Imperial Headwear appointed Doug Kelly as its new chief executive officer. Kelly most recently served as president of Russell Athletic Group. He replaces former MLB Properties and Nike exec Rick White.
During his tenure at Russell, which markets the brands of Russell, Spalding, Bike Athletic, Dudley, Huffy and AAI, Kelly was responsible for the company's broad distribution base of sports specialty stores, collegiate bookstores, department stores and team dealers. In addition, Kelly directed the company's strategic planning, marketing, merchandising, sales and operations departments.
“I look forward to leading the management of Imperial into their next phase of market growth. Not many executives have the opportunity to work with a brand with the heritage and market share of Imperial balanced by the youthful, energetic appeal of Merge Left. I am eager to get started,” commented Kelly.
After starting his career at Converse, Kelly served in roles of increasing responsibility including executive vice president and COO of Curly-Bates (exclusive marketer and distributor of Mizuno and Easton brands), president and chief executive officer of Easton Sports, Inc. and president and chief operating officer of Pro Player Sports Apparel.
Revenue growth has been a hallmark of Kelly's experience as illustrated by the expansion he led for Easton from $17 million to more than $100 million in eight years and the increase, while at Pro Player, to 10,000 retail accounts and $250 million in revenue. During his career, Kelly also has developed strong relationships with many of the licensing partners that Imperial currently works with as well as numerous others.
“Doug's experience serving as a growth oriented corporate leader is vast. He brings Imperial a great deal of knowledge in the sporting goods industry and licensing marketplace. He has demonstrated the ability to grow a company's market share and profitability, regardless of economic cycle. With a keen appreciation for Imperial's heritage in the golf industry and, with that as our continued foundation, Doug has exciting perspective on how to introduce our portfolio of brands to many new distribution channels,” explained S. Garrett Stonehouse, chairman of Imperial Headwear.
Founded in 1916, Imperial Headwear is a manufacturer and marketer of premium quality, active lifestyle headwear for the golf, tennis, corporate, outdoor, resort, collegiate, military and select private label markets. Imperial products feature the Imperial, Merge Left and Watership by Imperial brand names.
