Amid a Turnaround, Wolverine Worldwide Promotes Brett Parent to Newly Created Chief Strategy Officer Role
Stephen Garner
Senior Editor
Wolverine Worldwide has made another change to its executive team.
According to the Rockford, Mich.-based footwear company, it has promoted Brett Parent to the newly created role of chief strategy officer. He will continue to report directly to Chris Hufnagel, president and chief executive officer of Wolverine Worldwide, and will serve on the company’s executive team.
In a press release, the company noted that Parent will be responsible for developing and driving Wolverine Worldwide’s enterprise strategy, along with assessing growth opportunities for the company’s brand portfolio across a global footprint spanning 170 countries and territories.
In addition to leading the strategy function and team, Parent will also oversee the company’s consumer marketing team – responsible for supporting enterprise-wide e-commerce growth initiatives across the portfolio, Wolverine said.
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“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,” Hufnagel said in a statement. “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.”
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 – both in brand and corporate functions – most recently serving as vice president of strategy.
“I am honored and grateful to serve as the company’s first chief strategy officer,” Parent added. “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.”
Parent’s appointment comes just one day after Wolverine Worldwide said it named Richard McLeod as its new chief marketing officer for the Merrell brand. These executive moves are the latest changes as the footwear company undergoes a complex turnaround.
Other recent moves include Noreen Naroo-Pucci joining Merrell in December as chief product officer. In November, the company named industry veteran Mike Maloney as the new chief product officer of its Work Group. And in October, Wolverine Worldwide named Susie Kuhn as president of the company’s Active Group, responsible for leading Merrell, Saucony and Chaco, as well as the company’s Collective initiative.
Wolverine Worldwide ended Q3 in November with revenue of $440.2 million, down 16.6 percent from $527.7 million the same time last year. Ongoing total revenue in Q3 – which excludes the impact of sold assets – was $440.1 million, a decrease of 7.0 percent from $473.3 million the prior year period.
