Rapha names new chief brand officer
British cycling apparel brand Rapha announced on Monday the appointment of Jodie Harrison to the role of chief brand officer, a newly created role reporting to CEO, Fran Millar.
Harrison has been consulting across brand strategy for Rapha since January, and will now work with the Rapha leadership team to oversee the end-to-end recalibration of its brand position, according to a press release.
The executive joins from Belstaff, where both Millar and Harrison worked together to transform the British fashion brand's position and performance.
Harrison cut her brand-building teeth in the magazine industry at GQ. After seven years, she joined Mr. Porter, as its founding editorial director. In 2017, she became Soho House's creative and content director, followed by time in the U.S. at Anthropologie and online fashion website, Moda Operandi. After returning to lead the Soho House membership strategy, Harrison founded her own brand consultancy, Fell & Scar, and then was poached by Millar to join Belstaff.
'Rapha was built on originality and courage, which Jodie brings to everything she does. I'm delighted she will lead the focus on inspiring new and future fans in this next chapter for the brand," said Millar, who was appointed CEO of Rapha in September.
Founded in 2004, Rapha is a performance cycling apparel brand with a history of material and functional innovation. Since its inception, the brand has forged collaborations with Palace and Patta expanding its reach beyond traditional sports enthousiasts.
'At 21 years young, Rapha has already achieved an enviable and established heritage. It's a brand's brand - recognised globally and genuinely loved - so shepherding it into a new era comes with great responsibility. This is not something I take lightly - there's a lot of careful work to do,' said Harrison.
"No other brand has defined and redefined cycling like Rapha, transforming the way the world sees the sport. Rapha made cycling relevant, evocative and alluring. As such, our founder Simon Mottram has built the kind of passionate community most brands can only dream of.'
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