Dive Brief:
- True Religion has tapped Kristen D’Arcy for the newly-created role of chief marketing officer, according to a Tuesday release.
- She was most recently CMO at wellness and lifestyle firm Homedics, where she grew the company’s DTC sales by 80%, according to the release. D’Arcy’s hire comes at a time when True Religion is in the midst of transforming into a “DTC, digital-first company.”
- Previously, D’Arcy served as CMO at Pacsun, and has held various senior marketing positions at American Eagle Outfitters, Coty, Oscar de la Renta and Ralph Lauren.
Dive Insight:
D’Arcy will report to CEO Michael Buckley. She’ll be responsible for every facet of the California-based denim and sportswear brand’s marketing, including content creation, creative, brand, public relations, influencers, social media, partnerships and philanthropy.
In particular, D’Arcy will be focused on pivoting the brand towards DTC. This shift comes after True Religion, founded in 2002, emerged from its second bankruptcy in 2020 with a plan to reduce its operating costs and lower its debt load. Last year, Digital Commerce 360 reported that True Religion hoped to “reach $250 million in ecommerce sales, with a 50% ecommerce penetration rate by 2025.”
“My background is rooted in digital, so I know how to measure, track and quantify marketing investments relative to quantifiable business growth,” said D’Arcy in an email to Fashion Dive. “Further, I’ve been asked in a number of different roles to come in and help operationalize marketing teams more to be digital first in their strategizing and output, so I’m excited to see what similar opportunities exist here, building on the good work done by the team.”
She added that in terms of denim, her work with American Eagle helped grow the brand’s e-commerce business “over a big sales milestone marker,” and said “pivoting to a digital-first media plan helped in achieving our aggressive sales goals.”
The release stated that D’Arcy has had “significant success in designing omni-channel, global brand marketing campaigns with influencers and celebrities which have driven business growth and consumer engagement.”
“The digital space is constantly evolving and with the tremendous amount of innovation occurring, it’s key for brands to lean into this [DTC] channel in strategic ways to build longevity in the sector as well as to target younger consumers who are first discovering products on e-commerce platforms,” said D’Arcy. “True Religion has done an incredible job growing its digital channel and leveraging it as a means to build loyalty with existing and new customers, while also announcing exclusive launches with True Creators and celebrities, some of which have sold out in the matter of minutes. As a DTC-first brand, True Religion expects e-commerce to represent 50% of the brand’s revenues in a few years, and I am very excited to begin this journey at such a vital turning point.”
Buckley described D’Arcy as “the ideal candidate to fill this critical role” in the release.
“She has a proven track record of creating business growth, fostering brand love, and managing high-performing teams,” he said. “Her vast experience with top retail brands including Pacific Sun, Ralph Lauren, Coty, and Oscar de la Renta brings an important new layer of expertise to True Religion’s senior leadership team.”
