board spotlight: Mecca Mitchell
Mecca Mitchell -
SVP, Leadership & Organizational Transformation, DEI, and Community Impact for Burlington Stores, Inc.
Mecca Mitchell is the Senior Vice President overseeing Leadership & Organizational Transformation, Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, and Community Impact for Burlington Stores where she leads efforts to create institutional structures that build knowledge and capabilities across the workforce, while also fostering welcoming and inclusive environments that promote growth and development. Mecca focuses on cultivating cultures that engage and empower to drive business objectives, while responding to the evolving needs of the workforce, customers, and communities.
Prior to joining Burlington Stores in 2021, Mecca was a Senior Vice President for WMCHealth Network where she led efforts to create enriched work environments for employees, ensure positive health outcomes for patients, and build partnerships with external stakeholders. Mecca was previously appointed to serve in the New York State Governor’s Executive Office as New York State’s Chief Diversity Officer overseeing statewide workforce initiatives, while also leading efforts to ensure economic equity by increasing Minority & Women-Owned Business procurement opportunities.
Mecca began her career practicing law as an Assistant District Attorney in the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office where she prosecuted assorted criminal matters as a member of the Trial Division.
While Mecca’s career trajectory may appear to be non-linear in nature, the common thread of “advocacy” is woven throughout each of her roles. The professional realms may have changed, but her passion for increasing access and opportunities for everyone to make a meaningful contribution at work has remained steadfast. Overseeing one of Burlington’s Centers of Excellence, she has also worked with internal stakeholders to enhance talent management efforts, expand learning and development offerings, and build up pathways of ascension for future retail leaders. Mecca believes that it’s important for emerging talent in retail to find their true north, exercise professional agility, and be unapologetically ambitious in their pursuits to have a rewarding career.
Mecca is proud to contribute to Burlington’s legacy as a Caring Company and embraces her role as a change maker who believes that leaders today owe a collective responsibility to the next generation of fashion industry talent to not only create space for them, but to propel them forward in every way possible.
In addition to her newly appointed role serving on the Board of Governors for the Fashion Scholarship Fund, Mecca serves on the Board of Temple University Fox Business School’s Center for Ethics, Diversity and Workplace Culture, she serves as the inaugural Chair for the NRF’s DEI Committee, she previously served on the Board of the United Way of Westchester & Putnam Counties, and has volunteered as a mentor for Judge Judy’s Her Honor Mentoring Program for the last eight years.
Mecca has been the recipient of numerous awards and accolades including: The NRF Foundation’s 2024 List of People Shaping Retail’s Future, Crain’s New York Business Notable Black Leaders and Executives Honoree, Athena International Award Honoree, and National Diversity Council Most Powerful & Influential Woman Awardee.
Mecca holds a bachelor’s degree from the SUNY Albany where she double majored in Political Science and Criminal Justice. She received her law degree from Hofstra University School of Law and is licensed to practice in both New York and New Jersey. She also received certifications from Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations in Diversity Management and Equal Employment Opportunity Studies.
She currently splits her time between residences in Rockland County, NY and Brooklyn, NY with her husband Eugene Mitchell and four children - Julien, Jordyn, Amir, and Tatiana.