Wolverine Worldwide Names Gillian Meek as New President for Keds

WALTHAM, Mass., Sept. 7, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Wolverine Worldwide announces the promotion of Gillian Meek to President of Keds, effective Monday, September 12^th. As Keds continues to celebrate their 100^th anniversary with the Ladies First campaign, Meek's appointment is an important organizational move that adds to the Company's brand leadership, underscores the depth and talent of the management team and demonstrates the Keds brand's commitment to female empowerment.

In her new role, Meek becomes a member of the Senior Leadership Team of Wolverine Worldwide. Prior to her current appointment, Meek served as Senior Vice President of Product and Marketing for the Stride Rite Children's Group. While at Stride Rite, Meek demonstrated a "lead from the front" style. She has extensive experience in strategic brand building and her strong passion for product has led to big story innovations including Stride Rite's Made2Play Snoot and Phibian. Before joining Wolverine Worldwide in 2010, Meek worked with footwear brands Reebok and Timberland throughout her nearly 20-year career.

"I'm incredibly excited to promote Gillian for this critical position," said Richie Woodworth, President of the Wolverine Worldwide Boston Group. "She has shown nothing but dedication to our organization and has given life to our vision and values. She personally manifests Keds' mission of empowering and championing others to blaze their own trails to success."

In addition to her leadership roles at Wolverine Worldwide, Meek volunteers as an active member of Women in Footwear Industry (WIFI) and as co-chair of the Wolverine Worldwide Women's Resource Group (WRG), in which she supports and mentors women across the organization. Meek will lead a strong team of Keds female executives including Emily Culp, CMO, Elaine Dalton, VP of Sales and Holly Curtis, VP of Product.

ABOUT KEDS®
Founded in 1916, Keds® redefined footwear with the introduction of the Champion sneaker. The iconic design was one of the first options to provide women with accessible, fashionable footwear and ignited a style revolution. Over the past 100 years, Keds® have been worn by iconic women such as Audrey Hepburn, Katharine Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Jackie O and Yoko Ono. In 2015, Keds® introduced the Ladies First Since 1916 platform in over 80 global markets and launched a powerful new era in its history. 2016 marks the brand's centennial year, celebrating 100 years of fashionable footwear and a passion for female empowerment. Keds® is a division of Wolverine Worldwide, the world's leading maker of casual, work, outdoor, athletic and children's footwear. For more information, please visit Keds.com.

ABOUT WOLVERINE WORLDWIDE
With a commitment to service and product excellence, Wolverine World Wide, Inc. is one of the world's leading marketers of branded casual, active lifestyle, work, outdoor sport, athletic, children's and uniform footwear and apparel.  The Company's portfolio of highly recognized brands includes: Merrell®, Sperry®, Hush Puppies®, Saucony®, Wolverine®, Keds®, Stride Rite®, Sebago®, Chaco®, Bates®, HYTEST®, and Soft Style®.  The Company also is the global footwear licensee of popular brands including Cat® and Harley-Davidson®. The Company's products are carried by leading retailers in the U.S. and globally in approximately 200 countries and territories. For additional information, please visit our website, www.wolverineworldwide.com.

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SOURCE Wolverine Worldwide