Debra F

Nike is the world's largest supplier of athletic shoes and apparel producing almost $32B in annual revenue and employing 74K+ people worldwide. In this new role, I am working with the Greater China Marketing Leadership team and the Beijing Leadership team to activate the new role of Key Cities for Beijing with a sharp focus on serving, retaining and acquiring members and making membership matter on and offline for the Beijing consumer.

In this position, I led the Consumer-Direct Offense for Nike’s #1 key-city market, generating nearly 33% of total NA revenues for Nike. I orchestrated marketing planning and execution across a portfolio of categories and functions; Retail (Direct & Wholesale), Digital, Creative, Events, PR, Influencer and Entertainment Marketing. I served on the NA and City leadership teams, partnering with sales, merchandising and three GMs. I also mentored, coached and motivated seven direct reports and a team of 80 dotted and direct staff. Highlights of accomplishments in this role include: ➥ Unlocked and elevated the NYC market strategy to global scope, incorporating high-profile celebrity and sporting events to expand brand awareness and customer engagement worldwide. ➥ Elevated team performance and market share to achieve growth at a record-setting pace, generated through collaborative strategy sessions and team commitments to clearly defined goals. ➥ Nurtured relationships with government agencies to launch campaigns and initiatives integrating the brand with the city, generating positive press and further boosting employee engagement and morale.

While in this role I helped define the NA NikeWomen’s brand and seasonal marketing strategies across a portfolio of business. I led a team of 20+ across the geography and four key Cities (NY, LA, Chicago, Toronto) in product launches, activations and development of retail destinations. Helped grow the business exponentially. Highlights of accomplishments in this role include: ➥ Authored strategy and launch for Nike x Nordstrom (NXN) in 2016 which integrated sneaker boutiques at six destinations; 60% of all Nike business at Nordstrom ➥ Directed the launch for the Nike Sportsbra collection with the Bra Haus concept and overtook VS as #1 sportsbra in NA. ➥ Led the NA team in a ground-breaking product launch for HER with the ‘1s Reimagined’ footwear collection (AF1 & AJ1) brought to life at All Star Weekend & NYFW as well unique storytelling across retail partners; REVOLVE, NxN, KITH, DSM, HOH HARLEM, NIKE DIRECT, NOTRE.

During this time, I served a two-year, expat assignment traveling through Russia, Turkey, Poland, Israel, Greece, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Slovakia, Israel, Middle East and the Baltics; leading the fastest-growing performance category (Running), launching the NikeWomen’s brand and more deeply integrating Nike culture for the CEE marketing team of 30+. Highlights of accomplishments in this role include: ➥ Grew Running revenues 35% to $250M+, managed all aspects of seasonal planning from a geographical perspective, and achieved #1 ranking in the annual brand strength monitor survey. ➥ Tailored global direction into a distinctive CEE voice, creating relevance and authenticity through local content creation and ground-breaking digital initiatives. ➥ Identified local muses to inform product, marketplace and retail execution, inspired a new culture of sport for the CEE. ➥ Brought coaching, mentorship and connection to the CEE team, raised the level of strategic thinking and execution across the region to inspire over 10,000 people to run with Nike Running Club every month.

For this position, I led the global marketing organization through a transition bringing greater focus to the Nike SB brand. We broadened the focus for skateboarding to a younger audience and popularized the sport through organizing competitive skateboarding events – culminating with inclusion of skateboarding in the 2020/21 Olympics. A truly amazing experience!

In this role, I positioned the action sports brand as an industry leader through product innovation and shaping of sport and youth culture through consumer-focused and results-driven marketing strategies. I also served as Global Action Sports lead for the Sochi Winter Olympics.

For Nike 6.0, I provided oversight for global product launches, content, events and destinations across six key sports. Working with my extended team, we re-branded 6.0 to reflect evolution of athletes and consumers based on extensive market research, doubling revenue for the category. I also led Nike’s largest global Action Sport campaign with a ‘Just Do It’ film and year-long activation.

Burton Snowboards is the largest snowboard brand in the world, privately held and marketed worldwide. They selected me as the first Director of Women’s Marketing to develop the organizational infrastructure and long-range planning for the Burton Women’s Brand. I liaised with all key constituents to articulate a vision for the brand. Highlights of accomplishments in this role include: ➥ Developed the first integrated marketing campaign spanning across print, digital, contests, events, catalog, in-store collateral and retail. ➥ Initiated marketing development cycle eight months earlier than prior campaigns to synch more closely with product development and sell-in cycles. Led the charge for key grassroots programs to ensure brand accessibility. ➥ Created and presented an expansion plan which included more aggressive media investments, partnership with celebrities and style influencers as new channels of consumer connection, growing the women’s business 65%.

While in this position, I established a client service discipline and nurtured relationships with key accounts. I developed a process for identifying upsell opportunities and marketing initiatives for clients, which was rolled out nationwide at seven office locations.

For this company, I executed B2B positioning and the marketing plan, including brand awareness tracking that increased client satisfaction scores 20%. I also worked with 20th Century Fox to launch offline TV show and helped increase annual advertising revenue from $6M to $22M.

In this role, I developed consumer positioning for a wireless youth brand and online polling company. Key participant in hotjobs.com, Instinet.com, Atkins Nutritional Products, and Silversea new business pitches.

As an integral part of media campaign launch, I developed briefing materials for culturally diverse audiences and managed creative development and production of 20 TV commercials, 11 radio spots, and 15 print executions.