The Athlete’s Foot (TAF) has appointed Romano Cinelli as its new vice president and general manager for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The seasoned executive brings over 25 years of global growth experience in premium brands, sports and retail management.
Cinelli will be responsible for managing the business’s day-to-day operations, including marketing, merchandising, retail operations and servicing of brand partners like Nike/Jordan, Adidas, New Balance, Reebok and Puma in EMEA. He will also be responsible for developing and executing growth strategies to drive future growth of TAF’s store portfolio and its e-commerce business and identify growth opportunities in emerging markets in EMEA.
Before joining The Athlete’s Foot, Cinelli spent nearly a decade as vice president and general manager of Converse EMEA and general manager of Southern Europe Sportswear at Nike. Romano Cinelli has extensive experience leading businesses in multinational corporations, navigating different countries and market cultures, and creating an environment of diversity and inclusion.
“Bringing in Romano, with the proven track record, gives The Athlete’s Foot’s team a seasoned leader who would support TAF’s continuous quest to become one of the world’s top athletic-inspired lifestyle retailers and omnichannel businesses,” said Param Singh, owner and CEO of Arklyz Group, which owns The Athlete’s Foot globally. “His extensive industry experience, expertise and alignment with our core values solidify him as the perfect person to lead TAF in EMEA.”
