Professional Product Management

Tasked with making Patagonia relevant in the technical outerwear market, I envisioned a jacket that would recapture the attention of alpinists; the Nano Puff Hoody. 

Far superior at trapping warmth, ultralight puffies replaced fleece as a mid-layer, and changed the way Americans dress, resulting in a $100M per year product line for the brand. 

The success of the Patagonia Nano Puff spurred other leading brands to develop and market successful synthetic insulated pieces, such as The North Face Thermoball. 

At 5 pounds and un-packable, Canada Goose parkas required their own roller bags for travel. Broader thinking in line planning allowed me to bring concepts for lightweight down styles, stretch down, softshells, and premium Schoeller® rainwear. 

As a result of new products and specialized market penetration, the brand grew to over $100M and went public. Today, the Canada Goose brand has expanded to represent luxury and authentic fashion in many categories. 

Heat-exhausted soldiers wearing body armor were diminishing US military effectiveness. The solution was to create a shirt with a highly air-permeable wicking core under the armor while enhancing the ‘utility sleeve’ capability with built-in elbow pads. The athletic silhouette made soldiers feel like superheroes; speeding adoption and changing the military uniform forever. 

At Massif, we custom-built flame-resistant fabrics and put them in novel designs that protect our male and female soldiers today.

I am proud to be part of these patented designs and in securing government contracts for 5 million Army Combat Shirts and the first ever 2-Piece Flight Suit.

The original 60/40 Parka brought Sierra Designs fame as the only water-resistant jacket in the 1970’s other than a rubber raincoat. Needing a revival in the 2000's, senior leadership believed that today's ultra-light thru-hikers were underserved by outerwear brands and their failure to innovate.

Even with great effort by a top-performing team focused on revolutionary product ideas; a lack of investment and low brand recognition prevented meaningful buy-in from retailers. 

We did have some achievements; including Gear of the Year for the first water-repellent down jackets in the Outdoor Industry. I also found that the freedom to create unique sportswear, outerwear and gear was the true gift of my experience with Sierra Designs. 

One hundred years ago, cotton denim was the highest performing apparel in the world. But, workwear market-leaders have not kept up with advancements in fabric technology since. 

As the disruptor in the workwear market, Truewerk represents the convergence of technical fabrics from the outdoor industry and modern features that work for people in the trades. 

As the Product Director, I developed fabrics that changed the game for the workwear market and introduced them in classic silhouettes like, full-stretch work pants with knee pads, technical sweatshirts and fast-drying flannels. The products appealed to every worker and grew a start-up into a $50M brand.