Dr. Martens has named former Adidas executive Carla Murphy as its new chief brand officer, effective July 1.
According to the UK-based footwear brand, Murphy will be responsible for driving the company’s brand strategy, vision and creative direction, and will oversee its global product, strategy, marketing, and sustainability divisions.
When she assumes her role next month, Murphy will join Dr. Martens’ global leadership team and will report to chief executive officer Ije Nwokorie, who previously held her new role.
Murphy joins the company from Adidas AG, where she served as global senior vice president and general manager for Adidas Outdoor since 2020. In this role, Murphy was responsible for the end-to-end strategy, management and execution globally for the outdoor category, which included Adidas Terrex and Five Ten – the brand’s outdoor sports and technical footwear, apparel and accessories propositions.
Prior to Adidas, Murphy was previously the global chief brand and product officer for lifestyle merino brand Icebreaker, part of VF Corporation, and has held senior brand and product positions across brands within Salomon parent company Amer Sports. Early in her career, Murphy led multi-disciplinary global brand consultancies.
“Our brand is our most important asset, and I’m thrilled that Carla is joining to lead the brand organization,” Nwokorie said in a statement. “Carla is an exceptional leader with a proven track record for using bold storytelling and fearless creativity to drive growth for world-renowned brands, and she will do amazing work with our immensely talented brand and creative teams. Every one of us in the leadership team is looking forward to her partnership.”
Murphy added that she has long admired Dr. Martens. “Joining the team and the brand at this moment is incredibly exciting, the ambition and energy is high, and there is a tremendous opportunity in this next chapter to break new ground and connect with an even wider audience in a truly meaningful and culturally relevant way. I can’t wait to get started,” she said.
This news comes just days after Dr. Martens named former Nike executive Paul Zadoff as its new president of the Americas.
Murphy’s appointment also follows several other key senior hires to further strengthen Dr. Martens’ brand, product and creative teams. These include creative director for its global brand studio Neil Cummings, category director Emma Howarth, global design director Adam Owen, and global brand marketing director Paul Bowyer. These hires followed the appointment of Adam Meek as chief product officer in December 2021.