The New Jersey Business & Industry Association on Friday announced three appointments to its Board of Trustees who collectively bring a wealth of experience in higher education, engineering, manufacturing, and growing small businesses to the expanded 20-member board.
The appointments made at the July 17 NJBIA board meeting include Gary Fisch, founder & CEO of Gary’s Wine & Marketplace, a thriving four-unit business in North Jersey; Teik Lim, Ph.D., president of the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT); and Sarah Switlik, the chief operating officer of Switlik Survival Products, a family-owned manufacturing company in Trenton that has grown to become a leading innovator in safety and survival equipment.
“NJIBA is fortunate and grateful to have these outstanding trustees join our expanding board,” said NJBIA President & CEO Michele Siekerka. “The valuable input and experience they bring to our highly engaged board further supports our mission to advance the competitive excellence of all New Jersey businesses.”
Gary Fisch, Founder & CEO, Gary’s Wine & Marketplace
In 1987, Fisch opened a small wine shop in Madison that has grown to be one of the largest fine wine businesses in the New York metropolitan area, with three stores in northern New Jersey. Fisch’s vision of one-stop shopping has been key to the success of Gary’s Wine and Marketplace, which also offers cheese and meat cases, chocolate and dessert cases, and giftware in addition to its extensive selection of wine, beer, and spirits. GarysWine.com offers shipping nationwide, keeping pace as the internet wine business comes of age.
Dr. Teik Lim, President, NJIT
Lim’s career has spanned the private sector to university administration. He is the 9th president of the state’s acclaimed polytechnical research university and holds the title of Distinguished Professor of Mechanical Engineering. A renowned scholar and educator who grew up in Malaysia, Lim is NJIT’s first Asian-American president and is leading NJIT’s mission to create a strong technological and physical infrastructure that prepares students to be leaders in the technology-dependent economy of the 21st century. Prior to joining NJIT in 2022, Lim led the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) as interim president from 2020-2022.
Sarah Switlik, COO, Switlik Survival Products
Switlik is a fourth-generation member of a family-owned business that began in 1920 as a small canvas and leather manufacturer. By the 1930s, it had grown to become the largest manufacturer of parachutes in the country. Today, the company has evolved and diversified with an emphasis on the commercial market. Its high-quality safety and survival products for the aviation, marine and military markets include Federal Aviation Administration-approved inflatable life vests and life rafts, United States Coast Guard-approved life rafts, and military specification products such as anti-G suits, anti-exposure suits. Before rising to her position as COO, Switlik’s previous roles included vice president of sales and marketing, marketing manager, marine sales manager, and marketing director.
The complete list of all members of the New Jersey Business & Industry Association Board of Trustees is below.
- Clifford F. Lindholm, III, Chairperson, President & CEO, Falstrom Company
- Lori Roth, CPA/ABV, CFF, Vice Chairperson, Co-Managing Partner, Prager Metis
- Denise Beckson, VP of Human Resources & Government Relations, Morey’s Piers
- Marcy Bliss, Strategic Advisor and Board Member, Wedgewood Pharmacy
- Tim Corriston, Managing Partner, Connell Foley
- Gary Fisch, Owner, Gary’s Wine & Marketplace
- James W. Horne Jr., President & CEO, Junior Achievement of New Jersey
- Anthony Iacono, Ph.D., President, County College of Morris
- Jaclyn Kator, Regional Vice President, External Affairs, AT&T
- Teik Lim, Ph.D., President, New Jersey Institute of Technology
- Rebecca O’Connell, EVP, Head of NY Metro Corporate Banking, Citizens Bank
- Nick Rafanello, President & CEO, Eastern Janitorial Company
- Celestina S. Quintana, Owner/Operator McDonald’s restaurants
- Michael Reagan, Senior Vice President of Consulting Services, CGI
- Michael Renna, President & CEO, South Jersey Industries
- Gail Friedberg Rottenstrich, CEO & Co-Founder, ZAGO Manufacturing
- Deanna Sperling, MAS, RN, NE-BC, President & CEO, RWJBarnabas Health Behavioral Health Center
- Sarah Switlik, COO, Switlik Survival Products
- Rick Thigpen, Senior Vice President-Corporate Citizenship, PSEG
- Dave Vitali, Manager, Public Policy DE/NJ/PA, Amazon
