BSYA Series: Leading Ladies of Logistics & Supply Chain
Sara Mayes
Sara Mayes, President and CEO of Gemini Shippers Group, started her career in shipping and logistics in 1966, 10 years after Malcom McLean introduced containerized shipping. While working for a chemical importer in Queens, New York, the import manager position suddenly became available and Sara was thrilled to be offered the opportunity to expand her responsibilities to international shipping. After working for the chemical company for several years, using the old teletype machines and learning to read the dots, she took a break to have her daughter, and then went into the garment import field and, from there, into the accessories industry. In 1985, she became her company’s representative to Fashion Accessories Shippers Association – newly formed by members of the National Fashion Accessories Association.
Fashion Accessories Shippers Association (FASA) and Gemini Shippers Group led the formation and evolution of the shipper’s association model which was first approved after the passing of the 1984 shipping act. In 1989, she was named FASA’s president.
From 1985 to 2001, while volunteering as FASA’s president, Sara also worked in the accessories industry, running her company’s international shipping and customs compliance departments. Along the way, she got her customs brokers license. In 2001, she went to work full-time for the association, which, by then, was doing business as Gemini Shippers Group.
Sara was lucky enough to have great mentors and also smart enough to realize that, if you surround yourself with smart people, you look good and your work gets easier.
Under Sara’s leadership, Gemini quickly rose to be a leader in the fashion accessories and garment import category. Volumes and membership more than quadrupled and, today, Gemini Shippers Group serves over 250 member companies, covering all commodities. Sara has set apart Gemini as the most technologically innovative shippers association in the United States. She was an early adopter of the use of technology in shipping and, under her guidance, Gemini created its own in house proprietary IT platform. Her efforts to innovate in this space led the early adoption of EDI integration for track and trace, automated rate search, contract processing and automated rate audit. Sara’s continued push to leverage technology continues today with her drive to integrate new technology for satellite tracking, visualization and automating payment platforms into the Gemini platform. Sara has also fostered a strong link to mentorship and education. Coming from a family of educators, Sara has been a strong proponent for scholarship in our industry. She has led Gemini’s effort to promote education in the industry through the Gemini Scholarship program which has funded scholarships at several universities and trade groups including CONECT and FIT. Sara has also personally endowed scholarships at her alma mater, Queens College, as well as at the University of Michigan. Gemini was chosen to represent industry as a member of the Federal Maritime Commission’s Supply Chain innovation team, and in 2018, she led the incorporation of the Fashion and Jewelry Accessories Trade Association into Gemini Shippers Group. Sara’s work on education extends outside of her role at Gemini. She serves on the Board of Directors of the International Trade and Marketing Department of Fashion Institute of Technology and has been a regular speaker and contributor to many publications and trade events. She has also served our country as a participant on the U.S. Commerce Department’s industry advisory committees during her career.
A graduate of Queens College in New York with a B.A. in philosophy, Sara disappointed her family by not becoming an English teacher. However, they would probably be proud of her, especially for being honored with the Intermodal Institute Lifetime Achievement Award.