Culture Kings appoints former Adidas head of design as U.S. president

By

Jennifer Braun

Published
Jun 13, 2022

San Francisco-based lifestyle and apparel company A.K.A. Brands announced last week the appointment of former Adidas head of design Jonathan Yuska as president of Culture Kings’ U.S. division. 

In this role, Yuska joins the Culture Kings leadership team, where he will be responsible for spearheading the brand’s continued expansion in the United States. Current U.S. expansion plans span both online and in-person activations, including the opening of its first flagship store in Las Vegas later this year.

He will report to Simon Beard, CEO & co-founder of Culture Kings.

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“Jonathan has an extensive, impressive background working with athleticwear and lifestyle brands, and we are confident that he will be an invaluable asset to Culture Kings,” said Beard.

“We look forward to having Jonathan on board to lead the brand’s growth in the U.S. – both online and in-person with our first flagship store opening in Las Vegas later this year. We know he will be instrumental in scaling our business into a formidable streetwear lifestyle brand globally.”

Yuska brings over 20 years of experience to the company from sports brands, including Adidas, Reebok and Fila. Most recently, he served as the president of Rastellis.com, a high growth DTC premium food company based in Philadelphia. From 2012 to 2017, Yuska was the global head of Adidas’ premium apparel brand Mitchell & Ness, where he led global strategy, product creation, marketing and league partnerships.

Earlier in his career, Yuska held various creative leadership roles at Adidas, including head of design and was behind the Adidas exclusive official outfitter deals with the NBA, NFL, NHL and other leagues. Prior to that, he held multiple creative leadership roles at Reebok, leading regional collections from the brand’s Tokyo office, as well as spent more than four years with Fila working in product creation.

“Culture Kings is a leading streetwear lifestyle brand that uniquely blends sports, music and fashion unlike anyone else. I am confident that the brand has a tremendous runway of growth ahead in the U.S. market,” said Yuska. “It’s an honor to join the Culture Kings family and A.K.A. Brands team, and I look forward to building Culture Kings’ presence in the U.S., beginning with the launch of our first flagship store in Las Vegas at the end of the year.”

Other direct-to-consumer brands that are part of A.K.A. Brands’ portfolio include Princess Polly, Mnml, Petal & Pup and Rebdolls.