Emily Hikade

Emily Hikade is the Founder and CEO of Petite Plume, a luxury sleepwear and home company. In 2024, Emily was named EY Entrepreneur of the Year. Also in 2024, Petite Plume was included in the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest growing private companies in the U.S.

Prior to launching Petite Plume, Emily spent over fifteen years under cover in the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), focusing on Counterterrorism. Serving mostly in austere conditions, Emily was on the frontlines of Human Intelligence (HUMINT) collection in the Middle East, Asia and Africa. After a near plane crash during a mission, Emily made the decision to seek out a significant career change.

In 2015, while still living and working abroad, she bootstrapped and launched Petite Plume. Without prior retail experience, Emily built Petite Plume from the ground up and eventually evolved the business into a luxury sleepwear brand for the entire family to now a full lifestyle brand that includes home, bedding and linens. Today Petite Plume is available in nearly 500 stores nationwide, including Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus and is beloved by the Royal Family, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kevin Hart, and so many more. In 2023, Esquire declared Petite Plume “The Best Damn PJs on the Planet.”