Footwear Insight

4 • Footwear Insight ~ July/August 2023 footwearinsight.com THE FOOTWEAR EYE By Bob McGee L aura Denk, most recently chief merchandising officer for Michaels Stores, Inc., has been named pres- ident of DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse (DSW) and executive vice president of Designer Brands. In reporting to Designer Brands CEO Doug Howe, Denk will be responsible for leading DSW's nearly 500 U.S. store locations and e-commerce channel, and will have responsibility for elevating the company's owned and top national brands besides leading day-to-day operations. Denk's prior retail experience, in addition to Michaels Stores, also includes stints with both Claire's Stores and Macy's, Inc. Her background is rooted in merchandising and building strong vendor partnerships, along with augmenting customer experiences and elevating private brands. VF Corp. has a new president and CEO. Bracken Darrell, who was president, and CEO of Logitech Intl. S.A. for the past decade, is taking the helm of e North Face and Vans' parent from Director Benno Dorer, who has served as the interim pres- ident and CEO at VF since December. At VF, Darrell will lead a firm with a strategic plan in place to improve its sales and profitability results over the next 12 months via continued growth for its di- rect-to-consumer, North Face segments and the EMEA region as it lowers its inventory levels, reduces its SKU counts, and improves its supply chain metrics. While the compa- ny's Americas region, particularly the U.S., will be challenged for part of this fiscal year that commenced in April, VFC last month forecast "flat to slightly up" FY24 revenues. Darrell's career corporate experience has included roles at Procter & Gamble, the Whirlpool Corp., and General Electric. At Logitech, he is credited with taking the brand into more than 20 new product categories, doubling revenues, and helping the company increase its market capital- ization tenfold. Superfeet has hired former Nike exec Trip Randall as its new CEO. Randall's experience includes more than 23 years in a range of positions at Nike, including vice president and general manager of Nike Running in North America, global vice president and general manager of Nike. com and vice president of Global Sales and Marketplace for Nike Kids. Most re- cently, Randall served as the Global Brand President of Japanese company Denon, a manufacturer of audio, home theater and soware products. At Superfeet, Randall replaces outgoing CEO John Rauvola, who announced his plans to retire late last year. With Randall at the helm, the company says it will remain focused on growth in international markets, investing in technology, expanding its new Superfeet Rx division, which serves med- ical providers, and continuing to foster its long-standing retail relationships. e Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America (FDRA) appointed its new leadership team for the term running June 2023 to June 2025. Jennifer Bendell, VP of government and public affairs for Nike, is the new Chairman of e Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America (FDRA). She has worked in advocacy and public policy for several decades. Joining Bendell in FDRA's executive suite are Josue Solano, president and CEO of BBC Intl. as Vice Chairman, and Dan Friedman, the chief sourcing officer for Caleres, as treasurer. n New Leaders at DSW, VF Corp., Superfeet EXEC APPOINTMENTS Laura Denk, DSW. Bracken Darrell, VF Corp. Trip Randall, Superfeet.

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