Skechers appoints new managing director of UK and Ireland

US footwear brand Skechers has promoted Richard Parker to the position of managing director of the company’s UK and Ireland divisions.

Parker has been at the business for 22 years, starting as an area sales manager before working his way up the ranks to become national sales manager for Skechers UK and Ireland, a role he’s held for the past four years.

He succeeds Peter Youell, who has transitioned into an advisory role for special and key international projects with the company.

Skechers COO David Weinberg thanked outgoing managing director Youell, and said he expects Parker to “excel” in his new role, based on his “varied experience, business acumen, and success within the organization and market relationships”.

“We celebrated the 30th anniversary of Skechers in 2022 with the company’s international business just shy of 60 percent of our total sales, a new annual record at 7.4 billion dollars,” Weinberg said.

He added that the UK business was “a key contributor to that growth”.