About Us.

Your Change Allies in the Ever-Changing Today

We empower omnichannel retailers and brands to go from surviving to thriving. By offering fit-for-purpose retail modernization services supported by expert collaboration, we align people, process and technology to make your vision a reality.
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Professionalism

We are highly competent, but open to learning new skills. We are adaptable in high-pressure situations – always maintaining our poise and professionalism. We are conscientious and accountable, never blaming others if things go wrong.
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Quality

We take no shortcuts. Every step in the project undergoes thorough testing and peer review. In the end, the outcomes of our projects are consistently stable, while adaptable to changing needs.
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Trust & Reliability

Our determination is to do what we say we will do. This means you can count on us to fulfill commitments on time and on budget.
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Focus

We stay in our lane, respecting the boundaries of other parties involved in our projects. At the same time, we never lose sight of your overall project objectives.
Meet the team

The Faces Behind Makira

Our team consists of a group of very talented and experienced professionals with tremendous longevity in the Retail IT industry. We work hard, we play hard, and we are committed to providing our best to our clients and partners.
Andrew Miller

Andrew Miller

Co-Founder & Managing Partner

Andrew formed Aydept in 2015 to bring disciplined project management to mid-sized retailers. Before Aydept, Andrew was President of Signal Creek Technology where he managed enterprise projects for government agencies and large commercial firms in the public and private sectors. Andrew wanted to return to retail because of his love gained earlier in his career as IT Director of Vail Resorts Retail. He and his team bring a wide range of experience in retail applications and depth of competencies. Andrew lives with his wife and 3 kids in Denver, Colorado where he enjoys trail running, hiking 14ers, biking and skiing.

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Andrew Miller
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Andrew Miller
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
Rick Boretsky

Rick Boretsky

Co-Founder & Managing Partner

In 2005 Rick left NSB (Aptos precursor) as director & senior manager of the retail merchandising suite. He founded RIBA Retail, and soon after focused his effort to address the retail data integration problem – the persistent, pervasive problem that wasn’t getting the attention it deserved. Now Rick’s team has mastered every nuance of data integration for retail; driving down cost, reducing delivery, and eliminating disruption. Living his entire life in Montreal, Rick is an avid cyclist and tennis player, and enjoys family activities with his 4 kids.

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Rick Boretsky
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Rick Boretsky
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
Andrew Hasse

Andrew Hasse

Director, Professional Services

For ten years, Andrew has brought enormous positive energy into his work in a wide variety of initiatives across many retail sectors. A PMP-certified Project Manager, Andrew demonstrates that disciplined project management results in the best possible outcomes without unnecessary costs and unwarranted delays. Clients admire Andrew’s ability to stay cool and professional in the face of the inevitable twists and turns of large-scale projects.

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Andrew Hasse
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Andrew Hasse
Director, Professional Services
Tyrone Munn

Tyrone Munn

Sr. Solution Design Architect

Tyrone has over 20 years of retail experience, working with US retailers VF Corp. and WSS in roles as diverse as Project Manager, to Business Analyst and later Vice President of IT. During his career, he has been involved in major implementations of Aptos, High Jump and PKMS among others. Tyrone brings this unique perspective to his role at Makira, helping us enhance how we work with our clients and partners.

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Tyrone Munn
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Tyrone Munn
Sr. Solution Design Architect
Mike Charow

Mike Charow

Senior Project Manager

Mike joined the team with 20 years of experience in project management. After working for huge companies like Ford, Delphi, and General Dynamics, he brings to retail a profound understanding of supply chains processes. Mike is accomplished managing the nitty gritty of projects such as scheduling, allocating resources, budgeting, and change. Mike recently enhanced his experience with Aptos recently by working on projects at Vail Resorts Retail and Under Armour.

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Mike Charow
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Mike Charow
Senior Project Manager
Michael Holland

Michael Holland

Director, Technical Services

Michael joined Makira in 2018 where his unique expertise with OMS helps clients face the significant digital challenges. Michael brings two decades experience as a Senior Director, Product Development at STS, now Aptos, working across the spectrum of retail applications. He understands that a retailer’s digital success depends on brilliant OMS integration at all levels. The goal is to support and enhance the omni-channel experience for as many retailers as possible.

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Michael Holland
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Michael Holland
Director, Technical Services
Juan Fassone

Juan Fassone

Director, Development

Juan has been with Makira for more than ten years after immigrating to Canada with his young family from Argentina. From his years integrating retail back office systems, Juan understands retail’s digital transformation. Juan has experience and knowledge in a wide range of software technologies. His commitment to innovation and leadership has resulted in our toolset to drive down the cost and uncertainty of data integration. Juan brings to each project his winning style, humor, and fun.

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Juan Fassone
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Juan Fassone
Director, Development
Tina Oxendine

Tina Oxendine

Project Manager

Tina joined the Makira team with over 15 years of retail and project lead experience. After working in wireless retail operations, merchandising, inventory and management, Tina went on to several years of project managing. Her PM years began with the City of Greenville, as she led all police related technology endeavors. Since joining Makira, Tina has worked with clients such as The Paper Store and Paper Source. In addition, she has taken on Aptos projects and worked with one of their esteemed clients, Michael Kors.

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Tina Oxendine
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Tina Oxendine
Project Manager
Geoff Tollefson

Geoff Tollefson

Senior Project Leader

Geoff joined the team in 2015 bringing his unique mix of retail knowledge, business education, work / sales experience, technical knowledge, and project implementation management. Geoff’s expertise enabled him to hit the ground running at Makira making huge contributions in marquee projects through his professionalism, efficiency, loyalty and energy. Outside of Makira, Geoff is a proud father who takes active vacations with his family.

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Geoff Tollefson
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Geoff Tollefson
Senior Project Leader
Sebastian Butierrez

Sebastian Butierrez

Senior Developer

Sebastian has been working with Makira as a senior developer for nine years. He specializes in .NET technologies and he is very familiar with Makira’s procedures and operating methods. The presence of Sebastian has always been extremely beneficial in ensuring a smooth running of our daily operations. He lives in Argentina, loves soccer and to play Padel Tennis.

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Sebastian Butierrez
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Sebastian Butierrez
Senior Developer
Barak Frierson

Barak Frierson

Technical Business Analyst

Barak joined the Makira team with over 5 years of retail technology experience. During this time, he held various positions starting from Help Desk Technician to Business Analyst to DBA/Developer. Barak's responsibilities varied across end-to-end retail Supply Chain and Analytics, and he has been involved in major implementations of Aptos and High Jump solutions. In his new role at Makira, he will support our clients with their integrations and development processes.

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Barak Frierson
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Barak Frierson
Technical Business Analyst
Mia Gaventa Saks

Mia Gaventa Saks

Senior Project Manager / Marketing Advisor

Mia worked most of her career in a variety of roles at Aptos and its precursor companies (STS and Epicor): Engagement Manager, Marketing Analyst, Project Manager, and Application Specialist. She possesses a deep knowledge of retail and knows firsthand what it takes to deliver tangible benefits through technology. With Makira, Mia contributes her talents in Marketing, Client Delivery, and Project Management.

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Mia Gaventa Saks
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Mia Gaventa Saks
Senior Project Manager / Marketing Advisor
Patricia Pace

Patricia Pace

Senior Project Manager

Patricia joined Makira with over 20 years of experience in the retail industry and over 10 years of project management experience. Most of her career was at the precursor companies of Aptos (STS, NSB and Epicor) in various roles. She also worked at Aldo Group as Project Manager to help implement Salesforce Service Cloud and Marketing Cloud and most recently at XCCommerce as Project Manager and Director of PMO. Patricia excels at multitasking, communication, customer service and process improvements.

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Patricia Pace
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Patricia Pace
Senior Project Manager
Angelo Pace

Angelo Pace

Senior Business Analyst

Angelo joined Makira with over 30 years of retail software implementation experience, a strong technical background with software integration and professional services leadership experience.  He worked at Aptos (formerly Epicor/NSB/STS) for 23 years in various roles and projects and more recently at Wynshop (Online Grocery) and Mi9 Retail as Senior Director of Professional Services.  Angelo has a good understanding of both business and technical aspects of retail software implementations with technical experience in POS, Sales Audit, OMS and Ecommerce.  

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Angelo Pace
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Angelo Pace
Senior Business Analyst
David Boys

David Boys

Senior Developer

David joined the Makira team as a consultant in early 2021, bringing with him 20 years as a Senior C# .NET developer with Aptos. While at Aptos, David specialized in scoping, designing and coding client-driven custom development solutions for the Connected Retailer Point-of-Sale, with occasional forays into other Aptos offerings. David is an avid word game enthusiast and has earned multiple awards, most notably as the winner of the World Scrabble Championship in 1995, and the Canadian Championship in 2003.

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David Boys
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David Boys
Senior Developer
George Peppin

George Peppin

Senior Project Manager

George comes to Makira with 31 years of experience in the retail software industry, at companies that include JDA, Apropos, and ANT USA. He has held positions as Business Analyst, Project Manager as well as in Software R&D. In his downtime, George can be found pursuing his passion for ski instructing and chasing the ultimate powder line.

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George Peppin
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George Peppin
Senior Project Manager
Jessy Sebastian

Jessy Sebastian

QA Lead

Jessy has over 25 years of experience in software testing, across a variety of retail product suites. The majority of her career was spent at Aptos (formerly Epicor/NSB/STS). In her off time, Jessy enjoys being physically active and pursuing adventure travel with family and friends.

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Jessy Sebastian
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Jessy Sebastian
QA Lead
Maurizio Marzilli

Maurizio Marzilli

Principal Analyst

Maurizio brings to every project his considerable talent, experience, and vision. His retail domain expertise and solid technical foundation enable him to bridge between business users and technology. Prior to Makira, he was for many years an invaluable technical resource at STS/NSB (now Aptos). Before joining Makira in 2010, he refined his skills as the IT director for a major online retailer. Maurizio’s lasting gift to every client is the agility gained from his vigilance on reusability and extensibility.

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Maurizio Marzilli
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Maurizio Marzilli
Principal Analyst
MEET THE ADVISORY TEAM

Our Trusted Advisors

Diane Randolph

Diane Randolph

Trusted Advisor
Diane’s vast experience as C-suite leader and retail technology visionary boasts a consistent record of innovative results. For 12 years as CIO, most recently at Ulta Beauty, she accomplished enterprise-scale digital transformation. Prior to this, over 20+ years at STS/NSB (now Aptos), Diane rose to become the Development Executive of “Connected Retailer”. We are proud to have her as part of our Makira advisory team and to benefit from her strategic leadership, passion for people and her excellent reputation among retail technology professionals.
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Diane Randolph
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Diane Randolph
Trusted Advisor
Bill Robinson

Bill Robinson

Trusted Advisor
Bill has, throughout his long career, pioneered successful applications in all areas of retail technology. As an executive for STS/NSB Bill worked closely with the team to fulfill customer’s expectations in retail technology. We gain from Bill’s deep background in, knowledge of, and passion for the retail industry and use his skills and industry contacts as a coach, business developer, writer, analyst, speaker, teacher, facilitator and visionary.
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Bill Robinson
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Bill Robinson
Trusted Advisor