Steve Murray has been named Global Brand President for The North Face. Previously VF’s President of the Americas Region, Murray replaces Arne Arens who has stepped down to pursue other opportunities outside of VF.

In addition to Murray’s appointment, VF Corp. announced organizational changes in support of its ongoing business model transformation. The leaders of VF’s three Core Brands (Vans, The North Face and Timberland) and its Emerging Brands (all other brands in its portfolio) now report directly to Chairman, President and CEO, Steve Rendle. VF has eliminated the role of President of the Americas.

“As we work to become a more integrated brand-building company, we must operate differently and manage our Core and Emerging Brands in differentiated ways in order to help each of them achieve their full potential,” said Rendle. “As we do this, it’s critical that we place our strongest talent on our most important opportunities to drive long-term, sustainable growth across our portfolio and in all geographies.”

Reporting to Rendle is the following brand leadership team: Doug Palladini, Global Brand President, Vans; Steve Murray, Global Brand President, The North Face; Martino Scabbia Guerrini, President of the EMEA Region and interim Global Brand President for Timberland; Kevin Bailey, President of the Asia Pacific Region and Emerging Brands.

In appointing Murray to Global Brand President of The North Face, VF is tapping into Murray’s 30-years of experience leading several global apparel and footwear brands. Murray served as President of Vans following VF’s acquisition of the brand in 2004 and was later appointed as President of VF’s Action Sports Coalition in 2009. He has also served as CEO of Airwair International (Dr. Martens), Global Brand President of Urban Outfitters, and EMEA President for Deckers Brands. Earlier in his career, Murray was the Global Head of Apparel for Reebok International.