Footwear giant Wolverine World Wide Inc. announced on Tuesday the appointment of Brett Parent to the role of chief strategy officer, effective February 3.
Brett Parent – Courtesy
In the newly created role, Parent will be responsible for developing and driving the U.S. company’s enterprise strategy, along with assessing growth opportunities for the its brand portfolio across 170 countries and territories. In addition to leading the strategy function and team, the executive will also oversee the company’s consumer marketing team – responsible for supporting e-commerce growth initiatives across the portfolio.
“I am honored and grateful to serve as the company’s first chief strategy officer. We have great brands with tremendous opportunity, and I look forward to building on our current momentum with the global teams to realize Wolverine Worldwide’s full potential around the world,” said Parent, in commenting on his promotion.
A Wolverine veteran, he will continue reporting directly to Chris Hufnagel, president and CEO of Wolverine Worldwide, and serve on the company’s Executive Team.
Parent joined Wolverine Worldwide’s direct-to-consumer division almost two decades ago and has since held a variety of increasingly significant leadership roles across the organization, in both brand and corporate functions. Most recently, he served as vice president of strategy.
“In his time with the company, Brett’s seen virtually every aspect of our global operations and he has a long track record of success in both building great teams and driving the business,” said Hufnagel.
“Perhaps most importantly, Brett has been a key architect, trusted advisor, and integral leader of our company’s turnaround effort over the past 18 months. We look forward to continuing to benefit from his deep experience and strong partnerships to help identify and drive our strategic objectives and deliver better returns for our shareholders.”
In its most recent trading update in November, Wolverine Worldwide said revenue fell 16.6% to $440.2 million for the third quarter ended September 28, on the back of a double-digit dip across its Saucony and Wolverine brand sales.
The Rockford, Michigan-based footwear and apparel firm said at the time of reporting that international revenue fell 6.6% to $213.8 million, while direct-to-consumer sales were down 17.7% to $112.4 million.
