VF Corporation has announced a significant change to its leadership team, with former Vans president Steve Murray returning to the company in the newly-created role of Vice President, Strategic Projects.
Effective from today, he will report to VF Corp chairman, president and chief executive Steve Rendle and will serve on the company’s senior leadership team.
Murray will also work closely with members of VF Corp’s global brand presidents to lead work around key strategic projects, such as elevating The North Face’s footwear product strategy.
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Murray has more than 30 years of experience in the apparel and footwear industry, previously holding global leadership roles at Reebok, Urban Outfitters and Airwair International (Dr Martens), where he was instrumental in leading the company’s transformation from a manufacturing-led, family-owned entity to a consumer-focused, private equity-backed global retailer.
He also led Vans for five years following VF Corp’s acquisition of the brand in 2004, and later promoted to president of VF Corp’s Action Sports coalition.
Rendle said Murray’s appointment would help the fashion company to continue its transformation into an agile, consumer-centric organisation.
“It’s essential that we maintain a sharp focus on advancing the high-priority, strategic initiatives that will accelerate growth for our brands and create value across our global enterprise,” Rendle said.
“Steve is an ideal leader to provide this level of sharp focus for VF. He possesses a unique blend of apparel and footwear industry expertise, a proven record of leading successful businesses transformations, and an intimate knowledge of the VF business model, all of which will enable him to quickly create meaningful value.”
VF Corp is the parent company of global fashion retailers and brands such as Vans, The North Face, Timbaland, Lee and Wrangler.
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