelsey Gonsalves

Community and Program Manager

Kelsey is a recent graduate of Seton Hall University where she studied Communication and the Arts. Kelsey decided to study Communications because she believes that it is something that can help us greatly in today's society.  As an early graduate, Kelsey is hoping to get into graduate school to continue her education and broaden her horizons. 

Dani De Boulay

Community Manager

I call myself a “creative committed to public service.” My professional background is in positive youth development, community outreach, and nonprofit management. Currently, I’m the Director of Operations for an all-women strategy consulting firm for urban planning and racial equity projects. In 2020, I launched my side hustle as a freelance Creative Director for influencers and musicians. I will envision and direct the absolute HECK out of a video or photo shoot. I’m also a singer myself. I’m the most extroverted introvert you’ll meet and I’m looking forward to meeting you!

Sarah Belle Esmenda

Community Manager

Hi, I'm Sarah! I am a driven and empathetic Filipino-American woman looking to make a difference in the world. I have a range of experience in property management and dance education and performance, but my main passion is to uplift and aid underrepresented and underprivileged populations. I am looking to find my ikigai -- my calling that combines what I love, what I'm good at, what the world needs, and what I can be paid for.

Sydney Kaplan

Events & Marketing Intern

Branin Ward

Brand Marketing Intern

Hello, my name is Branin Ward and I am completing a bachelor’s degree in Marketing at the University of Maryland with a minor in social innovation and nonprofit leadership. I grew up in a small town in Maryland with my parents, one sister, and two cats. I have always been an indecisive person so coming to college and choosing a major was difficult; however, I have always loved working in a collaborative environment and the business school at UMD had such a great reputation. I went the marketing route, and am very excited to take on this new marketing role with the Luminary team.