Wolverine World Wide, Inc. appointed Chip Coe as vice president – licensing and accessories. Coe was president and chief executive officer at Teko Socks and before
that he was president and chief operating officer at Smartwool.
Wolverine said at both
brands, he successfully drove growth and positioned the companies at the
top of the outdoor accessories market.
The company added that this newly created position will leverage the strength of the Wolverine brands into further growth opportunities, with the initial focus on Merrell accessories including bags and socks, and accessories under the Hush Puppies brand.
“The addition of Coe further enhances our already strong senior leadership team and emphasizes our commitment to global growth beyond footwear,” said Jim Zwiers, president of the WWW's Outdoor Group. “With a dedicated accessories lead, we will be able to expand our apparel and accessories product development platform and build even stronger brands and connections with our consumer. Coe's initial focus will be on leveraging his past successes and expertise to build our accessories programs, which is an important part of this overall growth strategy as we build lifestyle brands, support retail and expand our sales on a global scale. In the Outdoor Group we look forward to making Merrell our first billion dollar brand and capitalizing on the potential of Chaco.”
In his new role, Coe will have responsibility for building the architecture for growth within the Wolverine World Wide accessories and licensing initiatives, including product creation and product line management. His first focus will be to take the Merrell accessories and socks program to the next level as well as to build on the significant global Hush Puppies accessory licensing business. He will leverage the global momentum of the Company”s brands and ensure the continued development of Wolverine's industry leading accessories product. Coe will report to Mark Sandquist, president – global apparel.
Wolverine World Wide's brands include: Bates, Chaco, Cushe, Hush Puppies, HYTEST, Merrell, Sebago, Soft Style, and Wolverine. The Company is also the exclusive footwear licensee of popular brands including CAT, Harley-Davidson, and Patagonia.
