Kristina Bruder M.S.

Although I’m from Nebraska, I’ve considered myself a Texan for over 20 years now. I teach all the Textiles courses, the Product Development classes, and Global Sourcing in CMHT. I have undergraduate degrees in Fashion & Textile Design, French and a Master of Science in Textile Science where I worked in the Pesticides and Textiles program at the Univeristy of Nebraska-Lincoln.  I also spent over 20 years in Quality Assurance and Product Development. Much of that time was spent in service to the merchants, designers, sourcing managers and product managers of J. C. Penney and to our supply chain (garment manufacturers, textile mills, chemical providers). They were all my customers. I've been a Product Evaluator for Quality at the Testing Labs, a Mill Manager in Sourcing, a manager of the Textile Library and Workroom, and a Fabric Developer. I loved seeing the fabrics I developed end up on the sales floor. My specialty was connecting product innovation from the supply chain to the right products in J. C. Penney Private Brand. Temperature control, stain release, dual action repellent finishes, wicking, and antimicrobials are just a few of the product attributes I have helped to develop at J. C. Penney. Adding an antimicrobial finish to team gear helped boost sales over $1 million!  But my favorite things to do are play with fabric, read, travel, watch my child play sports and advise people on textile selection.