London: Rapha today announces the appointment of Scott Mellin to its board of directors. He brings three decades of brand-building, product innovation, and cultural marketing expertise from some of the most iconic names in outdoor and performance sport, including The North Face and Salomon.
The appointment comes as Rapha continues to expand its global community of riders and Rapha Cycling Club (RCC) members, deepen its presence in competitive cycling, and extend its position at the intersection of sport and culture.
The British-founded cycling brand has been making moves since CEO Fran Millar joined the business in September 2024. One example is a major partnership with USA Cycling, announced last year, that will see Rapha kit out the US Olympic and Paralympic cycling teams at Los Angeles 2028.
Mellin's experience shaping brand identity across material innovation, sustainability, cultural marketing, and luxury positioning makes him a natural fit for the board as the company looks to its next phase.
As global chief brand officer at Salomon, Mellin was responsible for driving the vision, transformation and modernisation of the legacy French mountain sports brand. He added $1B net revenue and doubled brand awareness in his three years with the business.
Mellin was previously the global general manager of mountain sports at The North Face. His redefinition of the brand's pinnacle performance range, Summit Series, is credited as a key driver of exponential growth. During his tenure he also pioneered the relaunch of the brand's footwear category, and led sustainability programming – shifting recycled product content from 7 percent to over 70 percent. Mellin oversaw the development of a complete suite of new textiles for mountain sports including groundbreaking materials like Futurelight.
"Scott has a track record of pushing brands to find new cultural relevance whilst deepening authenticity and a sense of heritage. That insight will be invaluable as we grow Rapha's reach without compromising what makes this brand extraordinary. In addition, his credentials in driving product strategy and textile innovation will help sharpen our product pipeline," said Millar.
"Rapha has always looked beyond the sport and my experience has taught me what you gain from people at the top of their game in different industries. Scott brings not only a wealth of experience but fresh eyes and a new perspective. We are delighted he's joining us"
A committed cyclist having lived in the mountains of Aspen, Colorado, and lake-side in Annecy, France, Mellin has been a loyal Rapha customer since the brand's inception.
"Rapha is in a period of transformation – increasingly confident and starting to innovate at speed. I hope to act as a kind of catalyst for those changes, so that the next few years completely reinvent what it feels like to wear Rapha. I am honored to be joining the brand in this new era," said Mellin.
ABOUT RAPHA
Founded in London in 2004, Rapha has defined and redefined what it means to be a cycling brand ever since. Driven by a belief in the transformational power of cycling, Rapha is building the world's greatest cycling club with thousands of RCC members worldwide. From 18 Clubhouses in major cities, the brand leads more than 4,000 rides annually, riding more than 3 million miles with its members every year. Rapha's in-house atelier designs apparel with and for the best athletes in the world, pushing the boundaries with material innovation for performance without compromise on sustainability. Learn more at Rapha.cc.
