[Past Event] The SPAC Phenomenon

Carlos Alvarez is a Managing Director in UBS, based in New York, where he leads the Permanent Capital Solutions franchise. Prior to joining UBS in 2018, Carlos had a 20-year career at Deutsche Bank, where he was most recently Head of Permanent Capital and oversaw the SPAC banking team.

Over his career, Carlos has advised clients across numerous products including M&A, ECM, DCM and de-novo fundraises. At UBS, Carlos leads an experienced team dedicated to providing investment banking services to SPAC clients, and has personally advised on 75+ SPAC IPOs and business combination transactions dating back to 2005.

Carlos has an MBA from Columbia Business School, a BS in International Business from Northeastern, and a BS in International Business Studies from Universidad Pontificia Comillas (Spain).

Emily Cegielski is an award-winning multimedia journalist and editor based in New York City, currently serving as the Editorial Director at Worth Media.

Prior to joining the Worth team, she worked as a Senior Editor at the New York Observer, where she built out its Business, Tech and Innovation vertical—refining beats, recruiting expert contributors and leading a team of staff reporters and freelancers. Previously, she worked as Director of Digital Media at High Times, where she drove creation of cannabis-related stories; programmed content; managed social media; planned and executed marketing campaigns for High Times events; covered breaking news; edited content; and led a site redesign.

In the past, she has worked as a staff writer, photographer, designer, copy editor, fact-checker, section editor, managing editor and senior editor for a wide array of newspapers, magazines and websites. 

Jim McCann is a successful entrepreneur, business leader, author, media personality and philanthropist whose passion is helping people deliver smiles. Jim’s belief in the universal need for social connections and interaction led to his founding of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc., which he has grown into one of the world’s leading floral and gourmet gifting companies.

Jim’s willingness to embrace new technologies that enhance customer engagement, such as 800 phone numbers and e-commerce, often long before other retailers, has consistently kept 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. ahead of the curve and positioned it as a leading innovator in the marketplace. These innovations have played a vital role in strengthening customer engagement, something that has always been a key element of Jim’s business philosophy.

Jim’s strategy for growth has included an effective combination of birthing and acquiring new businesses and brands that resonate with customers for their gifting and celebratory occasions. The company’s gift offerings include iconic brands such as Harry & David®, Wolferman’s®, Cheryl’s® Cookies and The Popcorn Factory®, as well as Simply Chocolate®, Personalization Universe® and 1-800-Baskets.com®, among others.

Jim is also deeply involved in philanthropy and is especially devoted to helping individuals with developmental disabilities. This includes his continued work as Founder and Chairman of Smile Farms, a 501(c)3 organization established in 2015. Smile Farms provides meaningful jobs in agricultural settings to young adults and adults with developmental disabilities, allowing them to master new skills, experience teamwork, contribute to their community and, importantly, take home a paycheck. As a result, Jim was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Long Island Business News 2019 Corporate Citizenship Awards.

In 2018, Jim established Clarim Holdings, a private holding company that expands market opportunities for clients by providing capital along with an extensive network of high-tier support partners. Jim also serves as a director for The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, Amyris and International Game Technology PLC, as well as a variety of private and not-for-profit boards.

Sharon began her career in financial services in 1983 at Kidder, Peabody & Co., which was later acquired by Paine Webber Inc. and UBS. She is a long-standing member of the UBS Chairman’s Circle, comprising the firm’s top Financial Advisors. Sharon has garnered numerous accolades and recognitions from the industry throughout her career. Of note, she has been named to the Barron’s Top 100 Women Financial Advisors list every year since the list’s inception in 2006. Barron’s also featured her in an exclusive article titled “All in the Family” in its Best Advice Column in December 2012. Sharon has been recognized on Irish America magazine’s The Wall Street 50 list also every year since 2006 and was named to its inaugural Top 50 Power Women list in 2016. She was also named to Forbes’ inaugural list: Top Women Advisors in 2017 and again in 2018 and 2019, and Financial Times‘ Top 400 Advisers list in 2014 and 2017, Sharon has also provided industry insights on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” and “Closing Bell,” and on Barrons.com and WSJ.com.

Sharon’s leads a 15 person team, spanning four generations.  They have the training, global knowledge, diverse perspective and insight to serve successful families, individuals, family offices and institutions, navigating all aspects of complex, intergenerational wealth and challenging markets.

Sharon is also a Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA^®). A native New Yorker, Sharon began her career in textiles and fashion upon receiving a B.A. degree from the College of Mount Saint Vincent in Riverdale, NY.

A dedicated philanthropist, Sharon is Chairman of the board of overseers of the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF), Secretary of the board of directors of the Careers through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP), and in the Chairman’s Circle of the James Beard Foundation. Sharon also spends time as a Sustaining Angel of 100 Women in Finance and a member of the Economic Club of New York. She was a key member of the UBS Small Business Advisory Program, a joint venture with the Clinton Global Initiative; and was previously chairman of the board of the Women’s Venture Fund.

Sharon enjoys family, cooking, gardening, golf and mentoring and sponsoring young women.

She and her husband reside in Manhattan and Remsenburg, Long Island