Wild Rye added four new members to the brand’s team: a fractional marketing director, a product development associate, an e-commerce and digital merchandising manager, and a customer experience and events coordinator. In addition, Wild Rye reported it is building out a network of outside sales reps and contacts for the U.S. to support and grow its specialty retail partnerships.
“As we continue to build Wild Rye’s sales representative network across the United States, hone in on our direct-to-consumer experience, and capitalize on other opportunities that have arisen, we need a more robust team to support our brand growth,” said Cassie Abel, CEO and founder, Wild Rye. “Bringing on these four passionate and talented women adds an incredible breadth of knowledge and resources to our team, with each personality being the perfect cultural fit to match. We could not be more excited for the brand’s next era of growth.”
Wild Rye welcomed Maro LaBlance as the fractional marketing director. With 20 years of experience in international marketing, brand communications strategy and public relations. LaBlance is ingrained in the outdoor industry and has a track record for growing brands ranging from start-ups to global heritage companies. LaBlance will bring her expertise in marketing direction and content strategy to Wild Rye.
“I’ve been a huge fan of Wild Rye since its inception,” said LaBlance. “From fits to fabrics to colors and prints, the product is outstanding. But what has impressed me even more is the passionate community and strong brand they’ve built in a relatively short time. I’m honored to get to work with this talented team to serve more outdoor women in all the ways they play wild.”
Grace O’Brien joined the Wild Rye team in early February as e-commerce and digital merchandising manager. O’Brien brings four years of experience working in e-commerce at Stio, most recently as the brand’s associate website manager.
Dorothy Wang joins the team as Wild Rye’s new product development associate. After working as a software engineer, UX designer and sports photographer, Wang’s interests led her to design technical soft goods for outdoor sports and lifestyle brands. Wang looks forward to using 3D design to help create more sustainable, circular products, aligning with Wild Rye’s focus on reducing impact when it comes to environmental practices, which has earned the brand B-Corp and Climate Neutral certifications.
Sun Valley local Riley Revallier will serve Wild Rye as the customer experience and events coordinator. Previously working as a Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation freeride coach and server at Ketchum’s Enoteca, Revallier is connected to Wild Rye’s local community.
Image courtesy Wild Rye