Chairman and CEO
Jockey International |Â Kenosha
Debra Waller has led family-owned apparel company Jockey International Inc. since 2001 as chairman and chief executive officer.
Headquartered in Kenosha, Jockey has more than 1,600 employees across its operations in North Carolina, New York, Canada, Hong Kong and Germany, and the company licenses and distributes its apparel in more than 120 countries.
Waller joined the company in 1982 as an administrative assistant and the following year became merchandise manager of Jockey for Her. She went on to become a vice president, senior VP and executive VP before being named CEO, succeeding her mother, Donna Wolf Steigerwaldt. In 2005, Waller founded Jockey Person to Person, a direct-selling division through which independent salespeople sell higher-end Jockey items.
An advocate for adoptive families, Waller established Jockey Being Family, a charity focused on supporting families after they have adopted a child. Since 2005, the organization has contributed $11 million in support of post-adoption initiatives.
Waller has served on the boards of directors of The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, Church Mutual Life Insurance Co., Marshall & Ilsley Bank and Carthage College. She was a founding member of the now-dissolved MargaretAnn’s Place, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing peer support groups and services for grieving children, teens families and communities.
Education: Bachelor’s, Carthage College
2022 Wisconsin 275 Profile
Manufacturing
Chairman and CEO
Jockey International Inc. | Kenosha
Debra S. Waller was named chairman and chief executive officer of Jockey International Inc. in January 2001, succeeding her mother, Donna Wolf Steigerwaldt, as leader of the family-owned apparel company.
Best known for its brand of underwear, Kenosha-based Jockey has roughly over 5,000 employees and reported just over $443 million in revenue last year.
Waller joined the company in 1982 as an administrative assistant and the following year became merchandise manager of Jockey for Her. She ascended the company ranks, assuming vice president, senior VP and executive VP roles before being named CEO.
In 2005, Waller founded Jockey Person to Person, a direct-selling division through which independent salespeople sell higher-end Jockey items.
The same year, she founded Jockey Being Family, a charity focused on supporting families after they have adopted a child. Waller herself was adopted as an infant.
Waller has served on the board of directors of The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, Church Mutual Life Insurance Company, Marshall & Ilsley Bank and Carthage College. She was a founding member of the now-dissolved MargaretAnn’s Place, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing peer support groups and services for grieving children, teens families and communities.
Education: Bachelor’s, Carthage College