William, (Bill), Pinkston has over 30 years of experience as a retail industry leader. He is known for providing exciting innovative merchandising concepts and product assortments, and leading successful operational teams within the specialty retail, and themed entertainment industries.

Over the course of his career, Bill has successfully managed and directed the growth of several top U.S. retail companies including: GapKids, Gymboree, and J. Crew.

Shifting his focus to Themed Entertainment, Bill served as head of the Retail division for Six Flags Magic Mountain in Los Angeles for over 11 years. During his tenure at Six Flags, Bill directed the merchandising and visual merchandising efforts for Warner Bros. Movie World in Madrid, Spain for its grand opening.

Bill joined the team at Warner Bros. Consumer Products in the themed entertainment division to oversee the development of “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter” within the Universal Studios Theme Parks in the U.S. and Japan. This led to a move to the United Arab Emirates to lead the retail development for Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi, a fully immersive experience of WB brands completely indoors.

In Abu Dhabi, his responsibility soon grew to include the retail oversight, direction and development for Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, Yas Waterworld, Sea World Abu Dhabi, Qasr Al Watan (the Presidential Palace) and a consulting role with the Louvre Abu Dhabi museum.

As an International Retail Consultant, Bill has developed and restructured retail concepts in Europe, Asia, the Middle East and North America.

Bill holds a BS degree in business management from the University of Florida. The product of a military family, Bill has lived in 11 U.S. states, 4 European countries, (Austria, Germany, Italy, France), China, Sri Lanka, and most recently, the United Arab Emirates.