Cotopaxi Brings General Mills Exec On Board as Chief Brand Officer
Cotopaxi is continuing to staff up.
The Salt Lake City, Utah-based sustainable outdoors brand has brought Brad Hiranaga on board as chief brand officer.
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The former chief marketing officer of General Mills is the third C-suite executive to join the brand in the past six months following the appointment of Damien Huang as president and Grace Zuncic as chief people and impact officer.
“Cotopaxi is poised for a meteoric ascension as an impact-driven adventure brand, and Brad is the perfect fit to help drive us through the next phase,” said Davis Smith, founder and chief executive officer. “We’re thrilled to have his expertise and insights, and to bolster what has been — and will be — an exciting period of exceptional new hires and growth.”
In this new role, Hiranaga will be responsible for marketing, advertising, creative, design, community, experiences, public relations and activations for the purpose-driven company.
During his 18 years at General Mills, Hiranaga was credited with leading and growing a $2 billion business unit, expanding and integrating e-commerce into all brands in the company, digitizing the “Box Tops for Education” loyalty program, and establishing the company’s “Be a Force for Good” mission.
“As a marketer, the opportunity to build and grow the Cotopaxi brand is my dream job,” Hiranaga said. “The company culture and social movement that Davis and his team have created is something extremely special and has tremendous personal appeal to me. Cotopaxi is a remarkable brand, with incredible potential to positively impact culture and people. Trailblazing how a company can transform capitalism and fight extreme poverty to improve the human condition is beyond inspiring to me.”
Hiranaga will be based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Cotopaxi is a certified B Corporation and was named for a mountain in Ecuador where Smith spent a lot of time in his youth. It started out as a colorful backpack brand, but has since branched out into apparel and other complementary products. Early in its life, Cotopaxi attracted some other high-profile investors including Toms founder Blake Mycoskie through his Toms Social Entrepreneurship Fund, as well as Neil Blumenthal, Smith’s former classmate from the Wharton School and the cofounder of Warby Parker and Harry’s.
