Brands
Levi Strauss & Co.
Levi Strauss & Co. (LS&Co.) announced a series of leadership changes, effective Nov. 30, designed to position the company for the future. As direct reports to Chip Bergh, president and CEO of LS&Co., these leaders together will be responsible for driving the company’s strategic growth agenda.
To build on the existing strength of the Levi’s brand, the company is promoting its chief marketing officer, Jen Sey, to brand president. The Levi’s brand organization will bring together marketing, design, merchandising and brand experience to drive a center-led brand vision and execute with a consumer-centric focus globally.
Liz O’Neill will become chief operations officer and build on the strength of the operational backbone of LS&Co.’s global supply chain by driving digitization, sustainability and agility, including the ongoing rollout of the company’s F.L.X. technology. Seth Ellison, previously executive vice president and president, Europe, is being promoted to chief commercial officer (CCO), leading the company’s global commercial operations. As CCO, Ellison will leverage the diversification and DTC-first mindset successfully operationalized in Europe to amplify commercial growth across all channels and markets.
To accelerate the company’s digital transformation, Marc Rosen, executive vice president and president, Americas, is taking on an additional role leading a new Digital Enterprise Office. In this capacity, Rosen will work with technology, business, data and artificial intelligence leaders across the company to set the company’s enterprise-wide digital agenda.
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Tapestry
Tapestry Inc. named Joanne Crevoiserat its full-time CEO.
Crevoiserat, who joined Tapestry in August 2019 as chief financial officer (CFO), has been interim CEO since July, when former CEO Jide Zeitlin resigned over misconduct allegations.
Zeitlin, who was part of the team at Goldman Sachs that helped the company—then known as Coach Inc.—complete its $118 million initial public offering in October 2000, had been named CEO in September 2019, following the departure of Victor Luis.
Prior to joining Tapestry, Crevoiserat was executive vice president and chief operating officer at Abercrombie & Fitch Co. from February 2017 to June 2019.
The company’s brand portfolio includes Coach, Kate Spade and Stuart Weitzman.
Columbia Sportswear
Columbia Sportswear Company announced a series of senior leadership changes executing on transition plans, supporting the company’s omnichannel plans for growth and unlocking digital opportunities.
Thomas B. Cusick announced his intention to retire from the company. In February, Cusick will step down from his role as executive vice president (EVP) and chief operating officer and transition to a part-time role assisting with operational matters, including significant information technology and supply chain initiatives to ensure optimization of these key strategic investments until his retirement from the company in the second half of 2021. Cusick joined Columbia in September 2002 as corporate controller and served as chief financial officer from 2009 until assuming his most recent role of chief operating officer in 2017.
In accordance with pre-established transition plans, Lisa A. Kulok, senior vice president of global supply chain operations and manufacturing, will become EVP and chief supply chain officer, and Jim A. Swanson, senior vice president (SVP) and chief financial officer (CFO), will become EVP and CFO, both reporting directly to Tim Boyle, chairman president and CEO.
Brent Beeson, vice president of apparel manufacturing, will become SVP of manufacturing, reporting directly to Kulok.
In addition, the company has made changes to its senior leadership organization to support its omnichannel plans for growth. Franco Fogliato, EVP and Americas general manager, will lead the company in focusing on the omnichannel experience by transitioning to EVP of global omnichannel.
As a result of this change, vice president and general manager for EMEA Matthieu Schegg will report directly to Fogliato, as will SVP for Asia Direct Peter Rauch.
In addition to leading all direct markets, Fogliato will facilitate a close partnership among channel leaders to share best practices and support global Columbia brand goals. To support Columbia brand e-commerce strategies, Patricia Higgins, vice president of e-commerce, will transition to SVP of e-commerce, reporting directly to Fogliato. Higgins will continue to directly manage the North America e-commerce operations, while expanding her scope globally to provide strategic guidance and best practices to enhance the company’s global Columbia brand e-commerce businesses.
NPD Group
The NPD Group named Susan Merrill president of its U.S. apparel practice.
Merrill succeeds John Deputato, a 10-year veteran of NPD and practice head for the majority of those years, who is retiring this month. In her new role, she will be responsible for overseeing NPD’s extensive portfolio of apparel services and product offerings.
Merrill has over 25 years of experience in market research, consumer insights, and client and business development. She has been with NPD since 2005, and during that time has held various roles within the company’s Apparel group. Most recently, Merrill served as vice president, where she was responsible for business and client development, and working directly with the largest national apparel manufacturers.
Based in Port Washington, N.Y., NPD offers data, industry expertise and prescriptive analytics to help more than 2,000 clients worldwide grow their businesses.
Centric Brands
Centric Brands LLC, a lifestyle brands collective, announced that Marc Schneider was appointed chairman of its board of directors.
Schneider is a veteran in the retail and wholesale industry with more than 35 years of experience in building brands and global businesses. He was most recently CEO of Kenneth Cole Productions, where he was responsible for their retail, outlet, e-commerce, international, licensing and wholesale businesses. Prior to joining Kenneth Cole Productions, Schneider was group president of the Heritage Brands at PVH Corp.
Centric Brands’ portfolio includes more than 100 iconic licensed brands, including for kids apparel, Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Nautica, Spyder and Under Armour; for men’s and women’s apparel, Joe’s Jeans and Buffalo, and Herve Leger, and for accessories, Kate Spade, Michael Kors, All Saints, Frye, Timberland and Jessica Simpson.
Owned brands include Hudson, Robert Graham, Swims, Zac Posen and Avirex. The company is headquartered in New York City and has offices in Greensboro, N.C.; Los Angeles; Toronto and Montreal.
Retail
Rue 21
Specialty clothing retailer Rue21 appointed Bill Brand as the company’s CEO.
Most recently, as president of HSN and as chief retail officer of Carnival Corporation, Brand led teams to build out sophisticated omnichannel infrastructure that drove revenue to record highs. Brand will take the helms from interim CEO John Fleming, who will return as a board member.
Brand serves as vice chair of the National Retail Federation Foundation and Habitat for Humanity International, and is on the board of directors of the Moffitt Cancer Center Foundation.
Rue21, headquartered in Warrendale, Pa., operates 673 stores in 45 states and online at rue21.com.
Lululemon
Lululemon Athletica inc. announced several leadership appointments, including Celeste Burgoyne becoming the first executive to serve at the president level in her role leading the Americas and global guest Innovation teams. The company also announced the hire of longtime Adidas executive André Maestrini to serve as executive vice president of international and lead the company’s international expansion.
To support and accelerate Lululemon’s recently announced Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Action (IDEA) efforts, the company also announced that Stacia Jones will become vice president and global head of IDEA to drive these strategies forward.
Burgoyne and Maestrini will report to CEO Calvin McDonald. Jones will work directly with the IDEA senior leadership team steering committee, and will report to Susan Gelinas, Lululemon’s senior vice president of people and culture.
TJX
The TJX Companies announced today its board of directors elected C. Kim Goodwin to the board.
Goodwin is an experienced financial services professional. Her long career in the industry includes serving as managing director and head of equities (global) for the Asset Management Division of Credit Suisse Group AG from 2006 to 2008, and as chief investment officer, equities at State Street Research & Management Co., a money management firm, from 2002 to 2005. She is now a private investor.
The TJX Companies is a leading off-price retailer of apparel and home fashions in the U.S. and worldwide, operating 4,557 stores in nine countries under the T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods, Sierra, and Homesense nameplates.
Coupang
Coupang, South Korea’s largest e-commerce company, hired former Uber chief technology officer (CTO) Thuan Pham as its new CTO.
During his seven-year tenure as Uber’s CTO, Pham was at the helm of the ride-sharing giant’s efforts to develop the revolutionary technology behind its massive transportation network.
Coupang provides these products and services through an end-to-end fulfillment and logistics network, which employs the market’s largest number of delivery drivers, and has placed logistics centers within 10 minutes of over 70 percent of the nation’s population. Coupang is a global company with offices in Beijing, Los Angeles, Seattle, Seoul, Singapore, Shanghai and Silicon Valley, California.
Textiles
Textile Exchange
Textile Exchange is adding talent to deliver its 2030 Climate+ Vision. La Rhea Pepper, a co-founder and managing director of Textile Exchange, will serve as CEO, and Claire Bergkamp joins Textile Exchange as chief operating officer on Nov. 1.
Bergkamp comes to Textile Exchange from Stella McCartney, where she was worldwide sustainability and innovation director for more than eight years. In this role, she led the global environmental, human rights, and innovation strategy for the brand. She will maintain a connection after her official departure, acting as senior advisor to the CEO and board of directors.
Bergkamp and Pepper will co-lead the organization as it enters an important phase of growth. Pepper will maintain a focus on industry engagement and standards, while continuing to provide visionary leadership for the organization. Bergkamp will oversee the implementation of the 2030 Climate+ Vision, the acceleration and fiber centers, as well as the shared measurement systems and digitalization needs, and operations.
Textile Exchange is a global nonprofit that develops, manages and promotes a suite of leading industry standards, as well as collects and publishes vital industry data and insights that enable brands and retailers to measure, manage and track their use of preferred fiber and materials.
GOTS
Ganesh Kasekar was appointed as the new Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) representative in South Asia, which included India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
Ganesh, based in Mumbai, India takes over the role from Sumit Gupta, the previous GOTS Regional Representative in India and Bangladesh, with the additional countries Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Gupta will now serve as head of quality assurance and implementation.
Kasejar is a textile chemistry alumni of the institute VJTI in Mumbai and holds over 17 years of experience in the textile industry with a special background in inspection and certification in supply chains. In his former position as business development manager, he has been involved with supply chain stakeholders internationally, contributing to quality assurance requirements in the textile and leather goods industry.
The newly created position as head of quality assurance and implementation is taking account of the increasing workload GOTS is facing due to fast growing numbers of certified operations. GOTS is the stringent voluntary global standard for the entire post-harvest processing of apparel and home textiles made with certified organic cotton and wool, and includes environmental and social criteria.
Technology
Lectra
Lectra appointed Thierry Caye as senior vice president of research and development.
The company said Caye’s extensive experience will help accelerate the development of new disruptive solutions and the transition of its flagship product in line with Industry 4.0 principles.
Caye began his career in 1995 in IS software development at Alten before joining C2I Ingénierie in late 1996 as project manager and later technical director. He joined Tessi in 2005 as a business process outsourcing specialist when C2I was purchased to strengthen the software division of the group. At Tessi, he held the roles of engineering director, deputy director and senior managing director of the technology division. He later led the Technologies & Operations division, becoming a member of the management committee and executive committee of Tessi International in 2018.
Lectra empowers brands, manufacturers and retailers, from design to production. Founded in 1973, today Lectra has 34 subsidiaries across the globe, serving customers in over 100 countries.
Logistics
NYSHEX
Bryan Most, formerly vice president of transportation at Walmart, joined New York Shipping Exchange (NYSHEX) as senior vice president of retail.
During his time with Walmart, Most spent 20 years leading a variety of teams in supply chain and global transportation. He joins the leadership team and will contribute to NYSHEX’s product roadmap and overall company strategy.
With the additional $13.5 million in growth financing announced earlier this month, NYSHEX will expand into new shipper segments and grow its geographic footprint, starting with retailers. Over the coming months, NYSHEX will launch a solution aimed at enabling retailers to exceed their end-customers’ expectations, optimize processes, mitigate risk and reduce costs.
NYSHEX is a solution developed for the industry to enable reliable shipping through effective digital contracting. By overcoming the historic inefficiencies in ocean freight contracting and in doing so, eliminating the $23 billion in annual economic waste, NYSHEX enables the transformation of the shipping industry.
Alvys
Leo Gorodinski, former vice president of engineering at Jet.com, joined Alvys as co-founder and chief technology officer to focus strategic efforts on the technology.
Gorodinski was the first hire at Jet.com when it launched in 2014. It was acquired by Walmart for $3.3 billion in 2016.
Alvys is a transportation management system that connects carriers with shippers, and facilitates the transport process end-to-end, including relationship building, fleet management, procurement, tracking and fulfillment, and payments and accounting.