Henri Blomqvist.

PADUA, Italy and PARSIPPANY, N.J.—Safilo Group (SFLG.MI), has appointed Henri Blomqvist as new CEO of Safilo North America, VMail has learned. He also adds the responsibility for the Group's global sports commercial channel and is a member of the Safilo Group executive committee. Blomqvist has been chief commercial officer of Safilo Group for the past three years.

The appointment will become effective Aug. 1, said Safilo Group CEO, Luisa Delgado. "We are delighted to count on Henri as the leader of our core market of North America,” she noted. "Safilo thrives on our historical strength of product, design and craftsmanship, broad brand portfolio, and close partnership with our highly valued customers. We see tremendous opportunities to further develop our strength in North America, and plan to invest in our go-to-market capabilities and customer care, while enhancing our global brand portfolio."

During his time at Safilo Group as chief commercial officer, Blomqvist repositioned Safilo's commercial strategy and go to market organization with focus on distribution quality and sustainability, established global commercial policies and global account management, and led the renewal of Safilo's commercial talent around the world, the company pointed out, noting, “He takes the North America role with the objective of enhancing Safilo's partnership with its customers to build market share and accelerate profitable growth, leading Safilo's North America organization to high performance.”

Born in Finland, Blomqvist has had a career of ten years at Procter & Gamble, with experiences in the areas of sales and commercial management on several worldwide brands. He held local and international roles covering a variety of countries, including Nordic, parts of Western Europe, Russia, Turkey, the Middle East, South Africa, Korea and Australia.

This appointment coincides with the further evolution of Safilo's 2020 transformation to guarantee the highest standards of commercial leadership in its strategically most relevant markets of North America, Western Europe, and emerging markets, and establishing global leadership presence outside its Italian global headquarters starting with the USA.

Among its global brand portfolio news, Safilo announced yesterday the early renewal of its Jimmy Choo global license agreement to 2023. In light of the global success of the women’s eyewear collections, the new agreement also includes the launch of a Jimmy Choo men’s collection, with a first capsule edition to be presented in the brand’s boutiques and in a global selection of the most prestigious optical stores, starting from January 2018.