Marissa Pardini, a high-profile hire for Vans, is stepping down. File photo courtesy of Vans.
More change is taking place within the ranks of Costa Mesa-based Vans.
Chief Product and Merchandising Officer Marissa Pardini announced last week plans to step down from her position after a little over a year at the footwear company, SES has learned.
Separate from Pardini’s announcement, more high-level Vans employees were laid off last week in several departments, according to an employee speaking on condition of anonymity. The cuts included long-time Vans employees.
This follows Vans’ notification to the state of 42 layoffs at its headquarters in January.
Vans declined to comment on the layoffs or Pardini’s departure.
Pardini rejoined Vans in December of 2022 from The North Face, where she had served as vice president and general manager of the Americas business. She came on board as then-Global Brand President Kevin Bailey was working on a business turnaround that focused heavily on product innovation at a faster clip and a return to more grassroots marketing efforts.
Last July’s appointment of Bracken Darrell as president and CEO of Vans parent VF Corp. has led to widespread changes and cost-cutting measures across the VF organization and its brand portfolio in a bid to improve the overall business.
Bailey stepped down from Vans in October to lead the VF turnaround as chief transformation officer. Darrell has since been overseeing the Vans business while the company searches for a new brand president. Meanwhile, all of VF’s brand portfolio is under review as it faces activist investor pressures to get the business back to growth.
