May 31, 2016: Sergio Rossi design director Angelo Ruggeri is exiting the Italian luxury footwear brand. Ruggeri joined the company in 2013, succeeding Francesco Russo. He was also in charge of Sergio Rossi’s men’s division. In December 2015, European investment house Investindustrial took control of Sergio Rossi from Kering. The company did not provide additional details or information on the transition strategy following Ruggeri’s departure.
May 26, 2016: K-Swiss Global Brands appointed Sean O’Shea as creative director of K-Swiss, effective immediately. O’Shea will oversee all facets of K-Swiss design and development globally. O’Shea joins K-Swiss from Puma, where he served as head of design for running and training. O’Shea has also held roles at Nike, Adidas and Converse.
May 26, 2016: Nike Inc. has promoted company veteran Phil McCartney to VP and GM of Nike Footwear, effective June 1. McCartney has spent 19 years with Nike working across geographies and multiple categories and will continue to work with category teams, product development, design and merchandising, the company said. He replaces Michael Spillane, who Nike named president of product and merchandising in April. (Spillane succeeded Jeanne Jackson, who moved to a new role working directly with Nike president and CEO Mark Parker advising on future strategy.)
Watch on FN
May 26, 2016: Nike Inc. has appointed Tom Peddie, currently VP and GM of Emerging Markets, to the role of VP and GM of Integrated Marketplace North America, effective July 1. Ann Hebert will replace Peddie as VP and GM of Emerging Markets, beginning July 1. Hebert has previously served in key management positions in DTC, sales, category and merchandising for the brand.
May 26, 2016: Nike Inc. has appointed Christophe Merkel to the role of VP and GM of Nike Japan, effective July 1. Merkel currently serves as GM of Nike Turkey. Jim Reynolds, currently VP and GM of Nike Japan, has been named VP and GM of Athletic Specialty, effective June 2016.
May 25, 2016: French company Carven has appointed Sophie de Rougemont as its newest CEO. The fashion house also announced that Bluebell Group has snapped up a majority stake in the company. Henri Sebaoun, former Carven CEO and head of Société Béranger — which purchased Carven in 2008 — will step down from the CEO post to become managing director of the company.
May 25, 2016: Luxury off-price e-tailer Bluefly has appointed Natasha Zaitzeff as its new fashion director. Zaitzeff previously held positions in buying and merchandising at Intermix, Bergdorf Goodman and Saks Fifth Avenue.
May 24, 2016: Vida Shoes has appointed Steve Whitney as VP of the Kensie division, effective May 24. Whitney was previously VP of Born Footwear at HH Brown.
May 23, 2016: Jonathan Akeroyd has been named the new CEO of Versace, succeeding Gian Giacomo Ferraris.
May 18, 2016: Foot Locker Inc. announced that CEO Dick Johnson will take on the additional role of chairman of the company’s board, effective immediately. Johnson succeeds Nicholas DiPaolo, who served as chairman for a year. In conjunction with this transition, Foot Locker’s board of directors also elected Dona Young as lead director.
May 18, 2016: René Caovilla has tapped Francesco Francavilla as head of global communications, in charge of press and public relations, image, events and digital communication. He reports to Edoardo Caovilla, COO and creative director of the Italian luxury footwear firm. Francavilla was previously VP of the Paris office of international communication agency Karla Otto.
May 12, 2016: Genesco Inc. has appointed David Baxter as president and CEO of its Lids Sports Group division and SVP of Genesco, effective June 1. From 2006 to 2014, Baxter served as president of the Sports Licensed Division at Adidas/Reebok.
May 12, 2016: Salvatore Ferragamo SpA has confirmed that former Furla CEO Eraldo Poletto will be its new CEO. Poletto will join the board of directors on Aug. 2, 2017, when Ferragamo will hold its first-half board of directors meeting, which will mark the official end of CEO Michele Norsa‘s tenure at the luxury goods maker.
May 11, 2016: The American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA) has named Nate Herman SVP of supply chain. Herman has been with the AAFA for 15 years and most recently served as VP of international trade. He stepped into his new post on May 11.
May 10, 2016: Carrie McDermott, DSW Inc.’s EVP and COO, is no longer with the company, effective May 10, according to an U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission filing on May 10. The filing stated that McDermott was “separated without cause by the company.” McDermott held a number of roles at DSW since 2007, including SVP of stores and EVP of sales and operations. McDermott became EVP and COO in February 2015.
May 9, 2016: Rag & Bone has appointed Lydia Forstmann as chief commercial officer. In her newly created role, Forstmann will be responsible for leading wholesale, retail, merchandising and business development, reporting directly to CEOs David Neville and Marcus Wainwright. Forstmann spent the past six years at Tory Burch, where she most recently served as EVP of the Americas wholesale and global travel retail.
May 3, 2016: After six years with the company, Under Armour Inc.‘s chief merchandising officer Henry Stafford is exiting the firm. Stafford joined Under Armour in 2010 to lead the company’s apparel team. He eventually became president of North America, before his appointment to chief merchandising officer in December 2014. He will be leaving Under Armour in July. Under Armour’s former chief marketing officer Kip Fulks will assume the chief merchandising officer responsibilities on an interim basis. In November 2015, the company announced that Fulks was assuming a new role at the firm. In that role, he assumed oversight responsibility for all global marketing efforts while leading the company’s search efforts for a new chief marketing officer. Fulks will now expand his responsibilities to include oversight of product, innovation and merchandising.
May 3, 2016: Under Armour Inc.’s chief digital officer Robin Thurston will be leaving the company in July. Michael Lee, co-founder of MyFitnessPal, will assume responsibility for the brand’s global digital operations. Thurston joined Under Armour in December 2013 as part of the company’s acquisition of MapMyFitness, while Lee joined Under Armour in March 2015 with the acquisition of MyFitnessPal. Lee currently serves as SVP of North America Digital, overseeing digital product strategy for Under Armour Connected Fitness.
May 3, 2016: Kering has appointed Emmanuel Gintzburger as CEO of Alexander McQueen, succeeding Jonathan Akeroyd, who leaves the company after 12 years at the helm.
May 2, 2016: The American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA) has named Susan Lapetina SVP of education and corporate marketing. Lapetina has been with the AAFA for 17 years and most recently served as VP of industry relations. She stepped into her new post on May 2.
May 2, 2016: Kering has appointed former Chanel executive Valérie Duport as SVP of communications and image, effective immediately. Duport will report to François-Henri Pinault, chairman and CEO of Kering, and will be a member of the group’s executive committee. Effective Oct. 1, she will also be responsible for overseeing and accompanying Kering’s brands in the design and implementation of their respective communications strategies.
May 1, 2016: Genesco Inc. has hired Neil Padden to join its Licensed Brands division as SVP of sales, effective May 1. In this newly created role, Padden will be responsible for the sales functions of Dockers, Chaps and G.H. Bass & Co. brands. He will report to Andy Gilbert, president of Genesco Licensed Brands. Most recently, Padden was VP of lifestyle sales for Puma.
