Following the recent announcement that the Pentland Group has completed its acquisition of the Speedo North America business from PVH Corp., it has today announced that Jim Gerson will be returning to the business as president of Speedo North America.

Jim was president of Speedo North America from 2010 to 2016 and prior to that was president of the surf brand Reef and held senior vice president roles for The North Face and Jantzen swimwear brands.

Andy Long, CEO of Pentland Group’s Pentland Brands division says, “We’re thrilled that Jim has agreed to return to lead the Speedo North America team. The completion of the Speedo North America acquisition and the appointment of Jim, during these uncertain times, demonstrates our long-term commitment to the business and our passion for building a truly global brand.”

Jim Gerson says, “It’s a really exciting time to be re-joining team Speedo. Pentland has an outstanding track-record in brand building and growing global sports brands, and that will be instrumental in helping us to grow the Speedo business in North America. Speedo is a truly authentic, category leading, brand with an incredible history and I can’t wait to start working with the fantastic Speedo team in shaping its future.”

Gerson, who starts on 1^st June and will report to Andy Long, will be tasked with leading the Speedo North America team as they prepare for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics in 2021 and growing the brand across the region, within the swim category.

Pentland first acquired the Speedo brand in 1991 when it acquired the Speedo International business, which then licensed the Speedo trademark to PVH’s predecessor for use in North America and the Caribbean. It has since developed it into the world’s leading performance swimwear brand and now operates the Speedo businesses worldwide.

While the priority for Pentland throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, continues to be prioritising health and wellbeing, it’s endeavouring to maintain business operations so it can offer its customers a stronger global brand proposition when demand resumes.