by Larry EderIt is a fascinating time in the running business. Good running product is sold in the discount rack, as the Billy Joel song, the Entertainer noted, “like another can of beans.”
To be noticed, one must have excellent product, strong marketing, superb service, great relationships with the retailer, and a telling brand story. At this time, there are approximately 35 brands that Running Network shoe reviewer Cregg Weinmann tracks, and the competition is at it’s highest level in many years. The good news: great product for the performance runner, core runner, fitness runner, wanna be runner.
The top brands also have several other things in common: dynamic leadership and an appreciation of human capital. Saucony’s announcement is an example of the quality of human capital needed to make one’s brand, to quote Saucony President Richie Woodworth, “fire on all cylinders.”
Saucony® Announces Strategic New Hires, Key Promotions
Hires Dan Sullivan, Mark Bossardet; Promotes Pat O’Malley, Tim Knowlton; Saucony Leverages Talent and Expertise Across Product, Sales and Global Marketing to Accelerate Brand Growth
LEXINGTON, MA (March 25, 2010) Saucony,Inc, a leading global supplier of performance athletic footwear and apparel, today announced strategic new hires and key promotions across a range of functional areas aimed at bolstering Saucony’s continuous efforts to establish deeper consumer connections around the world, expand its product offering to best meet the needs of runners, and further accelerate the brand’s growth in the global market place.
In making today’s announcement, Richie Woodworth, president of Saucony, said: “The brand is firing on all cylinders. This strategic investment in talent acknowledges the great success our team is currently enjoying and bolsters our bench strength and alignment against important strategic initiatives across our business to address the significant opportunities for Saucony in the global marketplace.”
With this announcement, Woodworth outlined the following:
Product
Saucony footwear continues to drive and push the boundaries of innovation, performance and style. With several industry awards and market share product gains to his credit, Patrick O’Malley has been promoted to senior vice president of global product.
Daniel A. Sullivan joins the Saucony team as vice president of product. Sullivan will be responsible for leading the footwear designers and product line managers. Sullivan returns to Saucony with nearly 15 years of running footwear experience, including senior product roles at New Balance, where he was most recently strategic business unit manager for running footwear. Sullivan got his start in the footwear industry with Saucony, serving in successive product marketing and management roles over his six-year tenure with the brand. He received his MBA from the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business at Babson College.
Sales
In recognition of Saucony’s continued leadership in the run specialty retail channel, Fred Doyle will assume the newly created role of vice president of market development-run specialty. In this role, Doyle will be responsible for the development and management of team sports; the further advancement of the brand’s partnership with Fleet Feet Sports; the ongoing expansion of the Saucony Supreme Retailer program; sales training; and oversight of the brand’s run specialty e-commerce business.
Timothy Knowlton has been promoted to vice president of field sales. In his new role, Knowlton will be responsible for defining and implementing strategic sales plans to accelerate growth and increase market share for Saucony. Knowlton will oversee the brand’s field sales agencies and its regional managers. Erin E. Flynn, formerly director of sales for Saucony Originals, will assume Knowlton’s prior role as regional sales director-east.
International
In recognition of the significant opportunities for the Saucony brand across the globe, Mary O’Brien, formerly vice president of marketing, has assumed the newly created position of vice president of international. Saucony expects to leverage O’Brien’s international experience, specifically in the European market, where she previously held various senior level positions in international sales and marketing for Reebok International. O’Brien will be directly responsible for Saucony’s European and Middle East businesses and will work collaboratively with Collective Brands Performance + Lifestyle Group’s (PLG) international division, a shared function supporting all the PLG brands, to further business development in other global markets well suited for Saucony.
Sports Marketing
Mark Bossardet joins the Saucony team and will serve in the newly created position of vice president of global sports marketing. Bossardet will be responsible for leading a long-term strategic sports marketing plan in support of Saucony’s overall brand strategy, including the development of a strong stable of international professional athlete endorsers in anticipation of the 2012 London Olympics and beyond.
Bossardet, a highly accomplished and globally recognized sports marketing professional, was most recently with Reebok International as general manager/vice president of global performance marketing and communication. Prior to that, Bossardet was senior director of global sports/Olympic marketing for Nike, Inc., which included key contract negotiations with athletes, coaches, clubs, universities, events and sports governing bodies throughout the world. As an industry leader, Bossardet was awarded the International Association of Athletics Federations President’s Award for his contributions to the sport, and was one of the youngest qualifiers for the 1980 Men’s Olympic Marathon Trials. Bossardet received his B.S. degree from C.W. Post College at Long Island University.
“We’re very fortunate to attract such talented and passionate people and to have such a high-performance team in place,†commented Woodworth. “Both Dan and Mark are a natural fit with our brand culture and the whole team looks forward to the opportunity to work alongside them as we take the brand to its next phase of growth.â€
About Saucony, Inc.:
Saucony, Inc., a subsidiary of Collective Brands, Inc., is a leading global running lifestyle brand that fuses performance, innovation and style to create compelling footwear and apparel with its widely recognized brands Saucony and Saucony Originals. Founded in 1898, Saucony continues to inspire runners everywhere with its award winning innovations, including Flexion Plate™, ProGrid™, Arch-Lock®, and ViZiPRO™ apparel. For more information, go to www.saucony.com.
About Collective Brands, Inc.: Collective Brands, Inc. (NYSE: PSS) is a leader in bringing compelling lifestyle, fashion and performance brands for footwear and related accessories to consumers worldwide. The company operates three strategic units covering a powerful brand portfolio, as well as multiple price points and selling channels including retail, wholesale, ecommerce and licensing. The company operates three strategic units covering a powerful brand portfolio, as well as multiple price points and selling channels including retail, wholesale, ecommerce and licensing. Collective Brands, Inc. includes Payless ShoeSource, focused on democratizing fashion and design in footwear and accessories through its nearly 4,500-store retail chain, with its brands Airwalk®, Dexter®, Champion®, Zoe & Zac™, the first-ever affordable green footwear brand, and designer collections Lela Rose for Payless, Unforgettable Moments by Lela Rose, alice + olivia for Payless, Christian Siriano for Payless and STLP x Airwalk, among others; Collective Brands Performance + Lifestyle Group, focused on lifestyle and performance branded footwear and high-quality children’s footwear sold primarily through wholesaling, with its brands including Stride Rite®, Keds®, Sperry Top-Sider®, Robeez®, and Saucony®, among others; and Collective Licensing International, the brand development, management and global licensing unit, with such youth lifestyle brands as Airwalk®, Vision Street Wear®, Sims®, Lamar® and LTD®. Information about, and links for shopping on, each of the Collective Brand’s units can be found at www.collectivebrands.com.
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