Kering names Todd Hymel CEO of Action Sports Brands

By

Olivier Guyot

Published
May 6, 2015

“To establish a stronger Group presence in the US, notably on the West Coast"... As of July 1, Todd Hymel will switch continents. Having served as COO of the French company’s Sport and Lifestyle division since 2012, the Franco-American executive will now focus on the brands Volcom and Electric.

Hymel has been named CEO of the company’s Action Sports Brands. He will leave Kering’s Paris headquarters in early July to join the company’s office in Costa Mesa, California, and will continue to report to Kering’s Deputy CEO, Jean-François Palus. Palus is continuing to shape a strategic vision for the brand Puma, which has been overseen since July 1, 2013 by Björn Gulden. 

Having worked at KPMG, as well as at the investment firm Platinum Equity in 2003, he co-founded the investment group Naxos Capital Partners in 2006. He joined Kering in 2008 as deputy director of mergers and acquisitions and has served on the board of Puma since April 2012, a position he continues to hold.

Ads

In California, he will be closer to the heart of Volcom and Electric, which continue to be overseen respectively by Jason Steris and Michael Crane. The brands generated a turnover of 255 million euros in 2014, with an operating profit of 10 million euros. Beyond representing Kering in Los Angeles, Todd Hymel will certainly also be tasked with improving both brands’ operating margins.