David Obadia’s tenure at Sporty & Rich is over. The American premium casualwear label, the offshoot of the Sporty & Rich project developed in 2014 by Emily Oberg, former editorial producer at Complex magazine, has announced the departure of its CEO. Obadia, who took office in 2018, was in charge of the label’s various Paris-based departments, looking after design, sales and finance. In a press release, Sporty & Rich stated that Oberg has taken over the label’s management and design.
David Obadia – Sporty and Rich
Sporty & Rich is positioned in the affordable luxury segment, its collections blending streetwear codes with 1980s and 90s looks typical of country clubs, tennis clubs, and trendy beach and ski resorts. In the last seven years, the label has posted double-digit annual revenue growth. Oberg, who was born in Calgary, Canada, has openly referenced Ralph Lauren as a benchmark brand.
Sporty & Rich has also tapped into the wellness trend, and some of its t-shirts and sweatshirts are emblazoned with slogans like ‘Health is Wealth’, ‘Eat More Veggies’ and ‘Drink More Water’. The label was launched online and became established by means of regular capsule collection drops, as well as collaborations with popular brands like Adidas and Lacoste. Over time, it won over high-profile retailers like Le Bon Marché and Galeries Lafayette in France, WOW in Spain, Luisa Via Roma in Italy, and End Clothing and Harrods in the UK. More recently, it has opened monobrand stores in New York, Los Angeles, Shanghai and Seoul.
“It has been an honour for me to work alongside Emily Oberg in developing Sporty & Rich during the last seven years. I would like to thank her for this experience and I am sure she will lead the brand into a new growth phase,” said Obadia, 36, in a press release, adding that he is leaving “to engage in new professional projects.”
Obadia started his career with French designer Stéphane Ashpool’s Pigalle label. In 2010, he co-founded Parisian premium streetwear brand Brooklyn We Go Hard (BWGH). In 2014, he founded Harmony Paris, a label blending streetwear and tailored looks, of which he is also the creative director.
Sporty & Rich has not disclosed its financial results but, according to various US news outlets, it generated revenue between $35 million and $40 million (€30 million to €35 million) in 2025.
As it sets its course for a new phase of international growth and development, Aura Blockchain Consortium, the non-profit consortium founded in 2021 by fashion and luxury giants LVMH, OTB Group, Prada Group, and Cartier (part of the Richemont group), has appointed Marcel Härtlein as its new CEO and secretary general.
Marcel Härtlein – Aura Blockchain Consortium
Bringing extensive experience in the luxury sector, Marcel Härtlein joins Aura after serving as group head of digital and IT at Lalique, the heritage crystal maison and consortium member, where he was also a member of the executive board and led major customer-centric digital transformation and innovation projects on a global scale.
In his new role, Härtlein (who studied at IMD Business School and Harvard Business School, specialising in digital strategy and digital excellence) will steer Aura through the next phase of its evolution, leveraging its pioneering blockchain platform with the goal of strengthening connections across the luxury value chain. His priorities will include expanding the consortium’s global membership, accelerating adoption of blockchain technology, and introducing new value-added services. These priorities are a natural fit for Härtlein who, coming directly from Aura’s ecosystem, already has a deep understanding of the consortium’s member companies and its mission.
Under his leadership, Aura will continue to expand its portfolio of solutions, safeguard brand integrity, increase transparency along the value chain, and strengthen ties between brands, partners, and end customers, the consortium said in a statement. This trajectory reaffirms Aura’s ambition: to put authenticity, trust, and the customer experience at the heart of luxury in the digital age.
Aura Blockchain Consortium was established to define a shared standard for the digital transformation of luxury brands, promoting transparency, collaboration, protection of member brands’ authenticity, and responsible innovation. Today, the consortium brings together more than 50 luxury brands and has registered more than 80 million products on its blockchain.
“Having experienced the consortium from within a member company, I have been able to appreciate its impact in redefining the concepts of trust and craftsmanship in the digital age,” said Marcel Härtlein, adding that he is “excited to work and build on this legacy, helping to drive Aura’s expansion and strengthen its role as a collaborative standard of excellence for leading luxury brands worldwide.”
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The house of Dior has appointed Charlotte Holman Ros to be president of Christian Dior Couture Americas, in a major promotion for the executive.
Charlotte Holman Ros – Dior
Holman Ros begins her new role on February 1 and will report to Alessandro Valenti, deputy managing director in charge of commercial activities.
She succeeds Alexandra Winokur who has decided to pursue new personal and professional projects. Winokur will leave her position on January 31 after a one-month handover period with Holman Ros.
Since 2020, Holman Ros has been president of Parfums Christian Dior for North America. With nearly 20 years of experience, she has built a career combining strategic consulting and senior management roles within international groups and luxury brands, including Charlotte Tilbury Beauty, Estée Lauder Companies, and Burberry. At the latter, she spent more than four years, first as global director of strategy and then as director of womenswear, North America, overseeing women’s merchandising and retail.
“We are delighted to welcome Charlotte. She combines a genuine vision of client experience with a proven ability to grow brands and motivate her teams to achieve outstanding results. At the same time, I would like to warmly thank Alexandra for her achievements, professionalism, and commitment, notably through the exceptional openings of House of Dior New York and House of Dior Beverly Hills, and wish her the greatest success in the next stage of her career,” said Pierre -Emmanuel Angeloglou, deputy CEO of Christian Dior Couture.
Spanish luxury brand Loewe continues to roll out its Casa Loewe concept worldwide. The company has opened a new store in Tokyo’s Ginza district, strengthening its presence in Asia with a space that ranks as the brand’s second-largest worldwide.
Façade of the Spanish luxury brand’s new Casa Loewe in Ginza – Loewe
The new store reimagines the house’s Spanish heritage through the distinctive aesthetics of Japanese design, with a palette of greens and earthy materials, and a façade clad in handcrafted ceramic tiles whose textures evoke Ginza’s origins in the Edo period. Inside, the space presents the brand’s full menswear and womenswear collections, as well as a selection of works from Loewe’s art collection, in keeping with this boutique concept’s commitment to art, craftsmanship, and design.
Defined by a warm, light-filled aesthetic, the Casa Loewe concept was first unveiled in 2016 at the brand’s Madrid flagship. Since then, the label has progressively introduced it across international cities, with notable openings in Seoul, Chicago and, most recently, Shanghai.
Founded in Madrid in 1846, the Spanish house has, since March 2025, been led creatively by the designer duo Jack McCollough and Lázaro Hernández, following the departure of Jonathan Anderson, who went on to become creative director at Dior.