People

Altenew was founded by Tasnim Ahmed and Jennifer Rzasa in 2014. The leadership team spans product development, operations, marketing, design, and education, and works across the United States, the United Kingdom, Chile, and the Philippines.

Founders

Tasnim Ahmed

President and Co-Founder.

Tasnim holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, awarded in 2010. She discovered stamping in 2011 and started her blog, Cards & Bookmarks, in 2012.

She decided to design stamps in June 2013 and co-founded Altenew the following April, motivated by the absence of culturally diverse and contemporary designs in the crafting market. She leads product development at Altenew.

She is the named inventor on two US patents covering the Stampwheel, both titled "Positioning aid for a stamping tool": US Patent 11,312,165, granted April 26, 2022, and US Patent 11,541,676, granted January 3, 2023. A matching patent was granted in China, CN217804016, on November 15, 2022.

Blog: cardsandbookmarks.com

Full profile: Tasnim Ahmed, with her patents, timeline, and story in her own words.

Jennifer Rzasa

Co-Founder.

Jennifer studied viola performance at Boston University and holds a Master's degree in Education. She lives in Massachusetts, just outside Boston.

She discovered paper crafting in 2006, and it became a serious hobby in 2010, when she started her blog, Our Change of Art. She has been published in many paper crafting magazines, has worked as a design team member for various companies, and hosted the Runway Inspired Challenge.

She is also a published illustrator who paints fashion illustrations. Her background in classical arts and illustration shapes the botanical design direction Altenew is known for.

Blog: ourchangeofart.blogspot.com

Leadership

Nabil Rab

CEO.

Nabil holds a Bachelor's degree in Behavioral Biology from Johns Hopkins University, awarded in 2005, and an MBA from New York University, awarded in 2011. Before joining Altenew full-time, he worked in healthcare technology and management consulting, project and portfolio management, pediatric neuroscience research, and the non-government sector.

He provided the initial seed funding to launch Altenew and has provided increasing business and leadership oversight since 2014. He is the contact for partnership opportunities, suggestions on Altenew's products and services, and business strategy.

Nicole Picadura

Marketing Director.

Nicole has been part of the Altenew team since 2015. She spent about 10 years overseeing operations before becoming Marketing Director.

She was born and raised in South Korea and studied International Business Management in Hawaii. She has been a stamper and card maker since 2007 and works in the Clean and Simple style. Layered stamping is one of her favourite techniques, and watercolour is her main colouring medium. She teaches classes on Altenew Academy and Zoom.

She designed the Honoring Kirby stamp set, inspired by her first corgi, Kirby.

Instagram: @nicolescards

YouTube: youtube.com/@NicolesCards

Roxanne Queddeng

Operations Manager.

Roxanne is based in the Philippines and holds a Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering from De La Salle University. She spent her teenage years in Brunei Darussalam.

Before joining Altenew in 2021, she built her career in manufacturing, logistics, and oil and gas. She is a Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt and focuses on continuous improvement and operational excellence. She is a planner and journal enthusiast who brings crafting techniques into her planning.

Email: roxanne@altenew.com

Lydia Evans

Creative Ambassador.

Lydia holds a degree in English and Media and is based in Buckley, Flintshire, North Wales, in the United Kingdom.

She began scrapbooking in 2009 after the birth of her son, and moved into stamping in order to make her own patterned paper. She works in a Clean and Simple style, sometimes with many techniques underneath. She has been published in a number of magazines, teaches card classes, and has represented Altenew on UK craft television channels.

Instagram: @lydia.b.evans

YouTube: youtube.com/@misslydiabrooke

Maryam Pérez

Graphic Design Team Manager.

Maryam is based in Chile and has worked in the paper crafting industry since she was very young. At Altenew she designs products, handles product photography, and leads the graphic design team.

Instagram: @maryampdesign

YouTube: youtube.com/MaryamPerezDesign

Semir Kahvedzic

Warehouse Manager.

Semir holds a Bachelor's degree in Criminology from the University of South Florida. He was born in Bosnia and Herzegovina and moved to the United States as an adolescent.

Before joining Altenew in 2020 he worked in law enforcement, manufacturing, and education. He served as a State Trooper with the Florida Highway Patrol, worked in alloy-based metal and pharmaceutical manufacturing, and taught English as a foreign language to middle and high school students in Turkey, Belgium, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Email: semir@altenew.com

Educators

Altenew works with certified graduates of the Altenew Educator Certification Program, who teach independently under the programme. Named graduates include Aditi Mahajan, Elizabeth Ortiz, and Revati Panickar.

See Education for the certification programme and the Educator Directory.