Structural changes at Wolverine World Wide
28/01/2011
It will create a stand-alone international group, with responsibility for driving growth of all of the company's brands in all markets outside of North America. The company believes this new structure will enable it to develop and implement specific regional strategies and “ensure the full power of the brand portfolio” is brought to market.
The international group will be led by Bill Brown, a 24-year veteran of the company, as president. He most recently led the former Heritage Brands Group and has served in numerous senior brand management and international positions throughout his career with the company, including roles with Hush Puppies, Wolverine, Caterpillar Footwear, Harley-Davidson Footwear, Sebago and Merrell. Mr Brown will report directly to chief executive, Blake W. Krueger.
In addition the company has announced that it will reorganise its portfolio into three branded wholesale operating groups.
The Outdoor Group, comprising Merrell, Chaco and Patagonia Footwear brands, will be led by Jim Zwiers. The Heritage Group, comprising the Wolverine, Caterpillar Footwear, Bates, Harley-Davidson Footwear and HyTest brands, will be led by Ted Gedra. Finally, the Lifestyle Group, comprising the Hush Puppies, Cushe and Sebago brands, will be led by Mark Neal.
Wolverine World Wide has also appointed a new managing director for Europe, Middle East and Africa, Onder Ors. Mr Ors served most recently as senior vice-president for non-US business for Wolverine World Wide’s Outdoor Group, and has been instrumental in the global growth of the Merrell brand over the last five years. Also reporting to Mr Brown will be Baffin Yip (vice-president for China), Sanjay Mehra (vice-president for India), Sean Carney (vice-president for non-US business for the Heritage Group), Bill Mirecki (vice-president for non-US business for the Lifestyle Group), Linda Brunzell (vice-president for non-US business for the Outdoor Group) and John MacLeod (vice-president for finance and special projects for the international group).
Commenting on the changes Blake Krueger said: “The organisational realignment announced today represents a significant step forward for the company. The timing is right to capitalise on the exceptional momentum of our portfolio of brands, and we believe this new international structure will give us the flexibility and focus to accelerate the performance of our brands around the world. We are pleased that we have the talent within our organisation to support this business evolution and look forward to continued global growth and success for our brands.”
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