Pentland Brands Limited announced changes to its executive team. The changes include Chirag Patel becoming chief executive officer, having previously served as deputy chief executive officer.

Patel started his career in the pharmaceutical and fitness industries before arriving at Pentland Brands and working in leadership roles across the Mitre and Lacoste brands. In 2016 he joined the Pentland Brands Executive team as Director of Global Strategy and then Chief Operating Officer, leading marketing and product across all brands, its U.S. business operations and the team responsible for the acquisition of SeaVees, Endura and the Speedo North America license.

  • Andy Long, currently COO at Pentland Brands Limited, is joining its parent company, Pentland Group Limited, as a director. He will have responsibility for various activities including the Group’s finance, tax and banking relationships.
  • Penny Herriman will join the company as CMO. Herriman has a wealth of experience in brand building gained across advertising and digital agencies and more recently leading brands. During her career, she has held roles as Managing Partner of BBH and CEO of WRCS and Isobar digital agency. Herriman joins Pentland Brands from White Stuff, where she has been its Customer Director and a member of the Executive team, prior to which she was Global Brand Director at Boden. Herriman will be responsible for leading the brand Product and Marketing teams across the global organization as well as the in-house Creative Agency, External Communications team and brand digital platforms.
  • Jon Godden, currently Chief Human Resources Officer, is appointed COO and will lead the IT, HR, Legal, Portfolio, Project Management, and Workplace functions.
  • Charlotte Cox, currently Brand Director, Team Sports (Canterbury and Mitre), is appointed President EMEA and will be responsible for the Commercial teams across the region. Cox replaces Richard Newcombe, who will take on responsibility for developing footwear opportunities, alongside his ownership of the Lacoste JV relationship.
  • Matt Rock continues in his role as President ASPAC, responsible for both the global Supply Chain and the regional Commercial teams.
  • Dominique Highfield will join the Executive team as Director of Finance. Following a restructuring of the Finance team, the Pentland Brands CFO role is redundant and Katrina Nurse, Chief Finance Officer, will leave the business at the end of September.

Long commented, “I would like to wish Chirag and the new Executive team all the best in leading the next phase of business growth at Pentland Brands, and I would like to thank Katrina Nurse for her contribution over two years and wish her well for the future.”

The Executive team changes are a result of the recent strategic business review and the organization’s long-term succession planning strategy. The review, announced in early July, outlined plans to drive an increased emphasis on sustainability and larger opportunities for Pentland Brands’ core brands: Speedo, Berghaus, Endura, Canterbury, Mitre, Ellesse, Kickers and SeaVees.

Penny, Cox and Highfield will join the Executive team in Q4 and, to ensure a smooth transition, Chirag and Long will start their new roles from  January 1, 2021.

Photo courtesy Pentland Brands