Vans stated Tuesday it employed Drieke Leenknegt to function its international chief advertising and marketing officer.
Leenknegt, who formally joins Vans July 5, comes to the corporate from Timberland the place she beforehand held the identical title. The advertising and marketing government is a veteran within the footwear business, having additionally labored at Nike in Europe, China, and the U.S. in a lot of roles, together with international VP of influencer advertising and marketing and collaborations.
“I’ve lengthy admired the aim and conviction Vans has had by means of its advertising and marketing and inventive efforts,” Leenknegt stated in a press release. “I’ve watched Vans as a client, competitor, and colleague, and I’m honored to now contribute to its storied historical past, drive the model ahead, and lead the extremely proficient group at Vans.”
Vans and Timberland are owned by Denver-based VF Corp., which earlier this month tapped Logitech boss Bracken Darrell to be president and CEO. Darrell’s begin date is July 17.
Timberland, one in every of VF’s bigger manufacturers by income, has extra lately ramped up its efforts within the digital world underneath Leenknegt’s path, with its entry into the metaverse by way of a take care of Fortnite developer Epic Games. That partnership has included the interactive experiences TimbsTrails and Timberland Parkour Trails.
Vans stated it’s wanting to Leenknegt’s rent to additional drive model momentum for brand new and present customers.
“As Drieke joins Vans, I’m excited by what her management and in-depth expertise will deliver to our model and the way that may complement and reinforce our overarching enterprise aims,” stated Vans Global Brand President Kevin Bailey. “Consumers know and love our model, however it would be underneath Drieke’s purview as Global CMO that we’ll look to strengthen and deepen our connectivity with customers in every single place to drive model affinity.”
Leenknegt succeeds Kristin Harrer, the corporate’s first CMO, who parted methods with Vans earlier this 12 months alongside the exits of former Vice President and General Manager of Vans Americas David Tichiaz, now model president of Stance, and Vans Americas VP of Finance Michael LeFebvre.
Kari Hamanaka can be reached at [email protected].
https://shop-eat-surf.com/2023/06/vans-turns-to-former-timberland-marketing-exec-to-be-next-cmo/
