Designer/Inventor-Corporate
(OVER 500) 

Courtney has led the development of numerous doll and toy initiatives for Disney Parks guests, always grounded in storytelling, quality, and delight. Whether supporting a new Disney film or a beloved Park attraction, she brings fresh ideas, trend-right thinking, and inspiring leadership to move products from concept to shelf. She fosters collaboration and innovation across teams, ensuring each product resonates with guests. The result is meaningful, memorable products that allow guests to bring the magic home through dolls and toys that capture the heart of Disney storytelling.

As Design Lead for NBCUniversal’s Preschool portfolio, Ellie Morlino has demonstrated exceptional leadership through her stewardship of marquee brands like DreamWorks Animation’s Gabby’s Dollhouse, the #1 preschool girls’ show on Netflix. Facing aggressive timelines and a fast‑evolving toy landscape, Ellie adopted an owner’s mindset - guiding products from concept to execution while maintaining brand integrity and quality. She proactively embraced new systems and tools to streamline development and elevate creativity. Her leadership directly contributed to the strong performance and continued success of the Gabby’s Dollhouse product line, delivering innovative and commercially successful solutions. 

In a time of change and evolution, she championed her team, transforming ambiguity into an opportunity to rethink how Creative operates. She strategically redesigned operating models and delivered increased output efficiently. At the same time, she elevated creative impact. She was instrumental to the successful launch of the break-through “Mattel Brick Shop” brand, creating an elevated, sharp, focused vision for an important new endeavor for the company. She did this by championing a clear vision and pushing her team to expand its thinking and bring bold ideas to life through insight and storytelling and delivered a bold new brand.

Heather has played a pivotal role in bringing Squish-a-longs to life. Her deep expertise and passion for the Sanrio property enabled her to create a line that is both thoughtfully designed and authentically aligned with the brand. She expertly balances creativity with brand integrity, contributing to the success of Hello Kitty and Squish-a-longs. Heather also mentors a junior designer on a high-profile plush project, helping build critical development skills. Beyond execution, she drives innovation by exploring new play patterns and licensing opportunities, consistently bringing forward thoughtful ideas, challenging the status quo, and advocating for product evolution.

Jacqui Sullivan has led the design of some of Exploding Kittens’ most successful products, including Hurry Up Chicken Butt (Toy of the Year nominee, 2023) and Exploding Kittens: The Board Game (Toy of the Year, Game of the Year, 2026). She brings a deep understanding of product design, from shelf presence to unboxing and interaction, consistently elevating games from strong concepts to standout products. A defining example is Survivor: The Tribe Has Spoken, where she transformed complex packaging constraints into a functional, iconic game component. She has also scaled her output significantly while maintaining exceptional quality and creativity.

Kim Matilla is a prolific designer whose innovation has shaped some of Moose’s most successful global brands and driven sustained creative and commercial success. Among her impressive accomplishments:
- Created and elevated blockbuster brands: Her creative fingerprints are all over Shopkins, Bluey, Little Live Pets, Doorables, Pikmi Pops and more, helping build enduring, top-performing
franchises
- Secured new innovation opportunities: Leads internal and partner pitches that convert into new product lines and brand extensions, fueling Moose’s growth pipeline
- Bridges creativity and commercial reality: Designs with deep consumer insight and retail understanding, ensuring ideas translate into scalable, high-performing products

Melissa Hershey has consistently led industry-leading, award-winning innovation in animatronic and mechanical product development at Hasbro. Her work has pushed the boundaries of design and engineering, culminating in one of the company’s most ambitious creations to date—a confidential licensed product set to be announced in the weeks leading up to the WIT awards. Through her leadership, Melissa continues to deliver breakthrough products that blend creativity, technology, and commercial appeal, reinforcing Hasbro’s position at the forefront of innovation in toys and entertainment.

Mollie has been an important part of the Spin Master design team working on many breakthrough products like Cool Maker and most recently supported the flawless launch of 'Hatchin' Yoshi,' one of our high-complexity products that is already exceeding sales expectations, showcasing her ability to deliver creative solutions, collaborate, and ensure market success with our critical partners at Nintendo and Universal. She continuously drives significant cost-savings initiatives while preserving the product's magic and play value. And as the engineering “mastermind” behind our high-complexity product, Mollie consistently tackles some of our toughest technical challenges with creativity, calmness, and foresight.

Was lead designer behind "My Mini Baby" a product that disrupted the doll category - making top 50 item list in US and driving 5-Surprise to #3 property in dolls, with one item alone. Wendy actively participates in various fashion doll design exhibitions and has built a large following on Instagram. She skillfully infused the mini baby series with the same refined craftsmanship and fashion-forward aesthetics that define her fashion doll creations. This innovative approach transformed Mini Baby line from collectible toy into premium, boutique-style product, significantly enhancing its competitiveness and establishing it as one of ZURU’s best-selling collections in 2025.