Dive Brief:
- VF Corp. named Caroline Brown global brand president of the North Face, effective next week, according to a Monday press release.
- Brown succeeds Nicole Otto, who has held the position since 2022. Brown has more than 30 years of experience in the fashion and apparel sector, including a stint as CEO of Donna Karan International. She was most recently managing director at investment firm Closed Loop Partners, where she led the fashion practice.
- As a result of her new position, Brown is stepping down from her role on VF’s board of directors. She joined the board in February as part of the company’s move to align with activist investor group Engaged Capital.
Dive Insight:
Brown is the latest in a series of new executive appointments at the apparel conglomerate.
“There has been massive turnover at VF over the last few years and this has accelerated since Bracken Darrell came in as CEO,” David Swartz, senior equity analyst at Morningstar Research Services, said in an email to sister publication Fashion Dive.
Last week, VF named Sun Choe president of the Vans brand, part of a broader strategy to boost the struggling brand. The company also recently appointed Paul Vogel, previously of Spotify, as CFO. Darrell is relatively new as well, having started last July.
VF has been grappling with declining earnings. In October 2023, the company announced its Project Reinvent program, aimed at bolstering its brand building, execution and sales in North America. In February, VF announced it was initiating a strategic review of assets, which could include selling brands. The company hasn’t announced any decisions as a result of this review.
The North Face, which Brown will lead, had previously seen revenue increases while its sister brands Vans, Timberland and Dickies saw declines. In VF’s latest earnings report, however, North Face reported a 5% decline, which the company attributed to U.S. wholesale weaknesses. Getting North Face back on track is critical for VF, Swartz said.
When VF appointed Brown to its board of directors, it said her appointment “follow[ed] constructive engagement with VF’s shareholders, including Engaged Capital.” It further said that Engaged Capital board candidates would be given priority. In October 2023, Engaged asked VF to shakeup its board and demanded it cut costs by more than $300 million.
“It’s a bit unusual for a board member to move to an executive position in this way, but she appears to be very qualified and choosing someone that is supported by Engaged is probably a prudent move,” Swartz said. “If VF’s results don’t start to get better, the company faces the possibility of more aggressive activist action.”
Also on Monday, VF announced two new members of its board, Mindy Grossman and Kirk Tanner, who will stand for reelection at the 2024 annual meeting. Engaged Capital worked with VF Corp. on those appointments, per the release. Grossman is a partner at advisory and investment firm Consello, which advises corporate leaders on growth, marketing, technology and M&A. Tanner is the president and CEO of fast food chain Wendy's.
Benno Dorer, a board member who led the company in the interim before Darrell’s hire, is not running for reelection.
