GREENVILLE, SC (BRAIN)—Hincapie Sportswear has hired Philip Martindale as its new director of international sales. Martindale will be responsible for developing Hincapie retail apparel business in markets outside North America.
“The Hincapie brand has enormous international sales potential and the timing is right for us to tap into new markets around the world,” said Rich Hincapie, president of Hincapie Sportswear. “With the decreasing value of the U.S. dollar, it makes good business sense for any company in the U.S. to consider expanding internationally. Combine the current economic situation with the fact that George is incredibly popular throughout Europe, and you have a strategic formula for success. Philip has the contacts and the experience to help us shortcut our learning curve as we grow the Hincapie brand around the world.”
Martindale brings a wealth of international sales experience to the Hincapie brand. As the international sales director for American Bicycle Group, he helped restructure and service ABG’s global distributor network. This experience will help him build a similar distribution network for Hincapie, as the brand expands worldwide. Martindale will be responsible for cultivating new relationships with distributors around the world that will help introduce Hincapie retail apparel and accessories to consumers.
“This is the next logical step in growing the Hincapie brand, and I’m excited to be involved,” said Martindale. “I have extensive experience in every aspect of distributor network development, from prospecting new relationships and growing sales to managing and maintaining customer satisfaction. Europeans are hungry for the Hincapie brand, so I already have a short list of interested partners. It shouldn’t take us long to make an impact on the market.”
Martindale will start developing Hincapie international business immediately, with the goal of a wide scale product introduction beginning with the spring 2009 product line. He will focus on developing the European business first and add additional strategic markets as the business grows.
International distributors that are interested in partnering with Hincapie should contact Martindale at PMartindale@hincapie.com.
