Tom Herndon was recently inducted into the Retail Legion of Honor for Lifetime Achievement in January 2008 by the Institute of Store Planners (recently rebranded as the Retail Design Institute).

As the senior Partner on RYA's management team, Tom serves as CEO and Partner of the firm, helping RYA's retail clients strategize to achieve their business goals by creating selling environments that work. Since coming to RYA in 1976 from J.C. Penney, Tom's primary focus has been on projects. His experience and leadership skills enable a seamless working relationship with clients in developing unique and creative selling strategies. Continually on the global pulse of retail trends and developments, clients benefit from a depth of understanding that can only be gained from first-hand problem-solving with many of the best merchants in the world. He believes RYA is only as good as the last project we have completed and is committed to bringing the world's best consulting to those we serve.

Tom has worked with clients worldwide including Hudson's Bay and Holt Renfrew in Canada; David Jones in Australia; Almacenes Paris in Chile; House of Fraser in the UK; El Puerto de Liverpool in Mexico; and Hankyu, Central, and Metro in the Far East. He has worked with domestic clients coast-to-coast that, most notably, include Neiman Marcus, Fossil, Federated Department Stores, Bloomingdale's, J.C. Penney, and Belks. Tom creates selling environments that maximizes all of our client's return on their investment, build and support their image, operate efficiently, inspire their sales associates and customers alike, and ultimately, give them a competitive edge. Tom exemplifies a common trait of the RYA professional — the knowledge of the retail industry combined with the knowledge of strategic planning, design, and merchandise presentation.