Crocs, Inc. announced that footwear industry and product merchant leader Michelle Poole has been appointed as its senior vice president of global merchandising. In this newly created role, Poole will be responsible for leading the strategy and management of the global merchandising organization at Crocs. Poole, who starts her new role on Aug. 25, will be based out of the product creation and global shared services center in Niwot, Colo. She will report directly to Andrew Rees, president of Crocs.
"We are excited to welcome such an experienced and dynamic footwear leader to the Crocs management team," said Rees. "We look forward to Michelle's influence on our future product lines, as she helps us develop and execute more powerful and cohesive global brand stories to delight consumers worldwide."
Poole has more than 20 years of experience and proven success in the development of leading global fashion and lifestyle brands. Prior to joining Crocs, Poole spent five years at Sperry Top-Sider, where she was most recently the company's senior vice president of product. In this role, Poole was responsible for the creation and implementation of the global product strategy and led several key initiatives, including the launch of a year-round women's business and collaborated on the launch of specialty retail stores and sperrytopsider.com. Poole's footwear industry experience also includes brand-building roles at Timberland and Converse.
Poole received her bachelor's degree in fashion marketing from the University of Northumbria.
"I'm looking forward to joining the energetic and fun team at Crocs," said Poole. "The brand already has an iconic legacy with its core products and a powerful connection to consumers, and I'm excited to help build on this success."
