GoLite hired Andy Burgess to lead GoLite’s apparel and equipment design team as Vice President of Design & Development. Burgess brings over 15 years of experience from premier outdoor brands, most recently TRG Group, the licensing company responsible for Victorinox/Swiss Army luggage and Callaway Golf bags, as well as a past that includes the North Face and Eagle Creek. Burgess’ hire follows on the heels of two other strategic appointments announced earlier this year, industry veterans Canice Harte as GoLite’s Vice President of Sales & Marketing for apparel and equipment and Mark Flanagan as European General Manager.

“GoLite’s aggressive growth strategy requires a higher level of play from our entire team,” said GoLite co-founder and President, Demetri Coupounas. “Andy's experience making functional, user-focused gear will drive our product range to the premium levels of consumer-orientation that dealers have been asking us to build. We have made a significant investment in a highly experienced executive leadership team, and we are committed to more than tripling the size of the product team in the next year.”

“Andy, Canice, and Flan bring over 45 years of combined experience building top-notch brands in the outdoor and sporting goods industries, and they join GoLite’s financial wizard and Chief Operating Officer, Dan Brillon, to form an unstoppable leadership force,” said GoLite co-founder and CEO Kim Coupounas.

Andy Burgess joins GoLite from TRG Group, the licensing company responsible for Victorinox/Swiss Army luggage, golf bags and accessories for Callaway Golf, Riddell footwear, and Giro footwear, among others. During his five years at TRG he served as Vice President of Product Strategy, Design & Development and Vice President of Research & New Technologies. Burgess served two years as the Director of Design & Development for Eagle Creek, three years as Category Manager for Camping and Bookpacks at L.L. Bean, and seven
years at The North Face, moving from the buying office to running their Equipment Product Development team. Burgess has also worked in retail sales at several outdoor, bike and ski shops.

“I'm thrilled to be joining GoLite at this exciting point in the company's history,” said Burgess. “The brand is one of a rare few that hasn't strayed from its founding mission. Being a part of the new executive team as we retool our product line and internal processes to make our assortment as relevant as possible to today's outdoor consumer is an opportunity I couldn't pass up. GoLite's aggressive growth plans should really give dealers a constant flow of new apparel and equipment worth shouting about.”

GoLite’s apparel and equipment executives will work alongside their GoLite footwear colleagues, including industry veterans Bill Dodge and Bruce Gordon, to continue to drive innovation and the growth of the brand in the years to come.

Burgess is an avid climber, cyclist, and backcountry skier and holds a B.A. from Wabash College. He will reside in Boulder, Colorado with his wife and two young daughters.