Puma Continues Hiring, Boohoo Parent Group Names CTO

Textiles

Oritain

Origin verification firm Oritain has named former White House advisor and UFLPA advocate Rebecca Brocato as chief government affairs officer of the Americas.

Brocato will oversee Oritain’s global public policy strategy and government affairs. She will operate out of Washington, D.C., to solidify Oritain’s position as a reliable resource for regulators, among others, navigating the intricate global trade landscape.

She joins following a distinguished career in U.S. foreign and national security policy, including roles at the National Security Council. As chief of staff at the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, she oversaw a $34 billion investment portfolio. Following her White House tenure, Brocato founded and led Stony Run Advisory, a boutique strategic advisory firm serving deep-tech and clean-energy clients.

Her appointment follows that of former CBP assistant commissioner Dave Fluty, who onboarded Oritain as executive director of forensic science in March.

Retail

Debenhams

Boohoo parent company Debenhams Group has appointed Paul Aspden as chief technology officer to accelerate its tech strategy. With 10-plus years of experience in technology and digital transformation in the retail sector, Aspden will focus on scaling the technology platform, enhancing brand partner onboarding and driving innovation—including the expanded use of AI.

Brands

Puma

German sports giant Puma announced the appointment of Bertrand Blanc as its inaugural vice president of global wholesale. Blanc will assume the newly created role on May 1. He will report directly to chief commercial officer Matthias Baeumer. Blanc joins after nine years at Wilson Sporting Goods, most recently as senior global commercial director. Previously, he held senior roles in strategy, key account management, planning, and operations at both Asics and Nike.

Puma also named Laurent Fricker as the new vice president of the sportstyle business unit. Effective starting June 1, he will report directly to chief brand officer Maria Valdes. Prior to Puma, Fricker held several leadership positions in product marketing and sales at Adidas and Reebok for 20-plus years.

Lululemon

Vancouver-based athletic apparel giant Lululemon Athletica announced seasoned retail executive Heidi O’Neill will take the helm, effective Sept. 8, following the board’s reportedly extensive search for a chief executive officer.

With over three decades of industry experience, O’Neill spent 25 of those years with Nike—most recently leading the brand’s global consumer and product operations. She’s credited with resetting Nike’s foundation and prioritizing momentum in global football and running. Before that, she served as director of marketing for the Dockers brand at Levi Strauss & Co.

Meghan Frank and André Maestrini will continue to lead as interim co-CEOs until O’Neill joins in September—at which point both will return to their previous positions as chief financial officer and chief commercial officer, respectively.

Lululemon noted that O’Neill brings valuable strategy and leadership insights from her board service, as she currently serves on the boards of directors of several consumer-facing companies, including Spotify and Hyatt Hotels.

Birdy Grey

Direct-to-consumer bridal brand Birdy Grey has named Anthony Potgieter as its first chief growth officer. Potgieter will lead the company’s growth organization, focusing on building a modern full-funnel growth engine to expand brand reach, deepen customer relationships, and accelerate revenue growth. He brings over 20 years of experience scaling consumer brands. Potgieter joins from Stanley 1913, where he served as senior director of e-commerce. He previously led DTC e-commerce at Evolve and scaled Wyze’s DTC business from zero to $200 million in two years.