Tiffany Daniele
e.l.f. BeautyAbout Tiffany Daniele
Independent Class II director at e.l.f. Beauty since May 2022; age 43. Currently CFO of Union Square Hospitality Group (USHG) LLC and former CFO of USHG Acquisition Corp (SPAC). Tenure through 2027; serves on the Audit Committee and is designated an “audit committee financial expert,” with extensive retail finance experience and a B.A. in Commerce from the University of Virginia .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Union Square Hospitality Group, LLC | Chief Financial Officer | Oct 2020–present | Senior finance leadership for multi-restaurant group |
| USHG Acquisition Corp (NYSE: HUGS) | Chief Financial Officer | 2020–early 2023 (wound down) | SPAC CFO; public markets and transaction readiness |
| Cole Haan, Inc. | VP, FP&A | Feb 2020–Jun 2020 | Corporate FP&A leadership |
| Tapestry, Inc. | VP, Global Corporate FP&A | Dec 2017–Feb 2020 | Enterprise FP&A; multi-brand retail |
| Kate Spade & Company | FP&A roles | Jan 2012–Dec 2017 | Brand-level finance |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Union Square Hospitality Group, LLC | Chief Financial Officer | Current | Private company CFO; hospitality, no direct competitive overlap with mass cosmetics |
| USHG Acquisition Corp | Chief Financial Officer | Prior | SPAC wound down in early 2023; capital markets experience |
Board Governance
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Independence | Independent under NYSE standards; Board is 89% independent |
| Committee assignments | Audit Committee Member; designated “audit committee financial expert”; financially literate |
| Chair roles | None (Audit chaired by Lauren Cooks Levitan) |
| Attendance | Each director attended ≥75% of Board/committee meetings in FY2025 |
| Years of service | Director since May 2022; current term ends 2027 |
| Lead Independent Director | Lauren Cooks Levitan; executive sessions held regularly |
| Skills (self-identified) | Capital allocation; consumer products; corporate governance; financial literacy; information services & technology; international business; marketing/sales/business development; operations; public company; retail/beauty; risk management; senior leadership; strategic planning |
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer | $45,000 | Non-employee director program |
| Audit Committee member retainer | $7,500 | Per member |
| Annual equity retainer (RSUs, time-based) | $140,000 | Granted at annual meeting; vests at next annual meeting or first anniversary, whichever earlier; accelerates on change-in-control |
| Lead Independent Director retainer | $20,000 (not applicable to Daniele) | Role-specific; for Lead Independent Director |
| FY2025 actual (Daniele) cash fees | $52,644 | Includes committee retainer and any RSU-in-lieu elections, if applicable |
| FY2025 actual (Daniele) stock awards | $139,931 | Grant-date fair value of RSUs |
| FY2025 total (Daniele) | $192,575 | Sum of cash and equity |
Performance Compensation
| Element | Structure | Metric Targets | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Director RSUs | Time-based RSUs only | None (no performance metrics for directors) | Vests at next annual meeting or first anniversary; full vesting immediately prior to change-in-control |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Type | Role | Potential Interlock/Conflict |
|---|---|---|---|
| None disclosed | Public company board | N/A | No public board interlocks disclosed in proxy |
| USHG LLC | Private company | CFO | No disclosed related-party transactions with e.l.f.; hospitality is non-overlapping with mass cosmetics |
| USHG Acquisition Corp | SPAC (prior) | CFO | No ongoing interlock; SPAC wound down early 2023 |
Expertise & Qualifications
| Domain | Evidence |
|---|---|
| Financial literacy & audit expertise | Audit Committee member; “audit committee financial expert” designation |
| Retail/consumer finance | Roles at Tapestry, Kate Spade, Cole Haan; USHG CFO |
| Capital allocation & strategic planning | Skills grid; CFO roles |
| Technology/Info Services exposure | Skills grid indicates capability |
Equity Ownership
| Measure | Amount/Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Total beneficial ownership (as of Jun 27, 2025) | 5,634 shares | 4,813 common shares + 821 RSUs vesting within 60 days; <1% of shares outstanding |
| RSUs outstanding (Mar 31, 2025) | 821 | 100% vest at 2025 annual meeting, subject to service |
| Options | None | No options outstanding disclosed |
| Ownership guidelines | Minimum 5× annual cash retainer for non-employee directors | Applies to all non-employee directors; those serving on Aug 24, 2023 have 5 years from that date to comply |
| Hedging/pledging | Prohibited by Insider Trading Program | No hedging, pledging, margin accounts; pre-clearance required |
| Related-party transactions | None disclosed beyond normal director compensation | Audit Committee reviews related-party transactions >$120k; none reported other than compensation |
Insider trades (recent)
| Date | Type | Securities | Post-transaction holdings | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 21, 2025 | RSU grant | 1,203 RSUs (no price; equity grant) | 6,837 (includes 1,203 RSUs) |
Governance Assessment
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Strengths
- Independent director with deep consumer and retail FP&A background; Audit Committee financial expert—supports strong financial oversight .
- Board independence (89%) with regular executive sessions and a Lead Independent Director; directors meet attendance expectations (≥75%) .
- Director pay skewed to equity (FY2025 ~73% equity, 27% cash via RSU fair value vs fees), aligning incentives; strict anti-hedging/anti-pledging policies enhance alignment .
- Clear stock ownership policy (5× cash retainer), with a five-year compliance runway for directors serving on Aug 24, 2023 .
-
Potential issues to monitor
- Dual responsibilities as a sitting CFO (USHG) may constrain bandwidth during peak audit/earnings cycles; however, Board states directors are not “over-boarded” and meet attendance thresholds .
- No disclosed related-party transactions; continue monitoring for hospitality-related marketing or events that could create indirect relationships—Audit Committee policy in place .
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Signals affecting investor confidence
- Audit Committee composition (Levitan chair; Daniele and Keith members), all independent and financially literate; formal audit, pre-approval and independence processes disclosed .
- Strong shareholder support for executive pay (FY2024 say-on-pay ~94%), indicative of broader confidence in compensation governance framework .
RED FLAGS: None disclosed regarding pledging/hedging, related-party transactions, meeting attendance shortfalls, or director overboarding in the proxy .