New Era Cap, LLC hired Steve Gallo, most recently president of the recovery footwear brand Oofos, as general manager for North America.
Working from the company’s Buffalo corporate headquarters, Gallo will lead all product, marketing and commercial business in New Era Cap’s largest region—the U.S. and Canadian markets.
With Gallo’s appointment, New Era Cap filled an important role in its new strategic vision under Co-presidents Jim Grundtisch and Jim Patterson. The company outlined its plans in Fall 2022, focusing on three strategic pillars—brand, e-commerce and apparel—each identified as growth drivers and customer expansion for New Era Cap.
“Throughout my career, I’ve always wanted to associate myself with brands that have high consumer advocacy and an enormous amount of growth potential. New Era Cap has both of those foundational elements,” said Gallo. “I was fully bought in after meeting with company leadership. Chris Koch, Jim Grundtisch, Jim Patterson, and the team are building something very special here, and I’m excited to oversee and help shape the success of its blueprint across North America.”
Oofos reported that during Gallo’s tenure at the company, he helped “increase revenue by significantly expanding the brand’s e-commerce capabilities, where direct-to-consumer website sales led the overall business.” His tenure also included inking “several wide-reaching partnerships with professional athletes and sports organizations, contributing to greater consumer brand awareness and advocacy.”
As a former general manager of the sports licensed division at Adidas Group, Gallo was accountable for all facets of licensed apparel, including product creation, marketing, supply chain, operations, and finance. The division reported it achieved record sales under his leadership.”
“We are thrilled to add a leader of Steve Gallo’s caliber to our ranks. His arrival as general manager for North America speaks to New Era Cap’s renewed commitment to attracting top-tier talent,” said Grundtisch. “We concentrate on our people—from customers to employees to partners—because they are the heart of our brand. It was clear from our first conversation that Steve not only has the expertise and acumen for the job, but he also gets what makes New Era Cap so special and iconic.”
“Steve is the right leader at the right time for our North American business. He’s one of our industry’s biggest thinkers and most effective executives,” said Patterson.. We couldn’t be more enthusiastic about the impact he will undoubtedly make as we work together to accelerate New Era Cap’s ongoing growth.”
Gallo officially began his tenure with New Era Cap in September 2023.
The hiring comes following reports in early September, read SGB Media’s coverage here, that New Era had been talking with law firms and investment banks as part of a plan to go public next year. The potential IPO comes after fourth-generation company leader Chris Koch stepped down last fall from daily operations as private equity firms bought a significant stake in the headwear manufacturer.
Photo courtesy New Era
