Harte joins Rossignol as softgoods marketing VP

Harte joins Rossignol as softgoods marketing VP{mosimage}The Quiksilver Rossignol Group has tabbed Canice Harte to join its management team in Park City to fill the position of VP of sales and marketing, softgoods division.

Harte will be directly responsible for sales activities and will oversee the adaptation of Rossignol’s global marketing strategies related to the apparel, accessories and footwear divisions of the brand for the U.S. market.

Prior to joining The Quiksilver Rossignol Group, Canice was the national sales manager, softgoods division, for Salomon N.A. He also has extensive sales experience with respected brands such as Patagonia, The North Face and Sierra Design. He is an avid outdoorsman, having climbed such summits as Rainier, Shasta and Denali, and enjoys skiing, snowboarding and surfing.

Harte said, “To work with a brand that has a pure mountain focus such as Rossignol and has the softgoods expertise of Quiksilver behind it is an exciting opportunity. We live and breathe the mountains in Park City, Utah, and plan to use this inspiration to drive our creative process. Our focus will be on the end consumer and our retail partners as we build meaningful softgoods relationships in our channels of distribution and expand our presence in the market.”

Francois Goulet, president of the Rossignol Group North America, said, “While Rossignol will continue to maintain focus on its core business, it is clear that the major engine for growth will be the development of its technical outerwear and mountain lifestyle offering which includes casual apparel, footwear and accessories. We needed someone to drive sales of this strategic segment of our business and Canice was a perfect fit for the job. Not only has he shown an impressive track record in the apparel business, Canice demonstrated enthusiasm for our project and our new association with our parent company, Quiksilver. Canice wanted to be a key player in building the next chapter for our brand.”

He will work closely with MaryAnne Hartley, Rossignol’s outerwear program sales manager, during the next several months in launching the brand’s summer 2007 apparel and footwear program.

— Rossignol