Hannah Mercer’s hire from Gymshark, where she led global wholesale and retail expansion, signals Footasylum’s intent to scale its omnichannel model internationally – a strategic step beyond its UK streetwear stronghold under AURELIUS ownership.
Footasylum has named Hannah Mercer as Chief Executive Officer, effective from the start of May, as the UK streetwear and athleisure retailer accelerates an international expansion push under private equity ownership.
Mercer succeeds David Pujolar, who stepped down from the role in February after approximately two years at the helm. Stephan Rahmede, senior representative of AURELIUS WaterRise – the operations advisory arm of Footasylum’s parent AURELIUS Group – has been serving in an interim capacity since Pujolar’s departure.
Background: Gymshark, adidas and Nike
Footasylum’s hire of Mercer draws directly on their track record building and scaling multi-channel retail across international markets. Mercer joins from Gymshark, where they spent nearly two years as Global General Manager overseeing wholesale, retail and franchise channels with full profit-and-loss accountability, including expansion into new geographies and formats.
Before that, Mercer spent more than six years at adidas in a series of Global Vice President roles spanning retail operations, global retail and franchise, and key cities, leading store strategy across the brand’s most commercially important markets. Earlier roles included more than seven years at Nike, alongside senior positions at Harrods, House of Fraser and Value Retail (Bicester Village).
What the hire signals
The depth of Mercer’s omnichannel and franchise experience aligns with Footasylum’s next phase, as the retailer has flagged international expansion across the DACH region (Germany, Austria and Switzerland) and the Gulf, while continuing store openings and upsizing in the UK. The company has also expanded its funding arrangement with HSBC UK to support the rollout programme and increase warehousing capacity.
The appointment comes as performance improves. In its most recent fiscal year, Footasylum reported revenue of £349.5 million, up 9.4 percent from £319.5 million, while net profit rose to £19.9 million from £2.8 million in fiscal 2024.
