Brands
Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton has named musician and entrepreneur Pharrell Williams as its men’s creative director. Williams’ first collection will be revealed in June during Men’s Fashion Week in Paris. He fills the position that has been open since Virgil Abloh passed away in November 2021.
The ways in which Williams breaks boundaries across the various worlds he explores aligns with Louis Vuitton’s status as a cultural maison, reinforcing its values of innovation, pioneer spirit and entrepreneurship, the luxury house said in a statement.
Rocky Brands
Footwear and apparel designer and manufacturer Rocky Brands announced that Sarah O’Connor will join the company’s leadership team as senior vice president, chief financial officer (CFO) and treasurer in mid-March. At that time, Tom Robertson, who has served as the company’s CFO and treasurer since 2017, will formally transition into the newly created role of chief operating officer.
O’Connor brings more than 15 years of corporate finance experience to the role, including work with public retail and manufacturing organizations.
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Polartec
Polartec, a Milliken & Company brand known for sustainable textile solutions, announced new roles and responsibilities for veteran employees Ramesh Kesh and Eric Yung.
In addition to his role as senior vice president at Milliken & Company, Kesh will now oversee all Polartec business units and government and defense business units. By grouping the Polartec and government and defense business units under his leadership, Polartec is well-positioned to further its innovation and technology synergies while ensuring commitment to eco-engineering as a top priority, leveraging Kesh’s extensive knowledge and background. Reaffirming and strengthening commitments to the Polartec brand and partners, Yung has been promoted to vice president of Milliken & Company and managing director of Polartec. As managing director, Yung will leverage his brand and industry knowledge to accelerate product innovation and improve customer experience with a global perspective.
Gymshark
Fitness community and apparel brand Gymshark has named bodybuilder, fitness model and influencer David Laid as the company’s first creative director, lifting.
While Gymshark has ventured into various areas of fitness and athleticism, Laid is coming on board to revive its heritage in the weight room. In his new role, Laid will be responsible for, among other things, product development, creative direction, athlete recruitment and IRL events. His appointment also sees the advent of discount codes at Gymshark. For the first time, shoppers can apply Laid’s and other athletes’ discount codes when they check out.
Retail
Neiman Marcus Group
Neiman Marcus Group tweaked its leadership team structure so that each of its brand presidents now has additional group-level responsibilities for strategic capabilities.
Darcy Penick, president of Bergdorf Goodman, will assume group-level leadership of the NMG product and technology organization. Ryan Ross, president of Neiman Marcus, will lead customer insights for the group. Bob Kupbens, chief product and technology officer, will transition out of the organization after successfully building momentum across the product, technology and analytics organization, enabling the transition of these capabilities back into the business.
Textiles
Outdura
Performance upholstery brand Outdura announced that Chris Caldwell, current product manager for Outdura casual furniture and Sattler shade fabrics, has taken on the new responsibility of sales manager. Julia Talbert has also joined the Outdura team as a sales manager. Both positions report to Ulrich Tombuelt, Sattler Outudra CEO.
Technology
Sedex
Sustainability technology company Sedex announced the appointment of Ross Heritage as chief technology officer.
Heritage joins as Sedex launches a new strategy to drive growth in supply chain sustainability and environment, social and governance (ESG) performance. As companies face mounting pressure to demonstrate long-term resilience and sustainable value creation, having credible supply chain data and intelligent assessment tools are increasingly critical. Heritage will be instrumental in delivering Sedex’s high-quality technology to support businesses in making global supply chains more socially and environmentally sustainable.
Tailored Industry Inc.
On-demand 3D knitting manufacturer Tailored Industry Inc. added Ellen Saville to its team as senior manager of brand partnerships, the company shared on LinkedIn. Savile is a knitwear specialist who lived and trained in Lima, Peru, where she familiarized herself with traditional knitting techniques and the materials used in the country’s textile industry.
Tradeswell
Tradeswell has named Gemma Sole, co-founder of Nineteenth Amendment, as director of product marketing and user experience. The e-commerce startup on a mission to empower growth by making e-commerce actions more informed, coordinated and profitable.