Joshua Schulman appointed President and CEO of Coach brand

Coach has appointed Joshua Schulman as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Coach brand, effective June 5, 2017. The company said, in this newly created role following Stuart Weitzman acquisition in 2015, Schulman will be responsible for all aspects of the brand globally, reporting directly to Victor Luis, Chief Executive Officer of Coach. In a separate release, Coach also announced that Ian Bickley has been elevated to the new role of President, Global Business Development and Strategic Alliances for Coach, effective July 2, 2017.

“I’ve known Josh for many years and had always hoped to attract him to Coach. He lives and breathes our industry and brings a unique blend of brand building and broad retail experience to the company, making him the ideal person for this newly created role,” said Luis, in a the company statement.

Joshua Schulman joins as Coach brand CEO

Schulman joins Coach from Neiman Marcus Group where he has served as president, Bergdorf Goodman and NMG International. He joined Neiman Marcus Group in 2012 and assumed additional responsibility for NMG International with the acquisition of MyTheresa.com in 2014.

“I have been very impressed with the evolution of Coach under Stuart Vevers’s creative direction and Victor Luis’s leadership. I look forward to working with the talented global teams at Coach to build on this transformation, driving growth and relevance for the iconic brand across product categories, channels and geographies,” added Schulman.

From 2007 until 2012, Schulman was CEO of Jimmy Choo. Prior to Jimmy Choo, he served in senior executive roles at global retail and luxury brands including, managing director, international strategic alliances, Gap, executive vice president, worldwide merchandising and wholesale, Yves Saint Laurent, as well as worldwide director, women’s ready-to-wear at Gucci.

Ian Bickley elevated as President Global Business Development

Coach also announced that Ian Bickley, currently president, international group for the Coach brand, has been elevated to the new role of President, Global Business Development and Strategic Alliances for Coach, effective July 2, 2017. In this role, Bickley will continue to report directly to Luis and will be responsible for strategic partnerships across brands.

The statement added that Bickley will have oversight of the company’s global real estate development and will partner with the brand presidents in leading strategic distributor relationships, licensing partnerships and collaborations. He will also be a key leader in the further development of Coach’s multi-brand strategy.

Meanwhile, Andre Cohen, currently president, North America and Global Marketing for the Coach brand, the company said, will be leaving the company at the end of June to return to Asia with his family. Cohen has been with Coach since 2008 and was instrumental in Coach’s development in Asia and has been spearheading the execution of the brand’s transformation strategy in the North American market over the last two years.

“Andre has been a great partner to me and a strong leader of our businesses in Asia and North America. I deeply appreciate his friendship and contributions over the last nine years but naturally I respect his family’s decision to return home to Singapore,” added Luis.

Picture:Coach media relations